Date published: 21 August 2026
Plans to demolish Evesham's Riverside Shopping Centre have been given the green light, marking another significant step in the regeneration of a key part of the town centre.
Wychavon's Planning Committee approved the demolition application on Thursday, 20 August. A demolition contractor is expected to be appointed by October and will begin preparing a detailed plan setting out exactly how the shopping centre, multi-storey car park and 42 Bridge Street, which currently houses part of Sports Direct, will be taken down.
Pictured: Overhead shot of the Riverside Shopping Centre site
The plan will need to be formally signed off before work can begin and will address concerns raised during the planning process about noise and dust, protection of heritage assets in and around the site and protection of bats. Worcestershire County Council will also need to pre-agree the routes that demolition vehicles and machinery will use to travel to and from the site. This will help to keep disruption to local residents, businesses and visitors to a minimum.
It is likely demolition will start in spring 2027, but it could happen earlier if businesses still operating from the centre agree to leave in the next few months. Community workshops to develop the artwork to decorate the hoarding that will surround the site will begin in the autumn.
Progress is also being made on finding a development partner to work with Wychavon on the future regeneration of the site. The vision for the site is to provide a mixed-use scheme made of housing, retail and leisure businesses, delivering high-quality design and place making.
A number of interested companies have already come forward. An appointment is expected to be made in spring next year, with detailed plans available towards the end of 2027, following community engagement, ready for a planning application to be submitted in spring 2028.
Cllr Emma Kearsey, Executive Board Member for Planning, Infrastructure and Urban Design, said: "Securing permission for demolition was a key part of the steps we set out at the start to make change happen on the Riverside Shopping Centre site and we have now delivered on that commitment. That should give people confidence as we move into the next stage and start shaping the vision for the transformation ahead.”
Cllr Richard Morris, Leader of Wychavon, added: “Demolition isn't the end goal for Riverside - regeneration is. We have no intention of replacing an empty shopping centre with an empty site. That's why work to find the right development l partner is already progressing alongside preparations for demolition.
“There is strong interest in the site and we're determined to keep up the momentum and deliver this game-changing opportunity for Evesham.”