Here is a short, three-page, intro on how to structure a comment or objection to a planning application.
Use the references included to achieve the right balance and focus on the points you want to get across the the Planners.
https://1drv.ms/b/c/9538cbfc3d4cbf67/IQB68ZurQBJTTbhf60J4cU16AdqtJ6MqRJ-C5QKgwSVcJJo?e=XQlhtD
1 Apr: Briefing Note from Development Team: Here is a link to the three-page summary note distributed at the Liberton & District CC meeting on 30 March:
Liberton District CC Briefing Note on Cameron Toll 30 Mar 2026
31 Mar:Cameron Toll Development Proposals:Liberton & District CC held a briefing event on 30 March. Representatives of the development team were there to answer questions. In the first instance, remind yourself of the redevelopment proposals here:https://camerontollmasterplan.co.uk/. Secondly, recognise that the proposals tabled, though detailed, are very much proposals, not firm or approved plans. Thirdly, as the development teams states, ‘your feedback will inform the final stage of the design’. From here, GPCC encourages you to make your own opinion known directly to the development team. Very likely, there will be too wide a span of local opinion to allow broad conclusions to be drawn, certainly at this time.
Here are some of the talking points:
*There will be a marked change in skyline profiles, with c. 45m building elevations (11 storeys) towards the north end of the site. Skyline changes and ‘intrusions’ are a big part of the design considerations. There could be c. 500 new homes; by way of sale, rent and affordable housing. Car parking facilities for householders will be very constrained. Expect student housing to be added to the mix. All of this means big infrastructure provision.
*The covered mall concept will go. In good part by change in building regulations. There will be food and beverage outlets and ‘family leisure’ opportunities, perhaps along with some sports facilities. There is the idea of a ‘civic hub’ but it is thin on detail.
*The whole idea of a 20-minute neighbourhood centre needs a vibrant retail core and a service hub of post office, health and personal service facilities, but it is too early to do anything other than picture these.
*Related to the retail core is the very delicate issue of overall parking capacity – how much and how to manage. Capacity will be cut from current levels (driven by Council planning guidelines), but cut it too much and the retail hub is badly undermined.
*The idea of redirecting the Braid Burn, while bringing part of it back to daylight from the culvert, is causing disquiet on several counts, notably on engineering considerations and on flood risk (with spillover impacts). This is still in the hands of the engineers.
*This is not a pristine greenfield site. It is a brownfield site, marked as open to redevelopment. The existing retail hub is no longer commercially viable. Age and change in shopping patterns are the imminent threat to the Centre’s future. Change of use and a fundamental design re-think are crucial to the sites’ future as a locality and community hub. *Expect a planning application towards the end of 2026. If you have questions or seek more information, please get in contact with the development team by email atmailto:CameronToll@cbre.com
28 Mar: Craigmillar Park Association (CPA): Ian Wright writes:
The CPA had a meeting with CBRE and Cameron Toll management.
Plans are progressing with more detailed architectural drawings being developed to give a much better idea of what the individual block being planned for the site will look like. Architects are looking at placement of the blocks to avoid shading of Lady Road etc. Block will be Retail at floor level with between 4 and 10 stories above. Lady Road residents of course are concerned about shadowing. Braid burn will be uncovered for part of it's length creating a green corridor. Idea is to make the area outward facing compared with the inward looking site as present.
Main points:
*Current building is coming towards the end of it's useful life. Maintenance is becoming an increasing issue.
*Retail alone will not sustain the shopping centre. This plan is to revitalise the Cameron Toll site, or the alternative is a slow decline and dereliction.
*Aim is to attract new outlets, e.g. perhaps a restaurant / bistro etc and increase variety of retail, while retaining the major Supermarket(s) as key attractions.
*Car parking is being reviewed. They claim current usage is no more than 60% of car park places. Local concerns are displacement of cars into local streets.
*There will be phased construction with individual blocks being built with the shopping centre open throughout.
*Detailed plans should be ready be Mid 2026, with planning application done later in the year, with planning consent expected late 2026 or early 2027.
*Further consultation will take place once more detailed plans are available.
*Of note: Edinburgh is the retail crime hot spot of Scotland. One Scotmid shop in Tollcross lost £180,000 in goods in one year. Cameron Toll has at least daily events.
