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Panorama 2020 E01
Transcript
00:00Britain's high streets are in crisis.
00:07Walking down here I can see lots of baking shops and there is a very big one here.
00:12We've lost more than a quarter of shops on our high streets in just over a decade.
00:17I haven't been down the high street in a couple of months.
00:22The new government has promised its help with investment for left behind towns.
00:27But how should that money be spent?
00:29Retail has only ever been a part of the functions of a town.
00:33So it's time for a rethink.
00:37I think it's vital actually that the high street becomes a place for community people to come together.
00:43Somewhere in the centre of the high street is a key public space.
00:48Tonight on Panorama we'll see how, in parts of the country, things are already changing.
00:55That has to increase the football, that has to regenerate the area.
01:17Stockton, sitting on the River Tees in the north east of England.
01:22It has a proud heritage but its high street has been struggling for a while.
01:27In the last five years the town centre has lost more than a hundred stores.
01:37This is a prime example of what's happening in the retail market.
01:40This was a former Marks and Spencer's unit that closed in August of last year.
01:44It's been vacant ever since their departure.
01:47But it's not a good sign is it? If a big retailer like Marks and Spencer's go,
01:52it's just not working, we've got to be out there, that's got to be disheartening.
01:56It's absolutely disheartening, it's frustrating and it's one in a long line of retailers
02:01who are consolidating right across the UK and we are victims of that
02:06and we've got to step in and look at different uses for our town centres.
02:10We see another one of vacancy up there but Debenhams ahead of us.
02:15Debenhams have announced that Stockton will be one of many towns where their stores will close
02:20and that leaves a very large retail store with a problem for not only its owners but us as the council.
02:29This week Debenhams is closing 19 of the 50 shops it plans to shut in the next few years.
02:36It's part of what the company describes as a restructure.
02:40This one will close in a couple of days time.
02:45As soon as you walk into the high street you see Debenhams.
02:48We're just going to have kind of an empty shop welcoming us.
02:50It implies a lot of people for this area, especially with unemployment in this area being really high,
02:56it would be a big loss.
02:57Every year I used to go get my mum the same Christmas present, the same perfume from Debenhams.
03:03Sorry, every year you got your mum the same present?
03:06Everything is time for change perhaps?
03:08She likes it, it's her favourite, she knows it's my present.
03:13These local teenagers have already seen big changes.
03:17Maybe a few years ago there was more to do, a lot of our shops were open where now I tend to go elsewhere.
03:23I haven't been down the high street in a couple of months.
03:27Why?
03:28It doesn't appeal to me.
03:30I do tend to use it for the music scene but that's generally all I really use it for.
03:36Stockton has a reputation for being ahead of the curve in rejuvenating its town centre
03:41with the council planning and investing in change.
03:46Investment in our town centre has started with the public realm and this central fountains area.
03:51We've created what we'd describe as a large outdoor room
03:54so that we've got places for performers and our large sporting events that we have right throughout the year here in Stockton.
04:02It's about creating that footfall so the more people that we've got living in town,
04:06working in town and coming and experiencing the fantastic events programme that we've got
04:11then they're going to use the retail.
04:13So how much have you spent on the town centre?
04:16Well over recent years, particularly since 2010-11, we've spent £38 million.
04:23And their plans don't end there.
04:27This is a very big site built in the 1970s and it provides a bit of a barrier to the river.
04:36Stockton is on the shortlist for a share of a £1 billion pot that government is committed to spend
04:43helping towns realise plans for their high streets.
04:49We're investing in buildings that we can take control of.
04:52We recognise that retail is a changing market. It needs to contract to be fit for purpose for our town.
04:59They're looking at different development options.
05:03The council says what matters most is that by owning these sites they'll be able to lead on regeneration of the area.
05:12We started a conversation with our residents about what they want to see in the future of their town.
05:18Do they want to see more leisure based facilities, more open space, more housing, more commercial development
05:26to help with part of the town centre's redevelopment.
05:31The truth is high streets have always had to adapt and change, responding to the shifting demands of their communities.
05:40It's always good to look at maps like this because you've got the sort of history of town centre and retail change in one place.
05:47Professor Cathy Parker is one of the leaders of the High Streets Taskforce set up by the government last year to support the transformation of town centres.
05:56She's an expert on the history of retail.
05:59If you were going to go out and buy an outfit then you'd be buying your gloves in one shop and your dress in another and petticoats in another.
