KEY TAKEAWAY 1. Make high streets a one-stop shop
A high street doesn’t just mean retail; boosting destinations through the overall experience they offer ensures more people come for the day out and stay for the shopping.
In our discussion we looked at how high streets can provide for family days out, through pocket play areas for children, immersive events and trails, and a nice restaurant at the end of the day for the parents. Part of York and North Yorkshire’s Vibrant and Sustainable High Street Fund is ensuring that partnerships providing events and activities, like art installations and community festivals, are well-resourced.
In city centres where tourism is high, it’s important that residents don’t feel left behind by a visitor economy. Shaping high streets to be a onestop shop, with a great experience-based offer for all, ensures that residents can feel at home in the places they love.
Innovative ideas such as opening up residential opportunities above retail units in the city centre or turning student accommodation into holiday rentals during the school breaks can help drive more repeat business to the city centre.
2. Lean into heritage for higher footfall
Unfortunately, not every town or city benefits from being a 2000-year-old destination like York, or even of having 65 per cent of its businesses locally-owned, but part of York High Street’s success is its ability to captivate audiences through its heritage.
Heritage is so specific to each place and region and embracing that local identity can bring places to life, whether that’s regenerating an out-of-use mill at historical industrial sites, or finding opportunities for small businesses to work with local tour guides, directly linking history with their products.
In the context of retail and hospitality, we discussed the importance of having and training staff that are enthusiastic and knowledgeable about the heritage of the building that they’re in, and the high street around them. Providing a two-for-one on shoppable goods and a history lesson can build a bigger picture of the identity and character of a high street.
Recognising that heritage often comes from the local communities, and the stories they can tell, is also important. Offering opportunities is crucial for building the pride and connection people have in their high streets, such as finding ways to incorporate local art in disused units, or offering low-cost space for local pop ups.
KEY TAKEAWAY 3. Support the independents
Successfully encouraging and integrating independent businesses into the high street can deliver real benefits. They keep money in the local economy, they reduce vacancies, often taking on the ‘small and awkward’ units full of character, and they build on the uniqueness of a place. Finding ways to support the independents is crucial.
Hearing from independent retail representatives at the table, we discussed the importance of networks and forums for small and independent businesses. Part of this is removing the expectation that there should always be competition and instead fostering a genuinely supportive collective. Sharing the wealth, knowledge, experience, and even selling other local businesses’ products, can lead to a ‘halo effect’ around the independents.
Hearing from Mayor David Skaith, we also explored the value of support for these local business organisations from the Combined Authority and local authorities more broadly, which is one of the key aims of the Vibrant and Sustainable High Street Fund.
4. KEY TAKEAWAY Remove transport barriers and promote active travel for the high street’s benefit
We heard from regeneration and transport experts about some of the travel barriers to high street revival, including striking the right balance between parking spaces and more amenities. When asked, ‘what would you like to see in your high street?’, communities often respond that they want walkability and access, better amenities and experiences such as markets and activities, and better displays of heritage and local culture. For this to happen, parking spaces must sometimes be sacrificed.
Improvements to pedestrian and cycle routes and public transport is then crucial. Not only does it allow for easier access and more attractive high streets, but it also gets people moving around and promotes a healthier way of life. With better inner-city transport and travel infrastructure, pockets of retail which would normally be less frequented get higher footfall too.
Some counties attract tourists based on their major cities, like York within North Yorkshire, however it’s also important to encourage visitors to explore the area more widely through better travel options. Aside from better transport links, we also heard about the effectiveness of heritage trails, leading visitors out of the centre to see what the broader region has to offer. This, in turn, leads to higher footfall in the often lesser-seen high streets.