27 Mar: Cameron Toll Development Proposals: What we see and hear of just now are exploratory, outline plans. A detailed planning application might be expected late 2026, early 2027. In any event, a profound change is in prospect to the retail-dominated layout we have at the moment. The current shopping centre is held to be past its useful life. The site needs a new commercial viability and that will rest on ‘mixed use’ and changes to profile, layout, densities and parking capacities. For people living close to Cameron Toll, the natural concerns are going to be change in skyline, new high-rise blocks, incidence of ‘shadowing’ and displacement activity. The ‘retail experience’ will change. There will be a change in the centre’s ambience and comfort zones. The present outline plans are too vague to argue for and against. We will continue to learn more and will keep you informed.
25 Mar: Cameron Toll Development Proposals: On 30 March, Liberton & District Community Council is hosting an online review of the development plans, led by CBRE, representatives of the developers, from 7pm. For further detail and to request a Zoom online link, go tohttps://libertondcc.wordpress.com/. You can view the outline plans athttps://camerontollmasterplan.co.uk
10 Mar: Cameron Toll Development Proposals: A second public display of the early proposals was presented recently at Cameron Toll centre. We expect this 'Mixed Use' project to move towards the planning application stage. We also expect wide publicity and public consultation to build. You can view the current Consultation Boards here:https://camerontollmasterplan.co.uk/downloads/
Please take advantage of the invitation to giveyouropinion on what is proposed.
This is a major neighbourhood project for the south-east of Edinburgh. The change envisaged reflects the change of an expanding city, prospective new transport networks, shifts in retail patterns, commercial realities and the framework of Edinburgh’s Local Development Plan, with its emphasis on neighbourhood amenity. Change happens.
GPCC is in contact with the developer’s representatives, will be following this story, and will keep you appraised. In the meantime, make a point of responding to the feedback invitation in the link above. See also:https://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/news/redevelopment-of-edinburghs-cameron-toll-to-create-genuine-20-minute-neighbourhood-5618865
12 Feb: Cameron Toll Redevelopment Plan: The second consultation event offered by the developer takes place on Thursday, 26 February in the Central Mall of the shopping centre, from 2pm to 7pm. The outline proposals from the first December event are here:https://camerontollmasterplan.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/250004-Public-Consultation-Exhibition-Boards-final_hq.pdf. The redevelopment initiative will now have to incorporate the idea of a tram-train hub merging the proposed north-south tram with the west-east South Suburban rail line. Grand schemes!
9 Jan 2026: Cameron Toll Redevelopment: Proposal of Application
CBRE have revised the next exhibition date at Cameron Toll Shopping Centre from 5 February to 26 February 2026 (2pm to 7pm). This is to allow the project team to progress current discussions with the Council Planning Team and to review the comments received to date from the public and other interested parties. It will be worthwhile to get an indication of how people see the vision, not least with regard to the idea of a tram and a train stopping at the local station.
17 Dec: Cameron Toll Redevelopment – Outline Proposals
A Proposal of Application Notice has been submitted by Hunter REIM, carrying new outline proposals for the regeneration of the forty-year-old Cameron Toll centre. A first consultation event took place at the centre on 15 December. Another will follow on 5 February (2pm to 7pm).
This link will take you to the ‘storyboard’:https://camerontollmasterplan.co.uk/
The broad idea is to move the centre’s focus from mainly retail to a much wider ‘mixed village’ concept with retail, catering, entertainment, a wide range of accommodation types, and a strong community focus. The broad idea, then is squeezing the ‘quart into the pint pot’, with a ‘bit of everything. This is all very exploratory, and aspirational. The look and tone of the ‘centre’ would be very different.
You have to invest the time to form your own views on this. We’ll follow the story as best we can.
24 Nov: Cameron Toll Redevelopment
News is emerging of the revised major redevelopment scheme intended for the Cameron Toll Centre. No detail as yet. The broad scheme is ‘comprehensive’:Mixed use development potentially comprising retail, commercial, residential, student accommodation, later living accommodation, hotel, office space, sports/leisure and community uses and public realm, along with associated landscaping and infrastructure.
