The UK government is talking about "reviving high streets".
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@revk Newbury is littered with coffee shops. One every 20m, perhaps! So no lack of paid social spaces.
Places where people can meet without having to pay would be nice.
We have a park, which is lovely in summer, and benches by the canal, and also quite a lot of green spaces outside the centre, so in summer, it is not too bad. In winter, options are meagre.
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@rogerlipscombe @revk Yep, I go once in a blue moon. I don't drink coffee, and most of my friends are geographically dispersed anyway!
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The UK government is talking about "reviving high streets".
I don't go the town centre very often, as there is little that draws me to it. Coffee shops, charity shops, barbers shops. And, okay, a lovely indie board game shop, but I don't buy board games regularly.
My feeling is that a "high street", or "town centre", is an anachronism?
At least, I don't know what would have to change about our town centre, for me to want to go.
High streets revived and children given safe places to play
New initiative will support local areas to reimagine and revive their struggling high streets
GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
High rents killed "High street"
Most shops lose money and are there for "presence"As to the coffee shops, unless there are part of a chain they are supported by 120h/week of husband/wife work and underpaying staff.
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The UK government is talking about "reviving high streets".
I don't go the town centre very often, as there is little that draws me to it. Coffee shops, charity shops, barbers shops. And, okay, a lovely indie board game shop, but I don't buy board games regularly.
My feeling is that a "high street", or "town centre", is an anachronism?
At least, I don't know what would have to change about our town centre, for me to want to go.
High streets revived and children given safe places to play
New initiative will support local areas to reimagine and revive their struggling high streets
GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
@neil When I think about the High Street where I used to live, the biggest change in a decade is the disappearing of clothing shops and banks. The nice food shops were much more resilient. I hope the UK gov doesn't try to tackle the wrong problem. We don't need more H&Ms.
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The UK government is talking about "reviving high streets".
I don't go the town centre very often, as there is little that draws me to it. Coffee shops, charity shops, barbers shops. And, okay, a lovely indie board game shop, but I don't buy board games regularly.
My feeling is that a "high street", or "town centre", is an anachronism?
At least, I don't know what would have to change about our town centre, for me to want to go.
High streets revived and children given safe places to play
New initiative will support local areas to reimagine and revive their struggling high streets
GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
@neil As a non-Brit who spent 15 years living in different parts of the UK, I'm honestly confused by the UK obsession with revitalising the High Street. As far as I can tell, the majority of High Streets were taken over by chains long before I moved there & were/are priced out of reach of independent businesses (what few can get by in a hostile economic environment). Is Specsavers, Tesco, Costa, WHSmith, Witherspoons the High Street that they want to go back to?
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The UK government is talking about "reviving high streets".
I don't go the town centre very often, as there is little that draws me to it. Coffee shops, charity shops, barbers shops. And, okay, a lovely indie board game shop, but I don't buy board games regularly.
My feeling is that a "high street", or "town centre", is an anachronism?
At least, I don't know what would have to change about our town centre, for me to want to go.
High streets revived and children given safe places to play
New initiative will support local areas to reimagine and revive their struggling high streets
GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
@neil I am seeing a move away from large, franchise stores and more indie and niche retailers popping up. It needs to be made easier for these to exist, and for people to have access to them if the gov want to revive the high street.
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The UK government is talking about "reviving high streets".
I don't go the town centre very often, as there is little that draws me to it. Coffee shops, charity shops, barbers shops. And, okay, a lovely indie board game shop, but I don't buy board games regularly.
My feeling is that a "high street", or "town centre", is an anachronism?
At least, I don't know what would have to change about our town centre, for me to want to go.
High streets revived and children given safe places to play
New initiative will support local areas to reimagine and revive their struggling high streets
GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
@neil I really don't understand the obsession people have with the high street. Never in my adult life has it had much worth.
The rents alone mean that most businesses can't turn a profit.
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@neil if the government wants to revive high streets, it needs to reinstate the payments from central government to local, so that councils can keep business rates down, and provide amenities, and keep the place looking nice.
@rogerlipscombe @neil I've been assuming they probably need to tax online sales at a higher rate to bring back more custom to bricks and mortar stores. And I'm not sure how I feel about that overall.
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@neil I am seeing a move away from large, franchise stores and more indie and niche retailers popping up. It needs to be made easier for these to exist, and for people to have access to them if the gov want to revive the high street.
@neil I am fortunate to have access to a large community coffee shop to work from on occasion. I feel that there needs to be more of these spaces... there is definitely the room for them with all the vacant premesis on offer right now. Treat them as a hub for people to visit, and surround them with other, small retailers.
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@neil As a non-Brit who spent 15 years living in different parts of the UK, I'm honestly confused by the UK obsession with revitalising the High Street. As far as I can tell, the majority of High Streets were taken over by chains long before I moved there & were/are priced out of reach of independent businesses (what few can get by in a hostile economic environment). Is Specsavers, Tesco, Costa, WHSmith, Witherspoons the High Street that they want to go back to?
@neil I've moved to northern Spain more recently & it's a different world. Yeah, there are chain supermarkets & shops, but they're vastly outnumbered by the smaller bakeries, butchers, fruit & veg shops, cafe bars, hardware stores. Small businesses or chains that can survive without needing to be part of the same 3-6 massive companies.
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@neil I've moved to northern Spain more recently & it's a different world. Yeah, there are chain supermarkets & shops, but they're vastly outnumbered by the smaller bakeries, butchers, fruit & veg shops, cafe bars, hardware stores. Small businesses or chains that can survive without needing to be part of the same 3-6 massive companies.
