Croydon residents want to see the town’s “depressing” high street revamped as they fear it’s dying without the long-awaited Westfield shopping centre.

Last week, it was revealed the company behind the stalled redevelopment of the town centre has been told to make £4m of improvements.

Using a clause in a contract, Croydon Council asked the Croydon Partnership, the joint venture combining Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield and Hammerson, to invest in North End.

The company has so far failed to redevelop the Whitgift Centre and the surrounding town centre after it dropped plans for a new £1.5 billion Westfield shopping centre in 2019.

Plans to revamp the 1960s centre into a modern shopping mall had been in the pipeline for more than a decade by then.

The uncertainty over the future of Croydon town centre has seen it deteriorate with more and more shops leaving.

Shoppers that spoke to the Local Democracy Reporting Service all wanted to see Croydon restored to its former glory.

Michael Seymour, 58, who has lived in Croydon all his life said shoppers are now heading to other outer London shopping districts.

Your Local Guardian: Michael Seymour said Croydon town centre was the best place for shopping in the past.Michael Seymour said Croydon town centre was the best place for shopping in the past.

He said: “Croydon has become much more run down. It used to be the biggest place for shopping that people would visit, but now people go to Bromley.

“They have got to brighten it up and make it more modern.

"Croydon is full of businesses but shops don’t want to come here anymore.

"There are too many vaping shops. I think it needs something a bit more trendy.”

Tina Crawford, 50, agreed saying she now goes “anywhere else” to do her shopping.

She said: “I think there is no town centre anymore it is just very, very depressing.

"I’ve lived in Croydon all my life and I never shop here. I only came today to meet a friend, I usually go anywhere else.

“I want them to invest in local businesses and reduce their rates.

"They could get artists in the empty shops to make it more interesting rather than just putting the hoardings up.”

Daniel Grossett runs video game shop Playnation Games, which has been in Croydon for 20 years. 

He said: “I can’t help but feel they have allowed the allure of Westfield to stick around for ages when they should have moved on sometime ago.

“A few years ago there was talk about Croydon being like the new Hoxton, but now the town feels like the movie set of a run down town.

"I think Croydon would do well to start looking – the first thing you need to do is get independents and give them free advertising.”

One of his employees, 19-year-old Max Wimble, just wants to see more businesses coming to the high street.

He said: “It would be nice to see the area get a but nicer and have some new businesses, it feels like a lot of stuff round here is closed.”

While Darren Bower, 26, who has worked there for six years, thinks North End is trailing behind the area near East Croydon, which has seen a huge amount of investment from BoxPark.

He said: “When they have the events in the public areas it is good, that end of the high street [opposite the cinema] and near East Croydon is nicer, but the high street has fallen off.

"Right now I feel it is getting worse on the high street – there are a lot of units that are closed.”

Sara Carrasco works at a bank in North End and thinks a new market could draw more people to the area.

Your Local Guardian: Sara Carrasco wants to see a market in the high streetSara Carrasco wants to see a market in the high street

She said: “I think a market would be beautiful it would bring something more exciting to the high street. I know we have Surrey Street Market but that is only food. It would be lovely to have another type of market.

“It would invite people into the town centre and I think it would clean up the way it looks.”

The Croydon Partnership is yet to submit its plans for the future of the town centre.

Since 2019, it has hinted new plans would include fewer shops, but a council report last week revealed it would only start working on a masterplan this year.

A spokesperson for the Croydon Partnership said: “As we continue, in partnership with Croydon Council, to focus on defining a new approach for the regeneration of the town centre, The Croydon Partnership is committed to making a substantial investment into initiatives for the benefit of the Whitgift Centre and the wider town centre.

“While these initiatives are brought forward, we will continue to support our existing occupiers through local activations and concepts to engage the local community this year.”