06:06So yes, far more specialised.
06:09But high streets were never just about shops.
06:12They were also social hubs, bustling centres for communities to live, work and play together.
06:19Retail has only ever been a part of the functions of a town and a city.
06:24And perhaps, especially in the last century, in the 1980s and 90s, we got a little bit fixated on retail
06:32and we just thought that the whole town and the whole city was all about retail.
06:35And as we became more fixated, so high streets started to lose their individuality.
06:41Many once distinctive town centres became home to the same set of chain stores.
06:48A lot of our prime space in our town and city centres has been sort of filled up by very boring retail actually.
06:57But with some chains going out of business and others restructuring, there's an inevitable impact.
07:02Last year, nearly 6,000 chain stores closed their doors for the last time.
07:08That space is now an opportunity for other types of retail.
07:12It's really what people want. They want things a little bit more exciting and new.
07:17So what about the future then?
07:19I think places need to understand their function and the things that do draw people into the town centre.
07:24Some still have a very important retail function.
07:26Some are much more about an experience, so they're a mixture of heritage and culture.
07:32And some places are just much more sort of everyday, they're multifunctional.
07:36Then we have another category which is a sort of holiday town.
07:40Southend-on-Sea. It's been a holiday destination for Eastend day-trippers for generations
07:46and still attracts millions of visitors a year.
07:49Now its challenge is to make it a holiday destination.
07:53Two of my wedding presents came from this shop.
07:56I was asked to pick out something I wanted and I picked out a set of cutlery and a dinner service.
08:01There was a glass cabinet there and I bought a little lady from that glass cabinet all the years ago.
08:08Yeah, it was lovely.
08:10I sold well. I sold well.
08:12I sold well.
08:14I sold well.
08:16I sold well.
08:18I sold well.
08:20I sold well.
08:22We like going round the shops. We like going round the cafeteria and looking round the shops.
08:26Don't know what we go and do when they close them all.
08:29This is Havens on Hamlet Court Road in the suburb of Westcliff-on-Sea.
08:35Right up here we have my great-grandfather, Gordon Havens.
08:38This is my grandfather on his motorbike there and this is my father.
08:45Nigel's great-grandfather first opened a shop on this street more than 100 years ago.
08:50What was it like here then?
08:52No, fantastic. Families would, on Saturdays, come out and do a shopping expedition.
08:58And they would stay in areas like this and they would not only use the shops in the area but they'd use the cafes and the restaurants.
09:05They also used to get dressed up for it all as well so it was a pretty good grand day out.
09:12Havens started out selling china and fancy glassware.
09:16When I came in we put in a stationery department on the ground floor and a perfumery department.
09:22And then in latter days we put in ladies' fashion that worked for about three months and then we started to see that to become increasingly challenging.
09:32So we moved out of that and then back into more housewares in that area.
09:38Nigel and his family saw the writing on the wall and shut up the bricks and mortar shop in 2018.
09:45There comes a point when you think, you know what, we've got to make changes, even more serious changes than we've made.
09:52And so that's when you end up doing what we've done which is to cut yourself from the retail side of it and just purely trade online.
10:00They now run that online business from the top floor of the building.
10:05And the allure of internet shopping continues to be felt around the country.
10:09But it still only accounts for about 20% of total sales.
10:15The problem for high streets like this one is that we've decided to do a lot of our shopping in and out of town centres.
10:24So we might bemoan the decline of the high street but it's happening because we choose not to shop here.
10:32In December the number of people visiting our high streets, known in the trade as footfall, fell by 3.5% compared to the year before.
10:41It's a trend that has marked the last decade. Since 2009 footfall has fallen by just over 20%.
10:49Havens is just one of the many shops to have closed in this suburban high street.
10:54There'll be a cafe here and all the tables will come out here.
10:57So this is where they used to sell jewellery and make-up and smellies and that type of thing.
11:03And so it's going to be totally transformed.
11:06Local charity chief Lynne Bolter has taken over most of the building with plans for a service hub that she hopes will help cover the cost of the rent.
11:16So as you come to this end of the haven we've got a first for feet of podiatrists is going to be there.
11:21Public health doing flu jabs and smoking cessation, things like that.
11:25We've got a kitchen that is going to be serving the cafe.
11:28Toilet block, very important.
11:30And in here we've been working with a local care provider and we're going to have a day centre that's going to be available for up to 15 people a day.
