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At Lakeside Shopping Centre, we endeavour to help students who may wish to use Lakeside as part of their project - whether that be GCSE, A Level or Degree standard.

Student Resources

Lakeside Statistics
Lakeside Shopping Centre, and the adjoining Retail Park, forms the largest shopping area in Europe.

Over 270 million people have visited Lakeside since it opened its doors in October 1990.

Due to customer demand, Lakeside was the first shopping centre to introduce permanent extended weekday opening hours of 10am-10pm.

Consistently topping the awards for customer service, Lakeside has received an SMA Parents Charter Mark and has been voted most Parent Friendly Shopping Centre three times by Tommy's Campaign.

For shoppers who seek a peaceful moment Lakeside has its very own Chapel with its own resident chaplain

Many people travelling a long distance to visit Lakeside arrive by coach and make a full day of it. 440 coaches per week visit Lakeside at peak times.

Lakeside has over 300 shops, 4 major department stores, 30 cafes and restaurants, a 7 screen 2,000 capacity multiplex cinema and a 26-acre lake complete with PADI certified diving school complex.

The neighbouring Lakeside Retail Park has over 40 large stores including IKEA, PC World, Toys R Us and the largest B and Q Warehouse.

Lakeside averages 450,000 visitors per week, with shoppers visiting from all over the UK and abroad.

Lakeside has 1.4 million square feet of retail space on a 120-acre site - equivalent to 17 times the surface area of Wembley stadium.

The Retail Park and Shopping Centre together offer a shopping area second only to one in Canada.

Lakeside has 13,000 free car parking spaces. If all the cars were parked end to end they would reach from Dover to Calais.

The male to female visitor ratio is 40:60 67% of shoppers belong to the ABC1 socio-economic group 31% of shoppers visit with children and 34% bring their partner.

Visitors, on average, spend £95 per visit and £128 at peak shopping times such as Christmas.

Lakeside operates a gift voucher scheme, redeemable in over 250 stores in the Shopping Centre and neighbouring Retail Park.

Lakeside has its own Recruitment and Training Centre, which helps fill vacancies and focus on staff training within the Centre.
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Lesser Known Facts about A Well Known Place
Lakeside starred in its very own BBC docu-soap, 'Lakesiders' which was viewed by an audience of over 9 million each week.

Lakeside is regularly chosen to play host to some of the nation's favourite TV entertainment including Sky TV's Playhouse, Disney, GMTV and Nickelodeon Junior.

Lakeside shoppers can exclusively preview the latest designer and high street fashions on the Centre Stage catwalk at Lakeside's fashion shows held twice a year.

Denise Van Outen regularly cites Lakeside as her favourite shopping haunt. From Melinda Messenger to Alan Titchmarsh, Mr. Motivator to Tamara Beckwith, plus the infamous Monica Lewinsky, Lakeside continually welcomes Martine McCutcheon, Status Quo, Graham Norton, World Cup winning England Rugby team, Mis-teeq, Libety X, Steve Austin and Busted through its doors.

Lakeside has fast become the place to get down on one knee, four couples have already popped the question in as many months.

20% of the UK population - 11 million people - live within 1 hour's drive of Lakeside.

8% of Lakeside shoppers are visiting the Centre for the first time.

Barclays Bank cash dispenser at Lakeside holds the record for the most amount of money withdrawn in a day, anywhere in the country.
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Choice and Convenience
Since permanently opening its doors from 10am til 10pm every weekday, Lakeside has seen a steady increase in shoppers visiting the centre in the evenings, especially among men and professionals who want to go shopping after work.

The average spend amongst evening shoppers is £114 - the same as Saturday shoppers.

Lakeside is conveniently laid out along two main shopping malls with a Food Court on Level 3. The main malls offer an extensive range of shops including department stores and popular high street names. Specialist shops and boutiques such as Confetti and Lace (which have their own designer collection), and Fiorelli are located along Brompton Walk, and an array of arts and crafts stalls situated in the Lakeside Pavilion.

