The Government’s Hope on the High Street strategy is a welcome and timely recognition that our town and city centres matter, economically, socially and culturally.
It brings together a range of policy measures, powers and investment under a shared national ambition, while recognising that every place has its own identity, assets and challenges.
Its six pillars set out a compelling picture of successful high streets: active leadership and management; strong businesses, anchors and amenities; vibrant culture, leisure, hospitality and entertainment; easy access and connectivity; safe, clean and welcoming environments; and places to call home. The pillars are interconnected. Progress in one area can reinforce progress in another, but this depends on people and organisations working together around a clear, locally owned direction.
However, the future of our high streets is about more than responding to today’s challenges. It is about creating places that future generations want to use, be part of and help shape. That means ensuring that the voices, ideas and ambitions of young people are part of the conversation now, not simply considering what high streets might look like for them in the future.
As a team of place practitioners who have supported towns and cities across the country, including through the High Streets Task Force, we welcome the emphasis on local leadership and place-based action. Our shared message is that the strategy’s success will depend not simply on the availability of policies and funding, but on the capacity, skills, partnerships and sustained attention needed to turn them into visible change on the ground.
Here, our Partners in The High Street Consultancy share their reactions to the strategy and what they’d like to see happen next.
Hope on the High Street: A welcome direction, but what happens next?
Ben Stephenson:
Earlier this year, I brought high street specialists together for a round table, in partnership with the Institute of Place Management and MHCLG, to discuss the High Street Strategy.
In many ways, much of what was discussed on the day is reflected in Hope on the High Street. While some of the ideas may feel like things we have all been saying for years, the strategy represents an important crystallisation of the issues places are experiencing and the changes needed to address them.
There are several aspects worth recognising. For policymakers to acknowledge the complexity of the high street and the interrelationships between its many systems is an important step forward. It is also welcome to see recognition of the role of communities in setting and delivering a vision for their high streets. And for the strategy to acknowledge the future of high streets as civic and cultural spaces, rather than simply places for retail and hospitality, is a vital precursor to making this change happen. These may not be new ideas, but their recognition at a national level matters.
But does Hope on the High Street shift the dial? Although it describes itself as a ‘road map’, it is perhaps more about defining the current state and future direction of travel than setting out exactly how we will all get there.
This in itself might be read as a recognition that changing our high streets is as much a challenge for devolution, communities and local authorities as it is for government. Government can provide some of the levers and policies to enable change, but these can only be effective as part of a wider effort that involves us all. This is reflected in the final passage of the strategy:
“Ultimately, the clearest test of success will be whether people have renewed confidence in their high streets and feel greater pride in the places where they live. Through the measures set out in this strategy and fundamentally, the efforts and actions of the communities, councils, businesses and other partners, we will drive change and ultimately restore hope on the high street.”
In the meantime, we welcome the focus the strategy has brought to our high streets and look forward to working with government to see its ambitions translated into action.
Ben Stephenson is Chief Executive of Angel Islington BID, a Senior Fellow of the Institute of Place Management and a Partner in The High Street Consultancy.
Leadership must be active, skilled and properly resourced
Emma James:
It’s great to see the government putting active leadership and place management at the heart of its high street strategy.
Having spent years working with towns and high streets across the country, including through the High Streets Task Force, I’ve seen first-hand what a difference it makes when you’ve got the right people around the table, a shared understanding of a place and, importantly, someone with the time and skills to help make things happen. I also like the recognition that every high street is different and there’s no one-size-fits-all solution. This is very much what sits behind the IPM’s Vital and Viable approach, which I’ve used regularly in my own work.
The bit I’m particularly interested in seeing develop is how we build the capacity locally to actually deliver on these ambitions. There have been plenty of good strategies that have struggled to get off the ground because there simply aren’t the people or resources to make them happen. I’m a big believer in Asset Based Community Development (ABCD) and think there’s a real opportunity to do more to recognise, connect and build on the skills, relationships and enthusiasm that already exist in our communities, rather than always looking for outside solutions. I’d also like to see how this strategy connects with Pride in Place and wider town and city regeneration plans, so we’re joining things up rather than creating another separate initiative. It’s a positive starting point, but as ever, the challenge will be turning the ambition into something that makes a real difference on the ground.
