Sheffield Meadowhall shopping centre gets £300m extension

Work on the £300m extension will start next year and it is planned to open by 2021

Plans for a £300m extension to the Meadowhall shopping centre in Sheffield have been approved.

The 330,000 sq ft (27,800 sq m) development will include restaurants, a cinema and a gym and will create more than 1,500 jobs.

Building work is expected to start next year with the new complex opening in 2021.

A number of retailers across the city objected to the expansion claiming it would affect their businesses.

The new development will include a cinema, restaurants and a gym

Charles Maudsley, from Meadowhall's co-owner British Land, said the new development would bring more than £24m a year into the local economy.

"It sits alongside other significant investments in the city centre and elsewhere, and ensures the area continues to play a key role in the UK economy, creating jobs and a skilled workforce, improving the quality of life for residents and enhancing its appeal to visitors," he added.

The shopping centre, which opened in 1990, is already undergoing a £60m refurbishment due for completion at the end of 2017.