Future High Streets Forum finds that good leadership leads to great high streets
2 Jun 2014 10:25 AM
A report identifies
local leadership as the ‘recipe for success’ on the high
street.
The Future High Streets Forum
has (31 May 2014) published a report that identifies local leadership as the ‘recipe
for success’ on the high street.
Analysis of 4 Portas Pilot towns
found that good local leadership was behind their successful reinvention.
Bedminster, Dartford, Rotherham and Sydenham were examined to identify and map
what lay behind their success in dealing with challenges on their high
streets.
The report, produced by forum
experts led by Jason Cotta of Costa Coffee, reveals the common ingredients and
successful leadership behaviours were:
- local authority
engagement
- sustainable and smart
investment
- communicating a
vision
- entrepreneurial
spirit
The report concludes that any
town centre, regardless of size, can really benefit from good leadership
habits. It advises regular reviews to ensure constant improvement and clarity
of focus. The Forum also recommends that every town centre across the country
puts in place a structure, direction, and a vision for their
work.
The Good Leadership: Great High
Streets model recommends the following 5 steps:
- Develop a shared local vision to
drive change.
- Create a town strategy and
action plan with a clear timetable for delivery.
- Deliver the town strategy and
action plan through expert teams.
- Gather data to review the town
strategy and action plan.
- Establish insights and learning
from the data.
Brandon Lewis, High Streets
Minister and Future High Streets Forum co-chair said:
High streets are the heartbeat
of every community. The Future High Streets Forum is right to say that good
local leadership is the essential ingredient for creating great high streets.
Their leadership proposals will help every town centre across the country
achieve the success that places like Dartford have, which in turn will future
proof our high streets for decades to come.
Simon Roberts, Managing
Director, Health and Beauty UK and Republic of Ireland, Alliance Boots, and
Future High Streets Forum Co-Chairman said:
Boots has long been committed to
the vitality of UK high streets and our work with the Future High Streets Forum
continues this legacy of thought leadership and active local support. We are
confident that the findings in this report will help to improve the management
of town centres, drive strong local leadership and deliver the healthy high
streets of the future which our communities require. Our stores leadership team
will be helping to implement this model with town centre management teams
across the UK by championing partnership and increased local collaboration with
business.
Jason Cotta, Managing Director,
Costa UK Retail and Future High Streets Forum project lead
said:
We know what makes a high street
great and what can turn a poor one around - good leadership - so the forum has
developed a way to galvanise local leaders around a coherent game plan. To
create great high streets through good leadership is just one way to address
the challenges faced by the high street today. These tips will help every high
street no matter where they are in the country.
Further
information
- Download the Good Leadership: Great
High Streets model (PDF,614 KB) from the Future High Street Forum’s
site..
- Read further
information about the forum and its membership.
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