Bluewater tops UK shopping centre league table

Westfield has been beaten by Bluewater to the top spot in a property expert's table of UK shopping centres. Westfield's latest offering – the 1.9m sq ft Stratford City shopping centre that opened in London in September – has been placed third while Gateshead's Metro Centre came second. Westfield London, in Shepherd's Bush, is now fourth.

The index, by retail property expert Trevor Wood Associates, scores the top 500 centres in the UK on attractiveness to shoppers, retailers and investors, analysing everything from tenant turnover to the number of shop vacancies.

Of the top 10, six are out-of-town shopping centres – highlighting the extent that shoppers are being lured away from traditional high streets.