With its own post office, shoe repair, key cutter, banks, pharmacy, hairdressers, opticians, pet shop and travel agents, Lakeside is a well designed town centre under one roof... and you needn't worry about the weather spoiling your day.

A pedestrian link bridge allows shoppers arriving at Lakeside's Chafford Hundred train station to walk directly from the station platform into the Shopping Centre via a specially designed covered passage way, making access to Lakeside even easier and faster.
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Rest and Relaxation
Recent research shows that 60% of people who come to Lakeside have something to eat or drink during their visit.

Lakeside caters for all tastes - Italian, restaurants are situated around the Centre as well as numerous coffee shops including Starbucks, Costa, Giardino's and BB Coffee & Muffins.

Lakeside offers a shopping locker service on Level 3 for you to keep your purchases safe whilst you visit the cinema or enjoy a drink with friends before dinner.

If what you're looking for is something more relaxing, why not visit one of Lakeside's six hair and beauty salons. Here you can get a variety of treatments including a massage, facial and manicure or perhaps a complete makeover with your own portfolio of photographs at the Original Beauty Portrait Company along Brompton Walk.
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Fashion at Lakeside
Lakeside has a diverse selection of designer wear ranging from the classic cuts of Jasper Conran, Armani and Joseph to the cool and funky looks from DKNY, Diesel and Paul Smith. There are even designer wedding dresses at the Confetti & Lace store on Brompton Walk.

Recognising that fashion never stands still, Lakeside not only has all the high street favourites but also welcomes new stores to the Centre.

Lakeside plays host to exclusive fashion shows which preview new designs and looks for the new season from Lakeside retailers. Shown on catwalks in the Central Atrium, customers can take a break from their shopping to catch up on the hottest looks of the season - at prices to suit all pockets.
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Caring for Kids at Lakeside
Lakeside is consistently voted one of the most parent-friendly shopping centres in the UK, winning the Tommy's Campaign Parent Friendly Award and SMA Parent's Charter Mark. Lakeside has put a great deal of thought and planning into its facilities for parents and children of all ages. These include:

Lakeside has the largest Baby Care Centre in the UK offering changing, feeding and relaxation facilities.

Hire of pushchairs and Tiny Taxis, miniature cars to keep children aged 1 to 6 years amused and close to you while you shop.

Films shown in the fully supervised Kids Club at 10.30am every Saturday morning at the Vue Cinema.

Entertainment and events are organised throughout the year, especially during school holidays, to appeal to all the family, including celebrity visits, meet and greets, exhibitions, educational workshops and competitions.

Lakeside's adjoining Retail Park has a wide range of stores offering a wealth of baby and child brands.

You can also enjoy Birthdays at Lakeside, Pizza Hut, Wimpy and McDonalds have played the host to many children's parties.
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Men at Lakeside
40% of Lakeside's customers are men and there's a lot on offer for the male shopper, electrical and photography shops selling digital televisions, Sony Playstations and mobile phones for the techno minded; sports shops including JD Sports and West Ham Utd Sportswear for the action man; and specialist men's fashion outlets including Baron Jon as well as countless concessions within the 4 department stores including Ralph Lauren, Ted Baker, Reiss and Paul Smith for the style gurus.

If shopping really isn't your thing, there's much more on offer to keep you occupied. You can join Lakeside's scuba-diving club based at Alexandra Lake surrounding Lakeside and enrol on a PADI diving course.

Understanding that it is often Dad who gets left holding the baby whilst mum wanders round the shops, Lakeside's award winning, fully equipped Baby Care Centre is situated independently from the women's toilets so dads can feed and attend to their children in the specially equipped changing areas on Level 3 and within Department Stores.
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Let Me Entertain You
Lakeside's Central Atrium, a 219 square metre space is the very heart of Lakeside. It's been customised to create a unique venue for a wide variety of special events ranging from exhibitions and concerts to TV shows.

