Town centres and other retail centres are defined by local authorities to meet the requirement of Scottish Planning Policy (paragraph 61) to identify town centres and other retail locations as part of a network of centres to support retail type development in the most appropriate locations. This network of centres forms part of the sequential test in assessing retail planning applications, which should be located firstly in town centres, then in other retail centres or edge-of-centre sites, so the dataset provides key locational information in assisting retail planning and policies. These centres may be defined in local development plans in the first instance.