Work to start on third phase of The Moor redevelopment as visitor numbers continue to rise

Work will start on the old McDonalds and Woolworths block as part of the third phase of redevelopment on the corner opposite Debenhams that will house H&M.

Bosses said 2018 looks set to continue in the same vein as 2017 which has seen a marked increase in footfall - up 19 per cent on last year.

It has been a busy year with the opening of phase two of the redevelopment which included The Light cinema and leisure complex and four new restaurants - Pizza Express, Zizzi, GBK and Nando’s.

Centre manager of The Moor, Amanda Phillips said: "The Moor is leading the regeneration of Sheffield city centre.

"We have seen a marked increase in footfall during 2017 – up 19 per cent year to date with a total annual footfall of over 11 million.

"We are also experiencing repeat and extended shopping time at our retailers and our increasing number of restaurants.

"This is excellent news for us and for Sheffield city centre."

Business manager Light Cinema Sheffield, Ashley Inman, said the feeback from visitors has been 'overwhelming' since it opened in April.

He said: “It’s been a roller coaster time since we opened mid-April.

"We ​have been​ absolutely bowled over by the welcome we have received and the feedback from our guests has been overwhelming.

"We have built up a regular clientele so we are happy to say that we are now the 10th most visited cinema in Yorkshire.

This year also saw the opening of Caffe Nero, Costa and Krispy Kreme.

Operations manager at Krispy Kreme, Ben Scott said: "We are delighted to have opened our 94th UK store on The Moor.

"We’d been looking to open in the city centre and The Moor was the obvious choice given the buzz created by redevelopment - there are so many great reasons to visit now.

"In the first week alone we sold over 12,000 doughnuts to our delighted customers.

"We are enjoying meeting the good people of Sheffield and look forward to seeing the business continue to grow.”

Outdoor specialist Blacks opened their largest stores in the UK on The Moor in June.

Lee Bagnall, chief executive officer of Outdoors at JD Sports, which owns Blacks, said: "The work that has been done to revitalise the city centre is really outstanding and we are really excited to welcome customers to what is a very special, state of the art, store, in which they will be able to use all of the very latest technology in outdoor wear and equipment to give them a truly interactive experience.”

The Moor Market has gone from strength to strength with the occupancy rate now at 80 per cent.

Mrs Phillips added: "The Moor Market has been open for nearly four years. It has been evolving in that time, still retaining its traditional roots selling fresh produce, meat and fish with a selection of non-food stalls, but also introduces artisan food pop ups and other independent traders.

"The occupancy rate is now over 80 per cent and a recent economic impact analysis indicates that the Moor Market generates nearly £11m of GVA per year, supporting 250 full and part time jobs."

Regular events held in the area include the Taste Moor event as part of the city's food festival and a classic car rally. The Moor also hosted a Magical Books event in October as part of the Off The Shelf literacy festival.