Beaumont Shopping Centre

Beaumont Shopping Centre is a neighbourhood retail and services destination in Beaumont Leys, on the edge of Leicester, United Kingdom. The centre serves the surrounding residential community and combines a conventional shopping-centre layout with a large Tesco Extra anchor store, convenience retail, food outlets, personal services, charity retail and access to local bus services. The property covers approximately 301,099 square feet, or 27,973 square metres, and includes the Bradgate Mall and Fletcher Mall areas together with associated car parks and public transport facilities. The centre’s retail offer has historically been supported by a broad mixture of national chains and community-oriented occupiers. Listed tenants include Boots, Iceland, Peacocks, Shoe Zone, Savers Health and Beauty, Aldi, Greggs, Costa Coffee, Specsavers, Pets at Home, CeX, O2, Age UK Charity Shop and Sally Health & Beauty. Tesco Extra is the principal anchor and includes a Tesco Phone Shop and Tesco Opticians. Matalan and Buzz Bingo are located nearby across the road, but are not formally part of the shopping centre. A notable feature of the site was Beaumont Market, an outdoor market that opened in 1984. It operated from Wednesday to Sunday, with a covered central area accommodating more than 60 stalls. The market sold products including fresh produce, games, DVDs, household goods and miscellaneous second-hand or low-cost items, and was sometimes supplemented by a mobile butcher. A Sunday car-boot sale also operated in an adjacent car park between March and November, although that activity ceased during the COVID-19 pandemic. The market area was closed and demolished in 2025; afterward, the space was used for temporary attractions including Beaumont Beach, a children's play area with sand, trampolines and other play structures. The centre provides three car parks with up to four hours of free parking. Toilet facilities are available inside Tesco Extra; public toilets formerly operated in the outdoor market area. A purpose-built bus terminus within the shopping-centre complex has seven stands and supports routes connecting Beaumont Leys with Leicester and nearby areas. Services listed for the terminus include First Leicester routes 14A, 25/26, 54 and 74, Centrebus services including the Hospital Hopper, Leicester Orbital routes 40N and 40S, and route 154. Ownership and management have not always been identical across the site. British Land owns Beaumont Shopping Centre, while GVA has been identified as its operator. The Fletcher Mall portion was sold to Cervidae in April 2021, indicating that parts of the wider property have been subject to separate ownership arrangements. Leicester City Council has also considered a Park and Ride hub on land north of the centre. The proposal included a bus-lane corridor linking the shopping-centre terminus with the neighbouring village of Anstey, although the development has remained uncertain. Beaumont Shopping Centre is therefore best understood as a local retail hub whose importance extends beyond shopping through its market history, transport interchange and community-oriented temporary uses.

Beaumont Shopping Centre developed as a retail and transport hub for Beaumont Leys, a residential area on the edge of Leicester. Its location gives it a role distinct from Leicester city-centre shopping destinations: it is primarily oriented toward regular household shopping, local services and access for nearby communities. The site occupies approximately 301,099 square feet and is arranged around shopping-centre malls, associated parking and a purpose-built bus terminus. The centre’s retail structure includes the Bradgate Mall and Fletcher Mall. Tesco Extra is the principal anchor tenant in the Bradgate Mall and incorporates additional Tesco services, including a phone shop and opticians. Other occupiers have represented a cross-section of everyday retail, including pharmacy, discount health and beauty, clothing, footwear, groceries, food service, optical care, pet supplies, mobile communications, resale and charity retail. This mix reflects the centre’s function as a convenient local destination rather than a specialist or luxury shopping venue. An important part of Beaumont’s history was its outdoor market. Beaumont Market opened in 1984 and operated from Wednesday through Sunday. Its covered main area contained more than 60 stalls, selling fresh fruit and vegetables, games, DVDs, household goods, general merchandise and miscellaneous bric-a-brac. A mobile butcher was also commonly present. The market added a low-cost and informal retail dimension to the centre and helped distinguish the complex from a standard enclosed shopping development. A Sunday car-boot sale for used goods was held in an adjacent car park from March to November, but this activity stopped during the COVID-19 pandemic. The market was eventually closed and demolished in 2025. Its former footprint was then used for temporary community and family-oriented attractions, including Beaumont Beach, a play area featuring a large sand pit, trampolines and other temporary structures. This change marked a shift from a permanent open-air market use toward flexible event and leisure programming. The property has also experienced changes in ownership structure. British Land is identified as the owner of Beaumont Shopping Centre, while GVA has been identified as its operator. In April 2021, the Fletcher Mall portion was sold to Cervidae. The separate transaction illustrates that the centre or its component parts may be managed through distinct property interests. Transport is central to the centre’s local role. A purpose-built bus terminus with seven stands provides services into Leicester and around the city’s outskirts. Listed services include First Leicester routes 14A, 25/26, 54 and 74, Centrebus services such as the Hospital Hopper, Leicester Orbital routes 40N and 40S, and route 154. The site also has three car parks, with up to four hours of free parking. Public toilets formerly stood in the outdoor market area, while toilet facilities are now available within Tesco. The centre has been linked to possible wider transport investment. Leicester City Council proposed a Park and Ride hub on land north of the shopping centre, together with a possible bus-lane corridor connecting the existing terminus with Anstey. The proposal has remained uncertain. Beaumont Shopping Centre consequently continues to function as a local retail, services and transport destination, while its former market area and possible transport expansion reflect the changing use of suburban shopping-centre land.

