Event hears its not all ‘doom and gloom’ on the High Street

It is not all ‘doom and gloom’ on the High Street, a Shropshire event has heard. The seminar, hosted by Good2Great, a Bridgnorth-based consultancy which specialises in helping businesses to grow and High Streets to thrive, discussed how empty buildings in town centres can be revitalised.

The High Street ‘Meeting of Minds’ event attracted an audience from across the Midlands to the Festival Centre in Market Drayton.

Sally Themans of Good2Great told delegates that action was being taken to bring more life to town centres.

“It is not all doom and gloom – there are positive signs emerging, with new initiatives underway,” she said.

One of the key speakers was Vicki Bidwell, the government’s lead on one of the new High Street Policies, who shared an update on new measures to tackle long-term vacant properties, including the introduction of High Street Rental Auctions and a proposed Community Right to Buy scheme.

She explained that the auction initiative would allow local councils to put commercial properties in designated areas up for rent if they had been empty for 12 months.

“Landlords who are doing nothing to find a tenant will find this is not an option any more – this scheme is a deterrent and will hopefully spur landlords into action,” she explained.

Fellow speaker was Iain Nicholson, founder of the Vacant Shops Academy, who stressed that collaboration was the way forward.

He said: “The formation of ‘place partnerships’ is vital. These bring together landlords, businesses, councils, cultural organisations and many other bodies and we would urge all towns who want to see a more positive future to create one.”

Charlotte Hollins, community business leader at Fordhall Organic Farm - England’s first community-owned farm – also spoke to the seminar about how assets could be saved by the power of people coming together to take action on these disused buildings.

The seminar was the latest in a series of events to be hosted by Sally Themans, an experienced ‘High Street champion’ who has worked with towns and individual retailers across the Midlands, advising on uniting communities, businesses and authorities to drive change and create healthy local economies.