EAGLE CENTRE

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The centre is to cut its opening hours to close an hour earlier on weekdays from January. Westfield said the decision was made after research into trading patterns and by talking to retailers. A spokesman said the current economic climate was only a minor factor in the decision. Westfield said it would continue to review the trading patterns in the city, which could change when developments such as the Riverlights complex are finished and mean it would be in the centre's interests to open for longer. A former retailer in the centre said the late opening hours had been a pressure on his business, which had now closed.

Phal Singh, owner of shoe shop Raid, said, "Most of the retailers were complaining about the fact that they had to stay open after 6pm because there is no-one in that shopping centre after 6pm. Westfield was adamant it would stay open to the advertised times and that shoppers would adjust but that obviously hasn't happened. I really struggled to pay staff to work the extra hours because I was making perhaps only three or four sales in those last hours of trading. After the sales in January, I think shops really would struggle because trade goes really quiet. I think it could have helped me if the changes had been brought in while I was still trading." (Source: Derby Evening Telegraph, Nov/08)

After a woman and her four-year-old daughter were injured when glass fell from the roof of the Westfield Shopping Centre (or Eagle Centre as people will continue to refer to it), health and safety experts have assured shoppers that they believe the centre is safe. The Burrows Walk section, near Woolworths, where the incident happened, reopened after safety netting was put up to protect shoppers from anything falling from the roof.

Mesh netting is also being installed under all glazing panels at the centre while the review is taking place. Glazing sub-contractors appointed by Westfield have examined the framework around the windows and have not found any faults. They also examined the windows yesterday and the broken glass has been taken away for further analysis. Environmental health manager Mike Kay said the city council was satisfied with the progress of the investigation. He said, "They have still not been able to identify why that glazing fell down. No problems have been identified with the framework of the glazing. The glass itself is now being looked at and we will know more after that."

A Westfield spokeswoman confirmed that appropriate safety measures had been taken and a review of safety controls was being carried out and said, "Both the inspections and analysis are being undertaken by expert consultants appointed by Westfield. Until the results of the investigation are known, as a precaution Westfield has already started to implement various protective measures, which includes the installation of a fine mesh netting directly below all glazing panels in the centre."

It is the second incident of this kind at Westfield in the space of four months. The first happened when two panes of glass fell from the ceiling in Copecastle Square. No one was injured. Mr Kay said the city council started an investigation into that incident and discovered that a supply pipe had either split or burst, which had released stones on to the windows. That caused the glass to shatter and fall to the floor. The investigation was then passed on to the Health and Safety Executive as a construction-related issue. An HSE spokeswoman said it did not pursue the matter because it did not meet their criteria for further investigation. (Source: Derby Evening Telegraph, May/07)

Most of the floor at the Westfield shopping centre is to be ripped up. Work to replace the "vast majority" of the floor tiles, many of which are cracked and chipped, will take six months to complete. More than 9,000 square feet of tiles across two floors are to be removed and replaced but Westfield said the work on the floor was not being done for safety reasons. Marsha Forster-Brass, marketing manager at Westfield, said the work was being carried out because they were "dissatisfied" with the standard of the floor. A spokesman said, "I can categorically state that the work is being done because of the finish of the tiles, not because of any trips or falls."

The floor is surfaced with large crema marfil tiles. Many are chipped round the edges and some have cracks through them. Yellow and black tape was stuck on the most badly damaged tiles two months ago but some people claim the floor is still dangerous. A spokesman from environmental services at Derby City Council said they were aware of eight incidents where people had slipped in Westfield. He said, "We do, from time to time, get contacted by people who have fallen in the centre. Most of these falls happen near the entrance and exits, especially when it is wet. We will be talking to Westfield about the process of replacement." (Source: Derby Evening Telegraph, Mar/08)

An investigation is under way after glass fell from the roof of Westfield shopping centre. A small piece of glass fell from the roof and landed on the floor. No-one was hurt but several stores had to be closed off for repairs to take place. It has not yet been confirmed what caused the glass to fall but it is thought scaffolding may have struck the roof during strong winds. Centre manager Janine Bone said, "We are carrying out a full investigation into the incident and apologise for the disruption caused to our customers."

It was the fifth time glass had fallen from the centre's ceiling but a Westfield spokeswoman said the centre's glazing contractors had investigated the area and found there was "no immediate risk" of further glass falling. She said a full safety check had been carried out on all glass in the centre's ceilings following last year's incident. One report said the glass had been knocked out by a piece of falling scaffolding, but the Westfield spokesman refused to comment on the claim.

During construction in February, 2007, two panes of glass smashed to the floor close to Sainsbury's after site machinery threw out a stone which broke the pane. In May that year, a mother and child were hit by pieces of glass which fell from the centre into Copecastle Square. It is not known what caused this. On May 31, a glass ceiling panel smashed after construction workers dropped a piece of metal on to it. In April 2008, glass rained down from the domed roof outside Sainsbury's when it was hit by debris during work on Cinema de Lux. (Source: Derby Evening Telegraph, Oct/09)

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