11:38Lynne's hope for this place to be buzzing by the end of January is going to take a lot of doing.
11:51Just down the road on Southend's main high street I'm meeting Cathy Parker again.
11:58This is the entrance to the high street, what do you make of it?
12:02Well I only know it's the entrance because quite a few people are walking up that way.
12:07There's nothing that tells me this is the grand entrance to Southend-on-Sea.
12:11This really should be welcoming people and attracting people and drawing people in.
12:16And it actually is just the back of some very, very ugly retail units.
12:23This is a high street facing challenges typical of many others around the country.
12:31So we've come into this space, it's opened up certainly, what do you think of this bit of the development?
12:37Well I think very much of it's time. It's anchored here by a shopping centre and we've got some other newer retail over this side of the public space here but it just looks a bit sad.
12:50I know the council is thinking of encouraging food and beverage into this area, market stalls, selling food. Good idea?
12:58That's definitely a good idea and I think the regeneration of a lot of town centres now is coming from much more temporary usage, things like food markets, farmers markets, small festivals.
13:12The council is now investing in a major overhaul of the public spaces around here, part of wider plans to draw people and business back in.
13:21The council would like to see a rich and evolving town centre so it's not about setting a static vision but one that is dynamic.
13:28So that might be more residential, certainly looking above existing retail units but also thinking maybe about theming areas of the high street around residential or culture and leisure activities or food and drinks, digital even.
13:43Building on Southend's heritage they want to reduce the amount of space given to shops and create a mix of offerings on the high street.
13:52Just a short walk from here it has plans to transform areas it owns, creating new homes and better connections to the high street.
14:00And another for a privately funded all weather leisure scheme including a cinema, restaurants and hotel.
14:13Entrepreneur John Timpson chaired an expert panel tasked with advising the government on what can be done to help high streets thrive.
14:22It seemed pretty obvious to me that we've got more shop premises than we need so why not change them into houses because we haven't got enough houses.
14:31Put more people back in there, that gives a bit more life.
14:35But also put back in there what people need to do, they want to do with leisure, to do with medical services, libraries, all the things which will make sure that people not only go into the town but actually meet other people.
14:49Because my worry was that we're losing that sense of community and actually human beings need human contact.
14:59And many people are putting ideas like this into practice.
15:03James Hampton is an architect whose firm works with councils to rejuvenate town centres.
15:09Tell me what you think the philosophy of the good high street, how it should work.
15:14We came up with these four key design themes.
15:17Resilience is the idea of flexibility and adaptability, so in the design of the high street you allow for different uses over time, things can flex and change.
15:28Localness is about the idea that whatever you do in the ideal high street, it has to come from the local area, it has to be specific to the local people and local needs.
15:41Connectivity is critical in a high street that people can get there but can get there easily by walking, cycling and public transport.
15:47The idea of greening is that the high street should be a place of health and well-being and greenery is a way to do that.
15:57It also helps to improve air quality and it also creates places where people want to be.
16:03So you're going to show me what the elements are that go into the ideal high street, aren't you?
16:09Yeah.
16:10Right, let's go, get building.
16:11We start off with an anchor building at one of the ends of the high street, so it would be an art gallery or a theatre, a community theatre for example.
16:20Something to attract visitors in.
16:22That's right. Now as you move along the high street, there would be buildings that would have retail or work space at the ground floor and then probably residential uses above.
16:31And somewhere in the centre of the high street is a key public space.
16:36So it would be a flexible public space, it could be a market, it could be an event space or a performance space but somewhere where people can come and gather outside.
16:44Crucial to have greenery might be local parks that can connect to the high street but you can also have smaller parks actually on the high street.
16:52And then just continuing the high street with retail units at the ground floor and then more residential above.
17:00The perfect high street. It was easy.
17:03Well, OK, of course it's not that easy when it comes to the real world.
17:09There may be some agreement that change should happen, it's less clear who should create it.
17:16Some local authorities are choosing to take the lead but that can come at a cost.
17:21In the last three years, £775 million has been spent by councils buying up shopping centres.
17:28In some cases, borrowing money to do it.
17:32So is buying up properties the right thing to do?
17:36I think each location needs to make their own choices and decisions on that.
17:41Some authorities clearly have, they feel that's the right thing to be able to have ownership.
17:46There's no doubt that if you own something it is far easier to regenerate it and do what you want to than if it's owned by a third party.