Emma James is a placemaking consultant at Places Made, a Fellow of the Institute of Place Management and a Partner in The High Street Consultancy.
Communities need to be partners in shaping change, not simply consultees
Sonia Cubrilo:
It is important to see in the strategy its commitment to locally led change, but meaningful community involvement needs to run through the whole process, from understanding a place and setting its priorities, to making decisions, delivering projects and evaluating what has changed.
Engagement is most effective when it is ongoing, inclusive and connected to real outcomes.
Every high street has people invested in its future, from residents and traders to community groups, young people and local institutions. The challenge is to bring them together, value their knowledge and ideas, and ensure less-heard voices are included alongside those already well connected.
Strong place partnerships do more than provide a forum for discussion. They build trust, establish shared priorities, clarify responsibilities and help turn local energy into practical action. Community-led activity should be properly supported and connected to the wider plans and resources available to a place, rather than treated as a substitute for public-sector responsibility or long-term investment.
Pride in Place and wider regeneration programmes offer opportunities to strengthen this approach. The priority will be to connect programmes and partnerships, ensuring they reinforce one another, avoid duplication and remain accountable to local communities. Success should be measured by whether people can see and shape lasting improvements to the high streets they use every day.
Sonia Cubrilo is a director of IntoPlaces, a Fellow of the Institute of Place Management and a Partner in The High Street Consultancy.
Young people must have a stake in the future of our high streets
Joe Barratt:
It is encouraging to see the strategy explicitly recognise the importance of giving young entrepreneurs opportunities to thrive, alongside the role high streets play in helping young people develop skills, confidence and their first experiences of working life. However, if we want our high streets to remain relevant to future generations, young people must be given more opportunities not just to visit and enjoy them, but to actively shape and contribute to their future.
Through our work at Place for Youth, delivering The Teenage Market in towns and cities across the country, we have seen first-hand the difference that accessible, low-risk opportunities to trade and perform can make. By removing financial barriers and creating welcoming spaces for young entrepreneurs and performers, we can help young people develop valuable skills, test business ideas, build confidence and establish a stronger connection with their local high streets. These opportunities also bring new energy, creativity and activity into town centres, benefiting the wider local economy.
The strategy rightly identifies markets as important drivers of entrepreneurship and social connection. The challenge now is to translate this recognition into practical opportunities for the next generation. Local authorities and place partnerships should be encouraged to embed youth entrepreneurship and meaningful youth participation within their high street plans, creating accessible pathways for young people to become traders, business owners and active contributors to their communities. Investing in young people today is not simply about supporting the next generation of entrepreneurs; it is about ensuring our high streets have a vibrant and sustainable future.
Joe Barratt is co-founder of The Teenage Market, a Fellow of the Institute of Place Management and a Partner in The High Street Consultancy.
Place management is a profession and its skills matter
Graham Galpin:
Hope on the High Street is a great start and the six pillars offer a compelling narrative. However, Confidence on the High Street is the next important step. My view is that the success of applying Pillar 1 is key to achieving this, with the leadership and skills to carry it forward and embed it.
The training and skills required for place leadership and delivery are not necessarily included in the training of public administration personnel nor in members of the key partners brought together to form Pride in Place boards, town teams and the community in general. These people are working hard. This is not a criticism of them but of the system that has not caught up with the idea that High Street place management is a particular skill and a profession in its own right. It can weaken the effectiveness of well-meaning partnerships if these skills gaps are not filled.
High Streets Task Force 1.0 filled gaps and identified the weaknesses and strengths of Place Management on High Streets across more than 150 towns. New steps being taken for the 280+ Pride in Place partnerships are welcome but a number do not cover high streets as we would recognise them and they still leave many towns’ high streets without support; ergo, launching and funding High Streets Task Force 2.0 is a missing link in this valuable policy.
Graham Galpin is a town centre regeneration specialist who works as the Placechanger. He is a Senior Fellow of the Institute of Place Management and a Partner in The High Street Consultancy.
