Replanning the central area of Wakefield, West Yorkshire: culture and regeneration, 1990–2021

Towns and cities in the industrial and former coal mining areas of England have often struggled to cope with economic restructuring. This article offers a near contemporary history of the central area of one such city, where culture has become a key device for promoting development and regeneration. Three episodes of policy are distinguished: from 1990 to about 2011, the emergence of a twin-track economic strategy that combined out-of-town business parks with the remodelling of the central area partly on ‘Urban Renaissance’ principles: from 2011 onwards, continued city centre decline when previous investments had little economic impact; and after about 2020, a process of re-orientation; and as part of this, a reinvigorated attempt to rebrand the city, albeit within the continuing framework of the twin-track strategy. A reflexive methodology is used to construct the narrative. That methodology enables a joint consideration of discourse and economic realities, showing how place, branding, and planning come together in representational logics that generate both supportive and counter narratives.