Government publishes strategy to regenerate high streets

On 15 July 2021, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) launched the government’s long-term plan to support and regenerate high streets, Build Back Better High Streets.

The strategy forms part of the government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic and builds on the proposals announced in the Spring 2021 Budget.

In the Spring 2021 Budget, the government announced various funds designed to encourage investment in local projects and infrastructure, including:

• The Towns Fund, to provide investment for regional towns to design and implement a growth strategy in their local area.
• The Community Ownership Fund, to facilitate local communities buying or taking over local community assets at risk of being lost and running them as community-owned businesses.
• The Community Renewal Fund, to provide an opportunity for places across the UK to bid for projects that can fund green infrastructure and improvements to public space and cycle lanes.
• The Levelling Up Fund, to facilitate the removal of derelict buildings to make way for new developments, the remediation of abandoned or brownfield sites for both commercial and new residential use, and the delivery of new public spaces.

The Build Back Better High Streets strategy focuses on using these funds to stimulate local regeneration alongside other government programmes, including the government’s proposed review of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 and proposed reforms to the planning process.

Wilson Browne’s Legal 500 Commercial Property Team act for landlords, tenants, landowners and developers who have an interest in the future of our high streets, which were already in a period of decline even before the pandemic.

Some local towns have already benefitted from the Towns Fund, so interesting times are ahead in the region.