Most of Lakeside's shoppers also take advantage of the seven screen multiplex cinema to catch up on the latest film releases. Open long after the shops close, it's an ideal way to end the day.

Top selling teenage magazine 'Sugar & Bliss' holds its annual search for a model competition roadshow at Lakeside, attracting young hopefuls from all over the South East of England and beyond.
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Travelling to Lakeside
Direct road access to Lakeside is available from junction 30/31 from the M25. All routes to Lakeside are clearly signposted.

Most visitors travel to Lakeside by car and take advantage of the 13,000 free car-parking spaces. Car parks are well lit and are regularly patrolled by car park security to ensure customer safety. All car parks are either numbered or colour coded, so you can find your way back to your car easily.

Lakeside's Chafford Hundred Station provides regular rail access from London Fenchurch Street Station, which takes just 32 minutes, and Southend-on-Sea, which takes 41 minutes. Direct trains also go from Barking and Upminster, making access to Lakeside from London Underground quick and convenient.

Many local and regional buses converge at Lakeside's bus station beside Debenhams, you can park your coach for free at car park 8.

A taxi rank is located near the Lakeside Pavilion.
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Less Able Shoppers at Lakeside
Lakeside has been specially designed to provide easy access and enjoyable shopping for everyone. Facilities include:

  • A 300 space car park for the disabled
  • Automatic doors on all entrances
  • Smooth and flat floor surfaces
  • Wide lifts between each of its three floors
  • Low-level public telephones
  • Disabled toilets on every level

Wheelchairs and electronic scooters are available from Shopmobility, a service and information desk for the disabled, situated in Car Park 10, for anyone who has difficulty in walking around the centre. Call direct on 01708 684 333, in advance for information or booking.

15% of the British population are hard of hearing or suffer from hearing difficulty. Lakeside has trained over 100 staff members in sympathetic hearing skills to enable them to communicate better with the hard of hearing customers. An Induction Loop System is available at Customer Services. An adjustment to the customers' hearing aid is all that's needed for them to hear a clearer conversation with our staff.

Lakeside welcomes guide dogs to the Centre and also offers a personal shopping service guide to accompany the partially sighted around the Centre - information available from Customer Service.
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That Extra Special Something
Lakeside's unique gift voucher scheme offers customers the choice of purchasing gifts from hundreds of stores at Lakeside Shopping Centre and Retail Park.

Vouchers can be purchased in denominations of £5 and £10 and spent individually or accumulated to purchase larger items.

Lakeside offers a free wedding list gift voucher service to its customers. Once a bridal couple has registered, wedding guests can purchase vouchers allowing you to buy the gifts you really want.

Want to stay ahead of the game? register with the Lakeside text messaging service. Just text a three character code: F27 if you're a female aged 27, M36 if you are a male aged 36 to keep up to date with events, offers and exclusive deals.

Individual department stores offer wedding list services - and some also offer personal shoppers who will give you style advice.

Marks and Spencer offers unique customer services including a cool room to leave groceries until collected and staff to help carry heavy items.

Regis Hairstylists & Beauty Centres (located in House of Fraser) offer a comprehensive range of professional hair services and an extensive selection of beauty treatments including massages, facials, manicures and make-up advice.

The new ecumenical Lakeside Chapel welcomes people from all faiths and offers shoppers a space away from the busy malls for thinking, relaxation or prayer. The Chapel is located on Level 3.

Those interested in employment at Lakeside can take the fast track by visiting C & C Recruitment, located on Level 3. In addition to matching relevant applicants to potential employers, C & C recruitment offers basic training and refresher courses in core retailing skills as well as interview facilities.

Lakeside also has a dedicated staff Training Centre that is run in conjunction with Thurrock & Basildon College, where staff can achieve NVQs relevant to retail as well as brush up on skills such as computing.

For more information on Thurrock, the community where Lakeside is situated, click here.
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