"Good quality" national retailers are interested in coming to Hartlepool’s Middleton Grange Shopping Centre - providing the "right size units, at the right cost" are available, a meeting was told.

The update was provided at the latest board meeting of Hartlepool Development Corporation (HDC), which concluded negotiations to buy the long lease for the centre in late 2023.

Councillor Pamela Hargreaves, Hartlepool Borough Council’s leader and chair of the board, said it is “not all doom and gloom” for the shopping centre and there are “positive things” happening.

Tim Cornford, from Black Cat, which have been appointed as asset managers for the centre, said there “is hope and positive things to be discussing”.

A vision of how Hartlepool's Middleton Grange Shopping Centre may look as part of a wider £25m revamp of the town. Pic from Hartlepool Council.

placeholder image — A vision of how Hartlepool's Middleton Grange Shopping Centre may look as part of a wider £25m revamp of the town. Pic from Hartlepool Council.

He added: “There’s been interest from operators to come into Middleton Grange. It’s about trying to just work out the right deals to be doing.

“There are good quality retailers, national brands, that would be interested in taking space in the town if there were the right size units at the right cost for them to take, so it’s definitely not all doom and gloom.”

He added this includes operators who would be “interested in coming from an edge of town location”.

Mr Cornford noted there are many areas across the country also facing a “significant challenge with what’s happening in the retail sector across the whole of the UK”.

Hartlepool's Middleton Grange Shopping Centre.

He continued: “Middleton Grange is without doubt oversized, there’s too much retail space.”

The HDC board meeting heard this would start to be addressed through the “phase one works” around the Binns building, previously home to Wilko.

The site is undergoing a £13.8m redevelopment and the project features the partial demolition of the north east corner of the shopping centre.

Mr Cornford added in the short term this provides “huge opportunities to make significant cost savings” through reduced security and cleaning responsibilities.

It comes as a report to the HDC board noted the shopping centre is currently budgeted to have a net deficit of £1.21million in 2026-27.

Cllr Hargreaves added there are “things happening” at the site and highlighted the recently approved Valour veterans support centre, which will be located in Middleton Grange, as a positive development.

Meanwhile, in March plans were announced for a new Nuclear and Electrical Trades Academy at the former Binns building.