Align the tools and funding around a coherent plan
Matt Colledge:
Possibly for the first time Hope on the High Street brings together a whole range of funding and policy initiatives under one roof and this can only be a good thing. However, as it stands it feels less like a strategy and more like a compendium or a picking list of tools and funds.
To maximise effectiveness there needs to be clear thinking around how they can be strategically aligned and delivered in a holistic way. I certainly welcome the inclusion of place leadership and management within the document (well done MHCLG) and I hope that the fact it’s first is testament to emergent recognition that place transformation stands or falls on leadership. But as I suggest in my recent article on place leadership and management, having the tools and funds is one thing.
Comprehensively supporting place leaders to deliver change and, yes, effectively apply the funds and tools is quite another. This needs to be the follow-on work from Hope on the High Street.
Matt Colledge is a director of IntoPlaces and former Executive Director of the High Streets Task Force, as well as a Fellow of the Institute of Place Management and a Partner in The High Street Consultancy.
A shared framework, delivered in ways that reflect each place
Ian Ferguson:
It is good news that the government have generated a document ‘Hope on the High Street’ which brings together key issues to address for town and city centres across the country. It has a sense of structure through the 6 pillars which clearly relate to the Institute of Place Management’s 25 factors which are the factors over which places have the most control and can have the biggest impact.
However, it can only be seen as a first step in the regeneration of our towns and city centres. It identifies key policies which can make a difference and the paper does acknowledge that each place will have its own priorities and strengths to build on.
‘Pillar 1 Active leadership and management’ does stress the importance of collaboration between different parties to deliver against the other five pillars. However, the ability to bring together a coherent plan and deliver effectively needs an objective and consistent approach.
The challenge will be whether local authorities recognise this and communities really heed the advice that ‘Evidence consistently shows that places with clear leadership, dedicated place management and collaboration between councils, businesses and communities deliver stronger outcomes.’
Everyone does have a role to play in the health and well-being of their town or city centre. The biggest ‘Hope on the high street’ is that everyone will seek the support and help they need from each other and from experts in place management to make their dreams come true.
Ian Ferguson is Strategy and Development Director at pfbb UK, a Fellow of the Institute of Place Management and a Partner in The High Street Consultancy.
Independent businesses need practical, tailored support
Graham Soult:
I particularly welcome the strategy’s recognition that Growth Hubs have a role in supporting high street businesses. Through CannyInsights.com, I’ve seen what Growth Hub funding can make possible in the Tees Valley and East Sussex. In East Sussex, I visited 28 businesses and gave each a tailored action plan. One participant described it as “the most positive business support I have had in the last 20 years”.
A group workshop can give a business owner ideas. Visiting them on their own premises gives you a chance to see what a customer sees and work out together which changes are worth making. As the Government develops its plans for webinars and roadshows, I’d like it to make room for that kind of one-to-one support too.
As the role of the high street changes, independent businesses can give people new reasons to visit, from getting specialist advice to taking part in a class or meeting friends. Helping those businesses adapt is part of building a future for high streets that reflects what people in each town want and need.
Graham Soult runs the retail consultancy CannyInsights.com and is a Fellow of the Institute of Place Management and a Partner in The High Street Consultancy.
In conclusion – from hope to delivery
Hope on the High Street sets out an encouraging direction of travel. Its ambition will be realised when national policy and local knowledge are brought together, when funding is aligned behind clear priorities, place leaders have the skills and capacity to deliver, communities have a genuine stake in decisions and businesses receive the support they need to adapt and thrive.
The six pillars should not become six separate workstreams competing for attention. They need to be understood as parts of one living place, shaped by local evidence and delivered through strong partnerships. That means investing in the people who lead and manage places, building on the assets and energy already within communities and ensuring that every town and city centre, not only those covered by a particular programme, can access the expertise required to make change happen.
The Government has set out the ambition and assembled an important toolkit. The next step is to make sure that places are equipped to use it and that the people who will shape their future have a genuine stake in doing so. Our high streets should not simply be places that the next generation inherits; they should be places they have helped create. That is how hope becomes confidence and confidence becomes lasting change on our high streets.
