Silverburn, the Glasgow shopping centre, is to be extended by 7,728 sq m after owner Hammerson won planning permission for the development from the city council.

Hammerson said the new space would be filled with “high-quality retail plus new leisure space”. The development will also see a promenade leading from the centre to Pollok Civic Realm being upgraded.

Silverburn is the biggest purpose-built shopping centre in Scotland. It currently has more than 100 stores and restaurants and Hammerson said it is on target to hit visitor numbers of 14.5m for 2010, up 5% on last year.

Hammerson assistant director retail development Phillipa Zieba said: “Silverburn is a strong performing shopping destination with huge potential to attract shoppers from Glasgow and the rest of Scotland.  Now that planning approval has been granted, we can progress meaningful conversations with potential retail and leisure operators.”

Hammerson acquired Silverburn in December last year in a £300m deal, co-funded by the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board. It was previously owned by Retail Property Holdings, which went into receivership in September 2009.