Local authorities should stop relying on retailers to fill their high streets and reimagine the space for offices, homes and leisure, according to a report from Centre for Cities.
Those whose high streets depend on retail tend to be struggling while the successful ones have turned over more of their space to other use, the research showed. The think tank said its analysis demonstrated that cities needed to “break the reliance on retail to thrive”.
Many high streets are full of boarded-up shops that fell victim to online rivals and a squeeze on incomes since the weak pound pushed up inflation.