• 2025

  Market area demolished

  [1]Beaumont Shopping Centreen.wikipedia.org

  Beaumont Market closes and is demolished. The site is subsequently used for temporary attractions including Beaumont Beach.

• 2021

  Fletcher Mall portion sold

  [1]Beaumont Shopping Centreen.wikipedia.org

  The Fletcher Mall portion of the property is sold to Cervidae in April.

• 1984

  Beaumont Market opens

  [1]Beaumont Shopping Centreen.wikipedia.org

  The outdoor Beaumont Market opens within the shopping-centre area, eventually offering more than 60 stalls and operating from Wednesday through Sunday.

A practical community shopping centre serving Beaumont Leys and nearby Leicester neighbourhoods, anchored by a large supermarket and complemented by everyday retail, services, food outlets, local transport and historically by an outdoor market.

• Anchor supermarket

  Tesco Extra

  The principal anchor tenant in the Bradgate Mall. Tesco Extra provides grocery and general merchandise shopping and includes a Tesco Phone Shop and Tesco Opticians. It also contains the shopping centre's currently identified toilet facilities.

• Retail and services

  Everyday retail and services

  The centre's other listed occupiers cover pharmacy, health and beauty, clothing, footwear, discount groceries, food and coffee, optical services, pet supplies, mobile communications, resale and charity retail. Named businesses include Boots, Iceland, Peacocks, Shoe Zone, Savers Health and Beauty, Aldi, Greggs, Costa Coffee, Specsavers, Pets at Home, CeX, O2, Age UK Charity Shop and Sally Health & Beauty.

• Outdoor market · 1984

  Beaumont Market

  A covered outdoor market opened in 1984 and operated from Wednesday to Sunday. It offered more than 60 stalls selling produce, games, DVDs, household goods and general bric-a-brac, with a butcher's van often present. The market was closed and demolished in 2025.

• Transport facility

  Bus terminus

  A purpose-built seven-stand bus terminus forms part of the centre's infrastructure. It supports local and orbital services operated by First Leicester and Centrebus, connecting Beaumont Leys with Leicester and surrounding areas.

• 2025

  Replace the market-area use with temporary leisure programmingStrategy

  Background

  The long-running outdoor Beaumont Market was closed and its site was demolished, ending a retail use that had operated since 1984.

  Action taken

  The former market area was used for temporary attractions including Beaumont Beach, a children's play area with sand, trampolines and other temporary structures.

  Aftermath

  The site shifted from permanent open-air market activity toward flexible family and leisure uses.

  Source

• 2021

  Sale of the Fletcher Mall portionM&A

  Background

  The shopping-centre property included separately identifiable mall areas, including Fletcher Mall.

  Action taken

  The Fletcher Mall portion was sold to Cervidae in April 2021.

  Aftermath

  The transaction created a separate ownership interest in part of the wider Beaumont Shopping Centre property.

  Source

1. 1Beaumont Shopping Centreen.wikipedia.org