Revitalising Town Centres and High Streets

Liberal Democrats understand that town centres and high streets are the beating heart of communities up and down the country, places that people love and become attached to, places that give a sense of local pride and places that can support the local economic, social and environmental needs.

Liberal Democrats recognise that many town centres and high streets have been allowed to go into disrepair, with empty shops, cracked pavements, traffic jams and waste strewn across the streets.

As Liberal Democrats, we believe that, to create a successful town centre, it must be:

Fair: Welcoming spaces that are socially inclusive and accessible to everyone.
Economically successful: Places that feel alive with opportunity, where independent businesses thrive day and night, weekday and weekend and resilience is built through a diversity of uses.
Social: An opportunity to connect, for all ages and backgrounds, with activities and infrastructure that supports health, wellbeing and community pride.
Local: Rooted in the needs of local people, supporting local businesses, and creating meaningful jobs, especially for young people building their futures.
Sustainable: Designed for the future with clean transport options, green spaces, and with inbuilt climate resilience.
Clean and safe: Environments where people feel secure and comfortable spending time and where businesses have the confidence to locate.

Liberal Democrats wish to reimagine town centres, not as relics of the past but as places for everyone to live, connect and belong, places that inspire local pride today and for generations to come.

The rest of this paper sets out our proposals for revitalising town centres and high streets in England.

A sign hanging in a shop door window reading "Sorry we are closed"

Reducing Vacancy Rates

A temporary emergency cut to VAT.
A review of the cumulative effects of taxation on the high street.
Improving access to competitive energy deals.
Reforming business rates to reward occupancy and community value.
Making it easier to identify and contact landlords, especially these from overseas.
Strengthening the Town Centre First principle in national planning policy, including an ‘Out of Town Levy’.
Encouraging homes above shops.

Creating the Spaces the Community Wants On and Offline

Making it easier to convert vacant units into community hubs, without full planning change of use.
Creating a national digital infrastructure designed to support local enterprise, a platform that can be available for local adaptations and branding.
Giving councils powers to designate Independent Shop Zones within their local plan, locally defined areas that protect and champion small, locally owned businesses.

Creating Distinctive Design and Better Accessibility

Promoting public transport and active travel options.
Reviewing the impact of parking charges to provide guidance for councils to support more flexible, targeted approaches that can support footfall, in particular during evenings and weekends.
Making dedicated funds available for local authorities that want to deliver high-quality high street pedestrianisation projects.
Establishing a National Centre for Design and Placemaking to support local authorities through providing design support, guidance, and training for local authorities, championing good design and sustainability across all regions.
Initiating an annual national ‘Amazing High Streets’ competition to celebrate the outstanding design of public spaces.

A base guitar, the hands playing the guitar are visible.

Driving Footfall and Bringing High Streets to Life

Establishing a High Street Culture and Community Fund delivered in partnership with the Arts Council and local authorities to give ongoing support to community-led cultural initiatives and local events.
Establishing a national Incubator Fund to support the creation and early-stage development of locally designed festivals.
Backing creative start-ups and cultural enterprises.

Tackling the Lack of Sustainable Investment

Establishing High Street Improvement Districts led by a locally- agreed board representing the cross section of interests, including representation from the local council, which would be charged with creating a long term vision for the town centre, supported with a joined-up roadmap, curator and communication plan.
Creating a ‘High Streets Back Home’ scheme as a defined and accessible route for people to give back, to invest in the future of their community, whether by supporting community asset purchases, restoring heritage buildings or backing local enterprise space.

Tackling Safety, Anti-Social Behaviour and Shoplifting

Building features that discourage anti-social behaviour (such as strategic lighting) into the design of town centres.
Supporting small businesses to invest in CCTV.
Offering digital tools as collective procurement bundles, making them accessible for small businesses, such as a WhatsApp instant alert system for businesses, BID teams, and community wardens that fl ags off enders, patterns, and risks in real time.
Calling on the National Crime Agency to establish a dedicated unit to liaise with local authorities and police forces to take on organised shoplifting gangs.