Do love to see a ‘Play Me’ piano when we’re out & about #highstreet #placemaking.

🚆 As we’re committed at #TheVacantShopsAcademy to travel by train wherever we can, it’s especially great to see them at rail stations.

This one is at Leamington Spa which, as the pictures show, is also one of the very well looked after stations we stop at.

🎹 I can also remember seeing pianos to play at Manchester Piccadilly & Dundee stations.

Who else has examples…? Do let us know.

🚏 It’s part of a regular theme of our tackling vacancy ‘next steps’ suggestions for places, that local teams should take themselves to all their town or city centre arrival points: rail station, bus, car parks etc., assess the welcome there, check that wayfinding and signage guides visitors to the routes we’d like them to take into the centre, and think about the first impression that journey gives them.

🫣 It’s amazing how often we find some or more parts of that aren’t great because, as locals, we know where we’re going and maybe aren’t paying 💯 attention to things visitors might notice along the way. Do try it if you haven’t…!

As a Ps: those who can will be able to tell that I have no clue how to play and am just sitting here for effect…! 😉

Excited to be heading out this week to visit the first of 8 new locations we’ll be delivering #TheVacantShopsAcademy tackling #highstreet vacancy approach.

8️⃣ They’re a mix of town centres with headline empty shops rates in the mid-teens and those with smaller numbers but some tricky long-time vacants the local teams are keen to get support in guiding back into play.

At the heart of our approach in all of them will be emphasising that it’s not “just an agents-landlords thing”.

🗝️ Places that are reducing empty unit numbers quickest and most sustainably are those that have a tackling vacancy-focused ‘place partnership’ with all the key stakeholders working together.

Businesses, community, council(s), BID where there is one, chamber, creative & cultural organisations, media where it’s up for being positive, all have a part to play alongside commercial #property agents, asset managers and landlords at the various stages of the process – ‘audit, engage, encourage, promote’.

📉 We’ll be drawing on experience from places that are already on the case and have seen a significant drop in their headline vacancy rate…

…and very much look forward to reporting from our new locations, to working with the teams there and supporting them to make a difference on this key #placemaking issue.

Two years on.

Picking up a journeys thread from our good #highstreet #placemaking friend Chris Wade FIPM at People, Places & Parking Process on the theme of sustainable travel.

Having committed to travelling by train to #TheVacantShopsAcademy locations wherever possible, it was interesting to see the App stats on the second anniversary of our first logged ‘out & about’…

• 111 trips
• 12,458 miles travelled by train;
• 1.5 tonnes of CO2 saved.

🌏 I’m not technical enough to know how valuable that is, but it’s a contribution, no…?

Chris is now doing some really good work with places on a range of active travel options and their impact, as part of the bigger story of how our town and city centres as a whole can do more on sustainability.

It’s really important insight, and something we’d encourage more places to explore.

🅿️ For our part we’re always talking to locations about arrival points – train, bus, car, bike whatever – to assess the welcome, the wayfinding & signage to the #retail and #hospitality centre, whether it takes visitors the route you’d most like them to choose, and the ‘first impressions’ they get on that journey.

It may all seem a distance from tackling vacancy but these can all be factors for sure.

🤔 It would be great to see any similar data sets you’re collecting…?

Learned a huge amount from an enjoyable and insightful #placemaking out & about in Gloucester.

A city with sooooo much happening in its different segments. Among them:

The pioneering University of Gloucestershire repurposing of the sizeable former Debenhams store, being closely watched by many places with similar buildings, and an important part of our wider tackling vacancy story of the role education and heath & wellbeing uses can play;

• Ongoing work to make its central square a vibrant and attractive hub, a place to visit, dwell and be entertained;

🏢 Careful and imaginative redevelopment to take the docks area forward (“the most inland port in the country”), making use of its attractive, heritage buildings and drawing in new businesses;

• Its Heritage Action Zone initiative caring for some of the city’s historic core;

🚈 A major rail station improvement project to follow on from the Transport Hub / bus station project;

And more…

🛍️ Real interesting conversations now about the role the #highstreet, #retail, #hospitality, and its shopping centres play in this story.

It’s a must-visit city if you’re this way…!

So it’s looking like the new powers to allow local authorities to ‘force’ an auction to rent long-time empty #highstreet units won’t be available ‘this summer’ as planned.

Was your place hoping to make use of High Street Rental Auctions…?

🤔 If you were, what now…?

Wait. Or press on with tackling vacancy work anyways…?

✍🏻 To recap: “Where a high street shop has been empty for over a year, High Street Rental Auctions would allow local leaders to step in and auction off a rental lease for up to 5 years. Auctions would take place with no reserve price, giving local businesses and community groups the opportunity to occupy space on the high street at a competitive market rate.”

⚖️ The timelines had been for legislation to make this practically possible to be in Parliament by now “with the first auctions expected to take place in September this year and the first new unit occupied and open to the public in October.”

With the election called that didn’t happen.

🎤 We know from previous posts that #property and #placemaking colleagues have very differing takes on this.

