Business

M&S Morpeth Redesign Approved: Bigger Food Hall and Nine Apartments

Plans to expand and modernise the Marks & Spencer Food Hall in Morpeth town centre, with nine apartments above, have been approved. Work begins January 2027.

Morpeth.net·13 July 2026

Marks & Spencer is staying put in Morpeth town centre, and getting a substantial makeover in the process. Plans to expand and modernise the store's Food Hall, while converting the space above into new homes, have been given the green light by Northumberland County Council.

For shoppers, the key news is a commitment to the town centre: the scheme comes with a new 15-year lease, putting to rest any worry about the store's future. The existing Food Hall will grow, extending into the ground-floor general merchandise area and adopting M&S's latest modern layout and design.

As reported by the Northumberland Gazette, council planning officers approved the proposals under delegated powers. Alongside the retail changes, the existing upper floor will be converted into nine new residential apartments, bringing more people to live right in the heart of the town.

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Work is expected to begin in January 2027, with the new-look Food Hall scheduled to open in the summer of that year.

The plans reflect a wider shift in how town-centre retail space is being used. Rather than sprawling department stores, chains like M&S are increasingly focusing on food, while surplus upper floors are turned over to housing. In Morpeth's case, that means a bigger grocery offer at street level and nine homes above, making fuller use of a prime spot in the town.

It is also a vote of confidence in Morpeth. A modern Food Hall and a long lease signal that one of the town's anchor retailers sees a future here, at a time when high streets across the country are under pressure. Local campaigns such as "Keeping the Heart in Morpeth" have been urging shoppers to support the town centre, and a refreshed M&S adds weight to that message.

There will be some patience required. With work not starting until January 2027 and the store opening the following summer, shoppers can expect a period of change before the finished result arrives. But the destination, a larger, modernised Food Hall and new homes above it, looks set to keep this corner of the town centre firmly in use for years to come.

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