Three town centre regeneration projects moving quickly

Published: 24 March 2026

Image shows council leader simon tagg, left, and C&C co-founder Tim Heatley inspecting the former Ryecroft site
Council leader Simon Tagg, left, and C&C co-founder Tim Heatley inspect progress at the former Ryecroft site.

Newcastle’s town centre regeneration is moving ahead at pace.

Work is well underway on three sites creating hundreds of new homes, commercial space and an aparthotel.

Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council Leader Simon Tagg and Tim Heatley, co-founder at social impact developer Capital&Centric, saw for themselves the progress being made across the town centre.

Simon Tagg said:

The council has worked hard to find the £90 million funding to make this possible, and to find the right developer in C&C to turn the idea into reality.
 

Residents can see for themselves the work taking shape as we successfully transform Newcastle town centre.
 

By the end of these projects there will be hundreds more people living in the heart of the town, using its shops, bars and restaurants.”

Partner Capital&Centric is delivering three regeneration projects:

  • Standing on land at Ryecroft once occupied by a supermarket and the old civic centre, Rye Park will be home to town houses, apartments and an aparthotel.
  • Astley Place is renamed in honour of the town’s creator of the modern circus, the structure at the former York Place is being retained to save carbon. The new development will have homes, music venue, commercial space for restaurants and bars, and green space linking Merrial Street and Ironmarket.
  • The former Midway car park, dubbed Karparc by the developers, is attracting widespread attention for the innovative way it is being transformed into homes using the original concrete structure.

Tim Heatley said:

Karparc is currently attracting international interest because this is the first time an old concrete car park has been repurposed in this way, rather than simply being demolished.
 

I love that we’re doing something new, something different with this particular project but the three projects together will combine in an epic transformation of Newcastle’s town centre.
 

What we’re creating here will shape the landscape in a way that residents can be proud of.”

See Simon Tagg and Tim Heatley on site: https://youtube.com/shorts/elJO4jB39VU