A bid to push Sutton Coldfield into the Premier League of West Midlands shopping centres is set to be unveiled on Friday.

Council regeneration bosses want the town to compete with the likes of Solihull and Worcester as a magnet for shoppers and retailers.

They have drawn up a framework to guide the growth of the historic town centre in the next 20 years – outlining where they see shopping centres, offices, flats, road, bus and rail links and public spaces being developed.

The Sutton Coldfield Town Centre Regeneration Framework will set the ground rules for town centre planning giving clear guidance to developers. It will be accompanied by a conservation plan to ensure that the historic character of the High Street area is preserved.

Coun Neville Summerfield, cabinet member for regeneration, said: “It is clear that Sutton Coldfield town centre has not performed as well it should have. It should be more like Solihull – which has the Touchwood Shopping Centre to bring people in.”

He stressed that under present economic conditions the transformation would not take place overnight. “We must be realistic, developers will not be queuing up at this time, but this framework is about the long term,” he said. The proposals may need modifying if they were to work and he welcomed views of residents and businesses as draft proposals “may not be perfect”.

A major headache had been solving the town centre’s road, bus and rail problems. Various proposals for bypasses, a bus station, one-way system and other modifications failed to get past the drawing board. Bus operators, in particular, have opposed attempts to remove buses from The Parade while the ring road has had a concrete collar effect limiting development and growth. Coun Summerfield (Cons, Brandwood) said: “The transport problems have exercised our best minds. There are particular problems with the difference of ground levels; in a few yards there are very sharp increases in height. What we propose may not be perfect, which is why we will put it out to public consultation.”

He said the failure to build on the derelict Brassington Avenue site could offer greater scope for development or alterations to the road network. The document should be published, and available on the City Council website, from Friday when the Sutton Coldfield Constituency meeting, at Sutton Town Hall from 7pm, offers the public the chance to comment on the document.