17:53So I think it's a case of horses for courses.
17:55Councils are stepping in and buying properties to redevelop them themselves.
17:59Are you not worried that it's placing councils at some risk with public money?
18:05Well, there is always risk when you run a council and you have to do a risk assessment on whatever decision it is that you're making.
18:15Back in Stockton, I'm getting my steel capped boots and a hard hat on.
18:19This is the new jewel in the crown of our town centre going forward.
18:24The council is renovating the town's art deco theatre, The Globe.
18:29The plan was to put £1 million of public money into the building work.
18:34But now the project has been revamped and it's set to cost them more than £22 million.
18:40Nearly £19 million of that borrowed.
18:43How does this fit in to your city?
18:45So part of our diversification strategy, town centre is not just about retail but about evening economy, leisure offer.
18:51And this sits right at the heart of what we're trying to achieve to bring new people into town for different reasons.
18:58I mean, this is a huge gamble. It's a lot of money on the hope that people will come.
19:04We're very confident in that. There is a strong market.
19:08I am available for the opening night if you need a performance.
19:12Perhaps a double act, Adam.
19:14The new Ant & Dec. Indeed.
19:16Yeah, the better looking. New Ant & Dec. Absolutely.
19:19The council says The Globe could attract 200,000 visitors a year.
19:24Should it fail?
19:26I don't know.
19:28I don't know.
19:30I don't know.
19:32I don't know.
19:34I don't know.
19:35It could attract 200,000 visitors a year, generating £18 million for the local economy.
19:42As part of its regeneration effort, the council also runs this enterprise arcade.
19:48It's meant to help grow retail businesses.
19:51They hope some will set up shop on the high street and prepare them for the risks that entails.
19:57How would you like your tea? Do you like it weak, in the middle or strong?
20:00Karen runs a small cafe here.
20:02After five years building the business, she's joined by her mentor as she looks for somewhere more permanent.
20:08You'll see it's split into two different parts.
20:11Oh, wow. Yeah.
20:13Perfect kitchen, this, Karen.
20:15I'd probably want the sink further back. Right over there.
20:18And then the rent.
20:20What I'd hope is we can do something around about £1,000 a month on this shop.
20:25Right.
20:27£1,000 for the rent. That's the rent.
20:29And then you've got to pay the rates and then you've got to pay the service charges.
20:33And rates are a big issue for those on the high street.
20:37Is that an oven?
20:39Councils don't set the rates, but they do collect them.
20:42Half goes to the government and they keep the rest.
20:45But they can offer discounts.
20:48Will it be allowed in an oven?
20:50Of course you will. It's your shop.
20:52Real oven, imagine that.
20:54Right.
20:55Even factoring in the discounts she's entitled to,
20:58Karen would have to pay around £7,000 a year in rates for this space,
21:03with almost £2,500 more for the service charge.
21:07That's massive, isn't it? That's a lot of money.
21:10That's a lot of money.
21:13I can see us fitting into this position and making it something
21:19and, you know, just getting it to the right price.
21:21The reason we're seeing a lot of retailers go out of business
21:24is because their rates are very high.
21:27So if you had Boris on the phone,
21:30your plea to him on business rates would be what?
21:33That we need a thorough review of business rates.
21:36If retailers are going to thrive on the high street,
21:39they need lower business rates.
21:41And we need a review which will ultimately lead to online retailers
21:45and physical retailers having a level playing field.
21:48The government has announced a review,
21:51but not when it will happen or exactly what it will look at.
21:55What it has committed to is cutting the rates bill
21:59for small retail businesses by increasing their discount
22:03from one third to a half.
22:09But that won't be enough to answer all the challenges our high streets face.
22:13I'm standing between two iconic brands, John Lewis and Debenhams.
22:18This John Lewis is already closed
22:20and this Debenhams is scheduled for closure.
22:26The new owners of what was the John Lewis building
22:29have grand designs for its future
22:32and shopping doesn't get much of a look in.
22:35Thank you very much.
22:37Quite a sight.
22:39Yeah, very different to how it used to be.
22:40This will be the heart of the building.
22:42So, central reception here,
22:44where one can check in for hotel,
22:46check in for office use, buy coffee.
22:49All around the outside will be retail units,
22:52florists, vinyl, barbers, etc.
22:55Right.
22:57Okay, so, first floor, Adam.
