Many cities struggle to attract business investment and have high vacancy rates on their high streets. How can they improve their attractiveness to business and boost the vibrancy of their city centres?
This briefing examines the limited economic benefit that enterprise zones have had five years on from their establishment.
In many places workers, not leisure shoppers, are the key to high-street success
The recent focus on struggling high streets ignores the success of well-performing city centres and misdiagnoses the real problem: a lack of high-skill jobs
Another high street report prescribes business rates reform and again fails to recognise the real blame lies in the weak economies of many UK cities
What's the right mix of commercial space and residential in the heart of a city? What can places do to attract more business investment and people to city centres?
The best way to create resilient town and city centres with a strong demand for local services is to encourage broader jobs growth
Ahead of next week’s budget, it is rumoured that the Chancellor will make it easier to convert shops into homes. How exactly he will do this is unknown, but it sounds like he will expand...
Cities need to weigh up whether their local property markets are meeting the evolving needs of businesses
Our new data dashboard has the answer
Often blamed for the high street's woes, business rates need wholesale reform so they can support cities' growth.
There are good reasons to reform the business rates system – but doing so won't save high street retail
How the Government can make business rates system more efficient and make the most of devolution
Showing 1–10 of 39 results.
The launch of our latest research
This report explores the link between city economies and the strength of their high streets.
Many British High Streets face a bleak future as policymakers are failing to identify a clear economic focus to city centre regeneration strategies. According to Centre for Cities’ latest...
Last week both of the main parties set out plans to tackle the decline of the high street. While the Government’s high street fund was well covered over the bank holiday, Labour’s plans...
Both candidates have shown they are intent on tackling empty shops, but their proposed solutions are unlikely to make significant progress
Catch up with our event in Birmingham which discussed the role of civic and business leadership in delivering place-shaping strategies for city centres
Big data has much to tell us about how city economies work. Our Manchester and Sheffield case studies shed light on city centres as places of consumption
In many places workers, not leisure shoppers, are the key to high-street success
Another high street report prescribes business rates reform and again fails to recognise the real blame lies in the weak economies of many UK cities
The best way to create resilient town and city centres with a strong demand for local services is to encourage broader jobs growth
