Marks & Spencer (M&S) has been granted permission by the High Court to apply for a judicial review of Michael Gove’s decision to refuse planning permission for the redevelopment of the retailer’s Marble Arch Store.
In July, the secretary of state for levelling up, housing and communities refused M&S permission to knock down and replace the store with a 10-storey building designed by Pilbrow & Partners, which would feature office space and a gym above a smaller shop.
Planning inspectors had originally approved M&S’s plans to rebuild the site, but in June 2022 Gove ordered a public inquiry into the proposals. In his decision letter, Gove highlighted a number of concerns including the loss of heritage assets, and the impact of the embodied carbon of the building.
M&S CEO Stuart Machin described Gove’s decision as “nonsensical” and an act of “self-sabotage” and said the retailer intended to review its “future position” on the street. In August, the retailer announced it had launched a legal challenge against the decision.
Machin said: “We are pleased that the court has recognised the merits of our legal challenge on every one of the six counts that we raised, and approved our case to proceed to the next stage. We have been clear from the very start that the refurbishment of the existing store was not possible, so this is only the first step in the lengthy process of overturning the government’s senseless decision to reject our Marble Arch proposal – the only retail-led regeneration on Oxford Street.
“With our investment and the amazing plans we have to transform the site into a modern, sustainable building it remains bewildering that we are again having to go through this after two years of support and approvals. But we will do everything necessary to secure a better future at Marble Arch for our local customers and community.”
