The group fighting against Westfield/Hammerson’s £1bn redevelopment of Croydon town centre in the High Court may appeal after the judge indicated he is minded to dismiss their judicial review.

Whitgift Trust, which manages and part owns the Whitgift Centre, has been arguing at the court over Croydon Council’s approval of the plans.

The Trust, controlled by the Anglo Irish Bank and unconnected to the Whitgift Foundation charity, objected to the consent granted to Westfield and Hammerson's proposed retail development by a planning committee last November.

It said members of the strategic planning committee that approved the scheme should have been shown a report by Deloitte.

This report stated the affordable housing aspect of the scheme was not presently viable.

The barrister representing the trust, Russell Harris, argued the committee members should have seen the report before making their decision.

The council, however, believed the document to be confidential for commercial reasons.

Mr Harris presented several different arguments throughout the two day hearing.

But Mr Justice Collins told the court the only thing he had to make a decision on was the failure to disclose the Deloitte report.

And he said he was minded to dismiss the claim.

This news has been well received by the council and the cabinet member for homes and regeneration Councillor Alison Butler said: "We are very pleased that the judge has today indicated he will dismiss this claim.

"We have always been very clear about the importance of this development in Croydon's regeneration ambitions.

"We continue to focus on the next stage of CPO process."

But Adrian Oliver, a director of Vail Retail, the asset managers for the Trust, said: "We will be disappointed if it is dismissed and today the judge indicated he was minded to dismiss it.

"We will have to consult with our legal advisers about whether or not we will appeal.

"The judge made the point that we had a valid case for CPO, that the planning committee wasn’t given proper access to the Deloitte report which questioned the viability of the scheme.

"And there is an issue of the lack of affordable housing of the scheme."