Amber Valley Borough Council has announced that it has appointed Roger Tym & Partners to undertake a Retail Study covering the four market towns of Alfreton, Belper, Heanor and Ripley and the local centre of Langley Mill. This will update the information upon which local retail policies are based to provide the evidence base for local plans, and is also inteded to assist the Council's consideration of retail development proposals, including various evidence and impact statements submitted in support of proposals. The Local Plan has defined town centre boundaries for each of the towns together with Primary Shopping Frontages at Alfreton, Belper and Ripley which will need to be reviewed and a decision taken as to if Heanor would benefit from having a Primary Shopping Frontage. We think this work will be carried out in February and March. Amber Valley's own website lists the purpose of the work as follows -'OBJECTIVESThe main purpose of the study is to assess the current performance and future retail prospects of each of the towns, identify likely trends in food and non-food retailing and implications and identify shortfalls in and opportunities for retail provision including different types of provisions.The study will provide information on the following:-(a) the retail capacity within towns in Amber Valley highlighting any shortfall in quantitative or qualitative retail provision in relation to reasonable expectation of retail offer of comparable locations;(b) Belper's capacity for change, including size and rate, given its location within the Belper and Milford Conservation Area and Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site;(c) shopping patterns including a graphical definition of the catchment areas from which each town draws its trade;(d) how people shop, where people shop, mode of transport, combined trips;(e) gaps in provision for which there is retailer demand in a format and at a scale which could be accommodated within towns in Amber Valley in relation to physical and demand requirements;(f) a recommendation as to if further investment should be promoted to bring Langley Mill up to town centre status, taking account in particular of any potential impacts on the town centres of Heanor and Eastwood;(g) recommendations for any changes to existing defined town centre boundaries and Primary Shopping Frontages;(h) a recommendation as to if Heanor should have a defined Primary Shopping Frontage, and if so what areas of the town centre it should include.