@neil Oh & that's not to mention that kids & teenagers aren't treated like criminals-to-be & are actually encouraged to exist in public spaces without having to always pay for the privilege.
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@rogerlipscombe @neil I've been assuming they probably need to tax online sales at a higher rate to bring back more custom to bricks and mortar stores. And I'm not sure how I feel about that overall.
I was thinking about this last week. How do you do that without unduly impacting individuals or small companies selling stuff through, e.g., Shopify.
What you want to do is tax Amazon until it bleeds, but leave the small folks alone.
But how do you legislate that so that it looks fair^W^W won't get challenged in the courts and there are no "oh no, we spent all of our profit on licensing the logo"-style loopholes?
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I was thinking about this last week. How do you do that without unduly impacting individuals or small companies selling stuff through, e.g., Shopify.
What you want to do is tax Amazon until it bleeds, but leave the small folks alone.
But how do you legislate that so that it looks fair^W^W won't get challenged in the courts and there are no "oh no, we spent all of our profit on licensing the logo"-style loopholes?
Moreover, how do you distinguish between a consumer-level online sale, and one where the high street store ordered stuff, well, online...?
Edit: Maybe VAT, where you can reclaim it...?
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The UK government is talking about "reviving high streets".
I don't go the town centre very often, as there is little that draws me to it. Coffee shops, charity shops, barbers shops. And, okay, a lovely indie board game shop, but I don't buy board games regularly.
My feeling is that a "high street", or "town centre", is an anachronism?
At least, I don't know what would have to change about our town centre, for me to want to go.
High streets revived and children given safe places to play
New initiative will support local areas to reimagine and revive their struggling high streets
GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
@neil
I go to the city centre (Leicester) maybe 5 times a year.
Opticians is the main reason, although we recently took our grandchildren to a museum.
If we want High Streets in our towns - and I'm unconvinced - the area where they are to work needs to be tightly defined, not recreated as the sprawl of the 1950s High Street.
Public transport must make it easy and attractive to get there, and there needs to be something completely different to the same old chains that are in the out of town parks.
Oh, and we need people living in the centres of towns and cities that will use the High Street too.Basically, we need a national conversation about what the High Street is, and what it's for.
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Moreover, how do you distinguish between a consumer-level online sale, and one where the high street store ordered stuff, well, online...?
Edit: Maybe VAT, where you can reclaim it...?
@rogerlipscombe @neil well there's a whole lot of websites that try to disclaim all sorts of legal responsibilities that other retailers and services face because they're "merely a marketplace". Maybe that behaviour should attract the extra tax?
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@neil if the government wants to revive high streets, it needs to reinstate the payments from central government to local, so that councils can keep business rates down, and provide amenities, and keep the place looking nice.
@rogerlipscombe @neil Lower business rates don't help to revive high streets. In fact, they do the opposite. Business rate reductions are just a handout to landlords.
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We tend to do our food shopping weekly. We plan in advance, and cook in batches. We minimise food waste, conveniently. We schedule a delivery for a time that suits us, and can shop when we want.
Is a high street with a butcher, baker, greengrocers, grocers, chemist etc going to be open during "normal working hours" (I.e. when most people are working?), or open when more people are able to visit? Or are they weekend-only affairs?
@neil
‘Through these partnerships, town centres could be transformed into mixed-use spaces with new homes, health services, libraries, community hubs and green spaces.’
It seems as if the small town in which I live is ahead of the game. The formula adopted here has delivered/maintained all these things. The town’s development association has supported a community hub, an activity centre, renovating an historical space. -
We tend to do our food shopping weekly. We plan in advance, and cook in batches. We minimise food waste, conveniently. We schedule a delivery for a time that suits us, and can shop when we want.
Is a high street with a butcher, baker, greengrocers, grocers, chemist etc going to be open during "normal working hours" (I.e. when most people are working?), or open when more people are able to visit? Or are they weekend-only affairs?
@neil I think I'd tend to agree with you that any high street revival more needs to be an evolution. Likely smaller and focused on different services.
I think often though, the success of a town high street, is linked to the general success of the area.
Given the costs bared by smaller shops, it's hard to see how they can compete.
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@neil
‘Through these partnerships, town centres could be transformed into mixed-use spaces with new homes, health services, libraries, community hubs and green spaces.’
It seems as if the small town in which I live is ahead of the game. The formula adopted here has delivered/maintained all these things. The town’s development association has supported a community hub, an activity centre, renovating an historical space.@neil
While there is an over-abundance of cafes there is an excellent pub-restaurant. Some derelict premises are being replaced with a new housing association development of 13 apartments (sympathetic design).
The mix seems to be appropriate, the main street is only 800m, or so. Not every business succeeds but vacant premises don’t lie idle too long.
All things considered, I am happy to have moved here 15 or so years ago. -
The UK government is talking about "reviving high streets".
I don't go the town centre very often, as there is little that draws me to it. Coffee shops, charity shops, barbers shops. And, okay, a lovely indie board game shop, but I don't buy board games regularly.
My feeling is that a "high street", or "town centre", is an anachronism?
At least, I don't know what would have to change about our town centre, for me to want to go.
High streets revived and children given safe places to play
New initiative will support local areas to reimagine and revive their struggling high streets
GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
@neil it's not economically viable for so many reasons
- people now mostly live in little boxes far from town
- people can't variety in many goods but space is only cheap out of town so small shops are showrooms and order stuff in
-: it's simply easier to get most goods onlineAnd lots more. The post WW2 high street IMHO is a moment in time before which lots of people had stuff delivered and which we are heading back towards
