Appendix D Economy

Chester is the principal economic centre in CWaC, providing 44% of the borough’s total business stock and 46% of employment. Chester is highly service sector focused, with a clustering of banking, financial service, and insurance sector businesses and employment.⁵ Local Plan Policy ECON 1 sets out how the Council will promote competitive town centre environments and bring forward sites to meet a range of town centre uses including commercial, retail, leisure, culture and office uses.

Employment in private sector services accounts for 64% of total employment in Chester, significantly above the Retail PROMIS average. Professional & business services and finance sectors together account for an above average 17.3% of total employment, while retailing and leisure account for 28.9% of total employment, slightly above the Retail PROMIS average. The public sector accounts for 13.3% of total employment in Chester, slightly below the Retail PROMIS average. Major employers include Cheshire West and Chester Council, Cheshire Constabulary, and the University of Chester. The manufacturing sector in Chester accounts for 8% of total employment, around the Retail PROMIS average.⁶

The Employment Land Study Update (2013) states that there is limited land available within Chester for future employment development and a lack of space for large, modern office premises above 1,000m2 floorspace.

Office stock in the City Centre comprises a mix of new build, refurbished and basic specification accommodation. Key office buildings include the modern City Place building adjacent to the Station (in addition to an owner-occupied Lloyds Banking Group building), the HQ office scheme adjacent to the racecourse and the mixed-use Gorse Stacks scheme. The remainder of City Centre stock ranges in size and specification, comprising a mix of refurbished and basic specification single and multi-let buildings in addition to space above retail accommodation.

Headline office rents within the City Centre as of August 2020 were £19.50 per sq ft. Rental levels for good secondary, secondary, and tertiary space vary subject to size of suite, location, and key attributes. Historically, annual take up figures have fluctuated (dependent on market conditions) but typically average around 100,000 sq ft per annum.

The majority of occupier demand within the market is for sub 2,500 - 5,000 sq ft suites. Larger requirements for the city compete with more established regional locations such as Warrington, the Liverpool City Region, and the wider Cheshire out of town market.

The Chester One City Plan sets out how business investment into the City Centre is low and Chester is failing to compete with other economic centres as a place for business and economic activity. To address this, the Plan identifies the Chester Business Quarter as a location for a mixed-use scheme that will bring future employment activity. Within this area, Chester Central Business District is a major regeneration initiative in the north east of the city, adjacent to the railway station. There is the potential to deliver approximately 44,000m2 of high-quality new office space to drive Chester’s commercial offer and future economic growth.

The Northgate area of the City Centre has also been identified as a key strategic regeneration location. The Northgate redevelopment is a key leisure scheme in the City Centre. Residential accommodation within the Northgate development will be encouraged by the Council in order to create an active and mixed community and to support the leisure and retail uses within the city.

In 2016 Hybrid planning permission was secured (planning reference 16/02282/OUT) for the following development at Northgate:

Phase I of Northgate is now underway. This comprises a series of open streets parades and plazas, which will house:

A six-screen cinema – Picturehouse Cafés, bars and restaurants

A new, indoor market

New parking

⁵ Chester One City Plan 2012-2027.

⁶ Promis Retail Report, PMA (April 2021).

‘… comprehensive mixed-use development comprising; retail stores, restaurants, cafes, drinking establishments (Use Classes A1, A2, A3 and A4), offices (Use Class B1), cinema and leisure uses (Use Class D2), 70-120 residential units (Use Class C3), public toilets, shopmobility, a relocated hotel and indoor market with associated new public squares, car and cycle parking, provision for buses and associated highway works and infrastructure, landscaping and public realm works.’

Co-working office spaces

Phase I is due to open in summer 2022. Phase II is currently being considered by the Council and a Development Framework for the later stages of Northgate could be considered in due course.