We have now been approved to host our petition on the Government website, please sign at the following link, thank you.

https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/608463

• 1 in 7 retail shops lie empty after 5 years of increasing High Street vacancy
• On average 48 shops a day closed in 2021
• Almost 190,000 retail jobs have been lost since the first lockdown

But behind all these numbers are real people. Entrepreneurs taking risks in creating businesses from nothing, who provide livelihoods to their employees, who then serve the local residents and the community at large.

What’s causing increased High Street vacancy? Covid triggering lockdowns, increasing remote working while decreasing tourism, as well as Brexit disruptions, and growing competition from online retail.

For smaller towns and cities, the High Street acts as the main hub for community, supporting not just employment and commerce, but social connectedness and wellbeing. Empty stores are unsightly, a burden on landlords, hurt surrounding businesses, and when increasing High Street vacancy becomes everyone’s local problem, it needs a national solution.

Local businesses need governmental support if communities are to be prosperous, environmentally sustainable, and provide quality jobs and lives.

We please ask you to sign our petition which is our first step in forcing Government to confront the reality of our struggling communities.

Our Voices SHOUT LOUDER Together. Please Sign Our Petition! Thank you for your support.