A DOCUMENT laying out how the council sees Blackburn town centre’s future can be a 'bible' for planning.

At a Blackburn with Darwen Council executive board meeting, members approved the adoption of the town centre supplementary planning document.

The document sets out ways the council manages the future evolution of the town centre and public facilities in the face of strong competition and changing pressures.

Now it has been formally adopted, planning and highways committee members will be able to take it into account when making decisions on proposed town centre developments.

Borough regeneration boss Cllr Phil Riley said: “This effectively lays out the direction of travel the council wants to follow in terms of plans for the town centre.

“It will become a bit of a bible we will be able to use for plans and developments which may come along in the years to come.”

Cllr Jim Smith said: “Looking through the document fills me with hope about the town centre.

“We have already seen some of it delivered and if we follow it through, it will help make Blackburn the best town in Lancashire,” he added.

Six sites are identified as being critical to the success of the council’s ambitions, with potential uses detailed in the recently-published document.

They are the former markets, Thwaites brewery, the Cathedral Quarter, Northgate, Wainwright Way and Victoria Street/Barbara Castle Way (Fabric Borders).

Cllr Maureen Bateson welcomed the document but added it was vital not to forget the importance of open spaces in the town centre.

She said: “Lots of people use them as meeting places and we don’t want everything to be crowded with developments.

“Open spaces can help bring people together and if we want greater integration, it is really key.”

Cllr Brian Taylor said: “We have made a very good start with regeneration in the borough and this is going to help.

“I think we are getting to the tipping point where the town centre is starting to look really good and modern.”

In a report to the board, Cllr Riley added: “Blackburn with Darwen has some major positive assets including its landscape setting, urban green spaces and built heritage.

“Operators are increasingly selective about where they choose to invest, and are highly focused on a town centre’s wider ‘offer’ to its customers, including aspects such as the mix of uses present in a centre, the quality of the physical environment, and management issues such as car parking regimes.

“Successful town centres are those which have responded to these issues and become a destination for more than simply shopping.

“Our key objective in managing development in the town centre is therefore to maintain progress and increase their competitiveness, and to broaden its function, beyond a traditional shopping focus, while managing any negative pressures that such change may bring.”