A VISION FOR THE WELSH HIGH STREET?

Walking through many towns in Wales, one cannot help noticing the increasing number of shops that have closed as the economic recession and low consumer confidence has taken its toll.

And such perceptions are borne out by the latest statistics on occupancy rates within retail centres, with the proportion of vacant shops across Welsh high streets now rising to 18.5 per cent, one of the worse vacancy rates in the UK along with the North West of England and the Midlands.

Whilst the growth of out of town shopping centres and the massive expansion in online retailing has helped to fuel such decline, it is also clear that politicians and policymakers at a national and local level have largely ignored the high street as a key driver of economic prosperity.

Given such challenges, it was timely that the Welsh Conservatives launched a new policy review last week which examined how the fortunes of town centres across Wales could be revived.

Entitled “A Vision for the Welsh High Street”, its aim is to focus attention on how town centres can provide a stimulus to local economies whilst acting as a catalyst for community engagement. Welsh Conservative leader Andrew RT Davies discusses the report below.


As far as I am aware, this is the first time that a political party in Wales has focused on developing specific policies in this area, although it does follow on from a recent report by the National Assembly’s Enterprise and Business Committee into the regeneration of town centres. Of course, there was also the highly publicised Portas Review in 2011 which provided a real wake up call to the UK Government but, unfortunately, its recommendations have only been applied in England.

As such, such a policy document is long overdue in ensuring that we have a proper debate on how the High Street in Wales should be developed in the future.

One of the more radical recommendations from the review is the proposal for splitting the business rates regime in Wales into one that targets small and large businesses separately.

Currently, the multiplier which is used to calculate business rates is the same for all firms, regardless of their size. This is in contrast to both Scotland and England where a higher multiplier exists for bigger companies with the difference being paid used to support lower rates for small firms.

As a result, Wales has the most competitive business rates in the UK for major superstores, but the least competitive rates in the UK for small businesses.

And whilst the supermarket lobby will, no doubt, resist such a move, it is an issue that will hopefully be considered carefully by the Welsh Government within its ongoing review of business rates.

Another key proposal is ensuring that town centres are at the heart of successful engagement with local communities. This will be done through the formation of high street teams involving local businesses, Councils and residents that will act as a focus for engagement and drive participation on the high street.

On a higher political level, the Welsh Conservatives have also called for the Welsh Government to have one Minister or Deputy Minister with ‘named’ responsibility for the high street so as to improve coordination across different departments.

One of the key recommendations of the Portas Review was that local areas should implement free controlled parking schemes so that they can compete directly with out-of-town developments.

Building on this, the report suggests that high streets need to have a “flexible, well communicated parking offer”, using the example of Newport Council which, for the last two years, has operated a two hours free parking scheme within the city centre.

It also reflects the views of the Federation of Small Businesses, which recently noted that small market towns and their outlying rural communities are hit particularly hard by the imposition of parking charges and that in such car dependent communities, free access to the town centre is essential not only for the purposes of shopping but also for social interaction.

Therefore, the debate has started on the future of the High Street in Wales and whilst partisan politics may prevent some of these ideas from being taken forward by the Welsh Government, I would hope the paper will at least get politicians and policymakers talking. Certainly, it is time that the regeneration of our town centres should be seen as one of the key catalysts in reviving local economies and a catalyst in reviving the high street as a focus for the community across Wales.

MARY PORTAS AND REVITALISING THE HIGH STREET IN WALES

Last Thursday, there was finally some good news for the beleaguered high street as figures from the British Retail Consortium revealed that sales in May 2012 were 3.4 per cent higher as compared to a year earlier.

On the same day, 4,500 jobs were saved in 397 stores, including a number in Wales, when Clinton Cards were bought by the US retailer American Greetings. That is not to say that there are still major challenges facing the retail sector. For example, the number of businesses in the UK retail sector going into administration increased by 15 per cent in the first quarter of this year.

These have included household names such as Peacocks, Blacks Leisure, La Senza and Game. Fortunately, as with Clinton Cards, a number of these businesses have been bought out of receivership and, as consequence, jobs have been saved.

Nevertheless, it is estimated that employment in the retail sector has decreased by around 100,000 in the last year and this decline is set to continue unless radical action is taken. That is why the UK Government asked the retail marketing consultant Mary Portas to identify what politicians at national and local level, along with businesses and other stakeholders, could do together to promote the development of new models of prosperous and diverse high streets.

Reporting last December, it made a series of recommendations, including creating a visionary, strategic and strong operational management team for high streets, establishing a new “National Market Day” where budding shopkeepers can try their hand at operating a low-cost retail business and considering whether business rates can better support small independent retailers.

Other suggestions included free controlled parking schemes for town centres, restricting out of town developments, and disincentivising landlords from leaving units vacant. However, to ensure that the report did not merely remain gathering dust on a shelf in Whitehall, Portas suggested that a number of high street pilots should be run to test some of these ideas.

And rather than having civil servants choose which high streets were to benefit from the government’s largesse, towns were invited to put forward their own proposals as to how they would implement their ideas to regenerate their retail sector.

As a result, around 370 high streets submitted applications and last week it was announced that twelve high streets would benefit to the tune of support worth approximately £100,000 each. Some cynical commentators have said that this funding is derisory and the whole scheme was a publicity gimmick at a time when there are far greater economic problems facing retailers. Others have noted that the competition itself has generated real local interest and, regardless of the fact that only around one in thirty applicants were successful, it has enabled communities to come together and plan for their economic futures.

Indeed, you only have to view the hundreds of videos that have been posted on YouTube in support of bids to see local businesspeople demonstrating their passion and conviction for their town centres. The two featured below are from Bedford, one of the winning bids and Burnham on Sea, which didn't win but is already preparing a second bid.

As a result, the failure to win a cash prize will, in itself, probably not stop many of the towns from pursuing their plans, having created a group of stakeholders who have a real interest in the future of their high streets and, more importantly, a strategy for the future.

Unfortunately, as with the start-up initiatives discussed in this column last week, the Portas Review only applied in England and, given the state of many of our town centres, it is a shame that Wales did not participate in such a scheme.

Certainly, given the work already undertaken by Mary Portas, there would be scope to examine this further in the context of Welsh High Streets. Indeed, speaking to a sold-out audience at the world famous Hay Festival last week, the 'Queen of Shops'  said that there was still hope for many town centres in Wales, despite the threat of out of town developments and internet shopping.

And we could start by developing a similar programme to that envisaged for English towns that would enable those with enthusiasm for regenerating our high streets to come together to start a renaissance in the fortunes of many local economies at a time when it is sorely needed.