Angela Rayner approves demolition of iconic 1920s M&S building

A decision by Communities secretary Angela Rayner to approve the controversial demolition of a flagship 1920s M&S store has been condemned by a key heritage group.

The Deputy Prime Minister and Ashton-under-Lyne MP gave the retailer the go ahead for its plan to replace the iconic building on Oxford Street, London, with a nine-storey scheme, housing retail space, a cafe, gym, and offices. The move came after a four-year fight by the company to bulldoze the art deco building called Orchard House.

Ms Rayner's predecessor, Tory, Michael Gove, had blocked the plans in July last year. But his decision was quashed by a High Court judgein March 2024.

The court ruling meant the case had to go back to the secretary of state to be redetermined. With the change of government this year, the final decision fell to Ms Rayner.

Celebrities including Bill Bryson, Kevin McCloud, George Clarke and Griff Rhys Jones signed a letter to Ms Rayner this summer demanding that M&S Oxford Street be saved from demolition. High-profile architects also urged her to save the building by Marble Arch, and next door to Selfridges.

An influential group, SAVE Britain's Heritage, has called for urgent reform to national planning policy after the government’s "short-sighted decision".

SAVE director, Henrietta Billings, said: "Rethinking our wasteful knock-it-down-and-start-again approach to development and re-using and updating existing buildings like M&S Oxford Street is a win-win. It’s good for the planet and it’s good for our towns and communities.

"No-one is suggesting these buildings are pickled in aspic – it’s a pro-growth approach. Restored and transformed buildings have turbo-charged regeneration all over the country, everywhere from Tate Modern