See also:https://theedinburghreporter.co.uk/2025/11/cameron-toll-to-be-made-tram-ready/
The proposals will be exhibited at two consultation events as follows:
Event 1: 2pm – 7pm, Monday 15th December 2025 Event 2: 2pm-7pm, Thursday 5th February 2026, both at Central Mall, Cameron Toll Shopping Centre, 6 Lady Rd, Edinburgh, EH16 5PB
14 Apr 2026:Southside Community Councilis working on aLocal Place Plan (LPP)and is inviting residents of Southside and neighbouring areas to get involved. A LPP is a community-group driven initiative to come up with ideas on local ‘place’ and ‘space’ that can be adopted in the city’s next Local Development Plan. This will beCity Plan 2040and it will guide, in a lot of detail, the future shape and development of the city, focused on, but not limited to, the built environment. To get a reference point, take a look atCity Plan 2030. It's an impressive document.https://planningedinburgh.com/2024/11/07/city-plan-2030-now-adopted/
At this point, the Southside LPP is in its early stages. There are two ways to begin exploring. There is ashort online survey(around 10 minutes) covering housing, streets and spaces, and community amenities and there is aninteractive mapwhere people can pin comments and suggestions to specific locations in the neighbourhood. Then, onSaturday, 9 May, Southside Community Council will host another community workshop, from 1–3pm at Southside Community Centre. Here is the link to attend the workshop:
https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1984515693862?aff=oddtdtcreator
GPCC hasn’t engaged in a LPP exercise itself, although other neighbouring community councils do have the heads down. Locally, the Grange Association has had an involvement with a LPP drawn up for the future development of the Astley Ainslie site. LPPs are hosted by the Council’s Planning Department and they will be submitted there in September 2026. Around that time, they will be shared publicly for further consultation and comment. Do look out for that, then.
Planning Department will also issue ‘Calls for Ideas’ around that time, inviting you to chip in with small scale suggestions for improvements to neighbourhood green space, open space, design features, safety issues or mobility hazards. This is about what you ‘care about, like, don’t like’ or feel ‘could be better’. It is not about building a master plan.
For those of you who want to take a close look at the LPP concept, go to this Council link:
https://www.edinburgh.gov.uk/local-development-plan-guidance-1/local-place-plans
TheGIS Atlasfeature is worth examining. The ‘Layer List’ feature at the top RHS needs some patience, though.
The Council is working on a review of the funding model for the CGF, a small grants scheme provided by the Council offering grants of up to £5,000 to constituted groups for local community activity. Help by completing the survey to give your opinion. Go to The Consultation Hub on the front page.
29 June 2026:After many months of hard work by the Local Place Plan subcommittee, on behalf of Morningside Community Council, I am delighted to share the proposedMorningside Local Place Plan. As you represent an area that falls within or adjoins the proposed Local Place Plan area, we are sharing the Plan with you as part of the statutory consultation process.
You can view the draft here:
https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0?ui=2&ik=941f5825cc&attid=0.1&permmsgid=msg-f:1869336877028578228&th=19f137fc48d393b4&view=att&zw&disp=safe
The Place Plan covers the Morningside area and has been developed following extensive community engagement. It sets out the community's shared vision and priorities for the future of the area.
In accordance with the Local Place Plan regulations, we are providing an opportunity for any representations on the content of the proposed Local Place Plan. Should you wish to make any representations, please send them to me byMonday 27thJuly.If you wish to discuss any aspect of the proposed Local Place Plan or seek clarification on its content, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Thank you for taking the time to consider the proposed Local Place Plan. We appreciate your continued support for our community and look forward to submitting the final Plan to the Council following completion of the statutory consultation process.
Many Thanks
Caroline McKinley
Secretary Morningside Community Council
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Introduction
Your Ward Councillors and the City Council want to hear what you think about a host of issues; Theyneedto hear what you think. Otherwise, your opinions on city life are just background noise. The Council’sConsultation and Engagement Hubis a rolling directory of online surveys. It's part of City of Edinburgh Council'sCitizen Space.
ACCESS THE DETAIL HERE:https://consultationhub.edinburgh.gov.uk/.
Below we list a selection of the current and new* survey activities on the Hub.
Take a look and take part. (If you don't take part, you can't be counted and you miss having your say!)
For more information, on public consultation and engagement activities conducted by the Council, please refer to the CECConsultation Hub.
Call for Ideas contributions to City Plan 2040 – Close 30 Sep 2026
Proposed Lease of Common Good Property, 20 sq m: Middle Meadow Walk: Close 28 Oct 2026
Proposed Deed of Servitude over Common Good Property, Greenside: Calton Hill: Close 28 Oct 2026
Proposed Lease of Common Good Property: Royal Observatory, Blackford Hill: Close 28 Oct 2026
Community Payback Consultation 2026: Close 9 Nov 2026
Meadows to George Street: Mailing list for project updates. Close 31 December 2026
City Plan 2040 – Mailing List; sign up for project updates. Close 31 December 2028
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Catch-up on the progress of this project at 7.30pm on 23 April, at the main lecture theatre in the Nucleus Building, on the King’s Buildings’ campus. The campaign is advocating using tram trains to provide a fast and efficient public transport service around the South Suburban rail line. Of specific local interest are the issues relating to Newington, Liberton and, of course, Cameron Toll. You can register your interest via Eventbrite here:
