At the launch of his national programme, ‘Disappearing Britain’, David Cameron said “small shops are the lifeblood of local economies, and their survival is vital.” He is right. Distinctive, often family-owned small shops define communities. But despite that, in the past six years, London alone is estimated to have lost more than 7,000 independent shops. 

One reason for that is a planning system that offers virtually no room at all for local involvement. Even where residents, local councillors and elected MPs are united in determined opposition to a given plan, their wishes can be, and so often are, simply brushed aside by remote and unaccountable planning bureaucrats. I experienced this first hand last year. 

When a retail site fell vacant on White Hart Lane in Barnes last year, Sainsbury’s snapped it up. Local people were enraged. The last thing they wanted was a large new store undermining the local independents, bringing more traffic into a residential area, with large delivery lorries rumbling up and down the street. The Council was bombarded with letters of protest from residents, and in response it rejected the application. Astonishingly the decision was then overruled by the National Planning Inspectorate in Bristol – over 100 miles away from Barnes.

Communities offer the best possible hedge against continued social and environmental instability, and their protection should be a priority. That requires a re-think of Planning– and a shift towards a much more localised approach. 

The downward trends are nearly universal, but the fact that some areas are fighting back suggests there is a lot our local authorities could do – even in the absence of Planning reform. 

Ten years ago for instance, Marylebone High Street had 51 empty shops and barely a single independent. It is now the leading independent shopping street in London. This didn’t happen by chance. The landlords understood that a good mix of shops, in an attractive and well-maintained environment, would bring in new shoppers. They were proactive and developed a long term vision for the area. Having identified the gaps on the high street, they actively sought new operators. 

Inspired by the success story of Marylebone High Street, Kensington and Chelsea Council launched a wide-ranging Retail Conservation programme. K+C Council has begun re-writing the planning process so that the retail categories are more detailed and prescriptive. Mobile phone shops, coffee shops, large chains, estate agents all have their own categories. The effect is that where vacancies crop up, it is easier for the council to ensure that the replacement operator is something that adds to, rather than detracts from, the overall mix of shops in the area. More than that, where vacancies arise, they will actively seek out the best possible occupants, as the Marylebone Landlords did in their area. 

We need the same energy and commitment across the board. Communities don’t have to accept decline. But to reverse it we need to work together and ensure our Local Authorities know we are watching them.

This entry was posted on Thursday, May 22nd, 2008 at 12:23 pm , written by Zac Goldsmith and is filed under Localism, Quality of Life. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.