From our perspective at #TheVacantShopsAcademy we’d:
(a) always thought the policy would only be used for a handful of units – maybe 1 or 2 in 20 – anyway, and…

(b) that experience suggests, even without it, there are a range of ways a proactive tackling vacancy-focused ‘place partnership’ can get empties, even the tricky ones, back into play.

🗝️ So what is your plan now…?

Really happy to talk thru options with #BID and council teams, if that’d help…

We often talk in #TheVacantShopsAcademy ‘next steps’ narrative for the places we’re commissioned, and on here, about splitting vacant units as a route to getting them re-occupied.

🪜That can be dividing large ground floor, often ex-department store, units into smaller spaces to match demand from #indie #retail and #hospitality businesses. Or hiving off upper floors so they can go to separate uses.

🧩 But splitting up can be a key part of your strategy for the whole town or city centre too…

…and we’ve now suggested that for a number of places. Why…?

🤳🏽 It’s because they feel different, they’re a cluster of varying use types now so your target businesses and organisations aren’t the same, the opportunities presented by the available empties you have there point to alternative options, and you’ll ‘promote’ in each case to segments of your overall audience as customers and visitors.

We first used the idea working on a City Centre Action Plan for Oxford because even a relatively small central area like that actually divides into several differing ‘places’. We’ve seen the likes of Exeter and Chippenham start to present their places in quarters, and we’ve asked cities and towns we are working with to think similarly.

Might that work better for your place…? Would your tackling #highstreet vacancy approach be easier if you actually thought of it in two or three or more parts…?

🤔 It’d be interesting to hear what you think…

Just imagine how much #highstreet impact this would have…!

🗝️ “A new £25m funding programme for centres with above average vacancy rate, to focus on bringing empties back into use.”

That’s one of two ‘Vacant to Vibrant’ recommendations in a just-published Manifesto for towns and cities from The BID Foundation called #PlacesForEveryone.

🤔 The national vacancy rate stands at 14%. Could we realistically drop that into single figures…?

📉 If one place can reduce its number of empty units from 23 to 3 in 18 months, and another looks like halving a 25% rate in the same timeframe. Maybe.

It was also really encouraging to see a key principle of our work featured in the Manifesto where it says:

“Experience from #TheVacantShopsAcademy suggests places tackle vacancy most quickly and sustainably, and improve the mix of uses when agents, landlords, businesses, community groups, councils, and BIDs work together.”

💡 That’s crucial. Tackling vacancy can’t just be “an agents-landlord thing”. All the listed players have a part to play. Without that you’ll be less effective – as towns and city centres trying just one or two initiatives rather than the full set are finding.

It’s been brilliant to work with a number of #BID colleagues and councils who are taking a lead on this crucial issue for their places, and to evidence the positive progress they can make.

📕 With publication and wider sharing of the Manifesto, it’d be great to see others take up this approach, and find vacancy rates in more town and city centres tumbling.

Is your place on it…?

We’re really lucky with #TheVacantShopsAcademy to be working with a number of #BID managers on tackling #highstreet vacancy challenges (with more just joining)…

🎤 …but it was interesting and inspiring to sit quietly (for me) at the back of the room for The BID Foundation #PlacesForEveryone event, and hear presenters and panellists talk about the huge range of other projects and initiatives they’re leading in our places.

Sooooo much passion, commitment, experience, resilience and attention to detail to draw on. An enjoyable and insightful day including the launch of their ‘Manifesto for Towns and Cities’ of which more next week.

🙏 Thanks for the invite.

#20YearsOfBIDs #placemaking

📸 Did want to use as the main image this striking guy you pass on the way to the venue if you train in (as we always try to do), and hope no-one’s in jestful connections mode…! 😉

What makes you visit a place…

…and importantly, return time and time again, and encourage others to do so.

Thinking this while out & about #highstreet #placemaking with #TheVacantShopsAcademy in the lovely Cathedral City of Ripon.

So factors…? Maybe.

🛍️ Attractive #indie #retail and #hospitality streets;

• History & heritage buildings;
• A neatly re-purposed bank (I get this one is a bit geeky, but wanted chance to highlight what looks to be a brand example of the art here);

📚 Particular businesses or organisations you look out for (a #bookshop is always a draw for me, but you’ll have your own).

It’s a crucial part of our tackling vacancy work, to understand what’s attractive in your offer for the impactful ‘promote’ phase, but also what would be a good add to those you have already when you try recruit new occupiers for empty units.

🤔 It’d be great to hear what you think…?

🤔 Who said that about where…?

While you’re thinking (if you have to), I’ll say it made for a very enjoyable and insightful #highstreet #placemaking out & about with #TheVacantShopsAcademy.

Just visiting in this case. And found lots to like: history & heritage buildings, gardens, arts & crafts and an awesome group of #indie #retail and #hospitality businesses, just a sample of which we’ve featured in the image set.

Like many market towns, it has a challenging section currently but that – I’d venture – is something that can be tackled, especially with a determined local team on the case.

🗝️ And that does mean there are some probably unusual opportunities to be part of a town where available options don’t present that often, tho maybe not for long…!