22:59At the front, all the way along, facing the high street,
23:03we have private offices for our workspaces.
23:06This multi-million pound project will see the building transformed
23:10with office space for co-working, a bike workshop,
23:14pop-up stores, a hotel, a cinema, and more.
23:18Now, what makes you think this is going to work?
23:21We look at the breakdown of the city,
23:24the population, 350,000 people in Portsmouth.
23:27University, very large university here,
23:29growing and developing.
23:31We look at the number of students,
23:32350,000 people in Portsmouth.
23:34University, very large university here,
23:36growing, cosmopolitan.
23:38We have good corporate base in the city,
23:41so larger companies where smaller companies can feed off and work with.
23:45We need a very good micro-location,
23:47where people want to work,
23:49where you want to come and work,
23:51because there's shops, bars, restaurants,
23:53around, close to the sea,
23:55go out for a run at lunchtime.
23:57With all of that thrown together,
23:59this ticks every box.
24:03OK, on the roof,
24:05a new bar here, rooftop bar with terrace,
24:09studio space, fitness.
24:11I mean, this mixed-use sort of development,
24:14do you think that's the future for the high streets?
24:16The more different uses you can find,
24:18it gives you more options,
24:20more chances to create value.
24:22The sum of what you put together
24:24is greater than the sum of the parts.
24:26How long until I can actually get a drink up here?
24:29I very much hope by the autumn.
24:32See you there.
24:34I've waited longer in pubs, but I look forward to it.
24:36Good view, anyway.
24:38Not bad.
24:40Back in Southend,
24:42new attractions are popping up
24:44in what were once shops,
24:46and they're helping to draw a new crowd into town.
24:52This is kind of like the start of your experience,
24:54it will kind of feed through
24:56and at the end you'll go through into the restaurant.
24:58We are Crazy Golf, but we combine it with food,
25:00we combine it with beverage,
25:02it's an interesting hybrid
25:04of three very distinctive businesses
25:06that we've kind of just spliced together.
25:09Caddy says around 120,000 visitors
25:13came through their doors in their first year.
25:16Why we have survived 18 months
25:18and hopefully why we've survived three years
25:20is because it is a hybrid.
25:22People will come and have a drink and a game of golf,
25:24it goes hand in hand.
25:26What seems to make it work is the fact
25:28that we have all three together.
25:30If we actually took any of those away,
25:32the people that are travelling
25:34probably outside of Southend
25:36are very much coming for us as a destination,
25:38but they will then go and shop, vice versa.
25:40If everyone spent five pounds a month
25:43on their high street,
25:45I think communities coming back
25:47and just spending that extra money
25:49would see their high streets change drastically.
25:51Whilst the Crazy Golf on the high street
25:53is attracting a younger crowd,
25:55a few miles down the road
25:57at The Haven
26:03they seem to be doing well
26:05with a slightly more mature market.
26:08There are activities such as tai chi,
26:11snooker and dance are happening all the time.
26:22The classes keep fit, like over here now.
26:25We have stroller size, we have yoga.
26:32Downstairs, the renovation is complete.
26:38They're loving the cafe.
26:40We have a day centre that's actually working
26:42with people who are paying for our services.
26:45We have social services,
26:47we've got hairdressers.
26:49We would hope with all the services up and running,
26:51with the day centre working,
26:53we're talking anything between 500 and 1,000 a day,
26:55which when you think,
26:57and Nigel I think would agree with me
26:59that he used to maybe have five or ten sometimes a day,
27:01that has to increase the footfall,
27:03that has to regenerate the area
27:05because those people will then go into the bakers
27:07and the shops and buy.
27:11Nigel's father, Graham,
27:13who ran the family business here for years
27:15has come to see how it's changed.
27:18So here we are.
27:20Yes, a little tea, coffee shop.
27:22Used to be the perfumery department over there,
27:24do you remember?
27:26Nice to see the building being put to good use
27:28and bringing the local community together
27:32where they can enjoy the autumn of their lives.
27:38It's always been about people.
27:40Don't have a business without people.
27:42I reckon by the end of January
27:44all of this will be buzzing.
27:46We will regenerate this area.
27:57This podcast will make you feel old.
27:59We look back at the invention of the iPad.
28:01World Wise Web is up on BBC Sounds now.
28:04And if you like a crime show that leaves you stumped,
28:06this one will twist your melon.
28:08Silent Witness is back with the first of a two-parter.
28:10Next.