Russell Pedley, director and co-founder at Assael Architecture, said:
“Blending retail use classes with residential is going to become increasingly vital in urban locations throughout the UK. Lidl’s plan to deliver 3,000 homes is testimony to the shifting approach to city planning and urban housing development. Due to the rising cost of land in UK cities, developers are looking to intensify land-use and open up alternative income streams to help underwrite their central asset. Amid a housing crisis, it makes sense for councils and local authorities to encourage retail developers to integrate homes into their projects, keeping the ‘high street’ vibrant. While this trend is likely to continue in the UK, we need to ensure that the quality of housing delivered alongside these retail outlets is top shelf, as well as affordable, and that the use classes are blended appropriately, not simply thrown together.”