Plans are back on the table to convert parts of the first and second floors of Culcheth’s CPS Shopping Centre into 14 flats, and judging by the reaction so far, the village is not exactly rolling out the red carpet.
The application, submitted to Warrington Borough Council, seeks prior approval for a change of use at the centre on Common Lane. The ground floor, including Sainsbury’s, seven retail units and a solicitor’s office, is not the focus. The proposal concerns vacant space upstairs, where the developer says all 14 proposed residential units would meet national space standards.
That may tick a planning box, but it has not soothed local nerves. Dozens of objections have already gone in, including from Croft Parish Council and Culcheth and Glazebury Parish Council. Residents are raising the usual but very real Culcheth concerns: traffic, parking, pressure on services and the slow squeeze on village amenities.
One objector put it bluntly, saying the village does not need more homes when empty apartments already exist and around 200 new homes are being built nearby. They warned that rush hour and school-time traffic is already difficult and dangerous, with heavy vehicles thundering through the village. Their verdict was sharp: the change would be "catastrophic".
And honestly, it is not hard to see why people are bristling. Culcheth is constantly told it is a village, yet it is increasingly expected to absorb development like a small town with an elastic waistband. More homes without matching amenities is not planning, it is just squeezing another chair around an already crowded table.
The rawest part of this story remains what happened earlier this year, when traders at the CPS Centre were described as being "cruelly evicted" after owners Shivat Haminim Capital Ltd handed first-floor tenants formal notices terminating their licences. Some businesses had been there for decades, which makes the whole affair feel less like tidy estate management and more like ripping pages out of Culcheth’s community scrapbook.
Shivat Haminim Capital Ltd, which acquired the centre in 2021, cited fire safety concerns. The eviction letter said a report had identified critical works needed within weeks to remove life-threatening hazards. Fire safety is, of course, not something anyone should treat lightly. But the later report that the fire service believed the work could be completed without evictions has left many residents with eyebrows somewhere near the ceiling.
This is not the first attempt either. A previous proposal was withdrawn earlier this summer after around 150 letters of objection. Now the idea has returned in a new form, and locals appear no more enchanted than they were the first time.
There is a positive angle, because unused upper-floor space in a central building should not sit empty forever. Sensible residential use can bring life into village centres, support shops and prevent buildings from decaying into expensive pigeon hotels. But the word here is sensible, and residents are clearly not convinced this plan meets that test.
The application is listed on the planning section of the Warrington Borough Council website under reference 2025/01594/PA3MA. The original report was by Nathan Okell, Chief Reporter, and appeared with the usual online extras about the Public Notice Portal, USA Today and The Herald, which is a lot of publishing furniture for one very local planning row.