High Streets Task Force | 1

Webinar 2

26 June 2020

Routemap from Recovery to Transformation

Welcome

Zoom Controls

Simon QuinExecutive Director, HSTF

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TransformationRe

cove

ry

RESTRUCTURE REPOSITION REBRAND REINVENT

Place Management

Leadership + Governance

New and refreshed partnerships

Collaborative Vision

Data and evidence

Placefulness

Constant dialogue

Multifunctional hubs

Innovate, activate, don’t

give up!

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TransformationRe

cove

ry

RESTRUCTURE REPOSITION REBRAND REINVENT

Place Management

Leadership + Governance

The image part with relationship ID rId5 was not found in the file.

TransformationRe

cove

ry

RESTRUCTURE REPOSITION REBRAND REINVENT

Place Management

Leadership + Governance

New and refreshed partnerships

Major retailers in receivership – store totals

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

7000

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020

Centre for Retail Research 2020

Year until 24 June

ONS 2020

“inspirational local leaders, working in collaboration with all sections of their community have put a buzz back into their town centre”

Achieving Change 2018, IPM

Place leadership is collaborative in approach and it needs to evolve and adapt as circumstances change. It is more a network than a hierarchy but place leaders, acting together, achieve change.

Town leaders should be able to bring all stakeholders together,

including the community and develop a strong visionary place plan to reinforce the

distinctive heritage and identity of a place.

Today’s Panel

Simon QuinHSTF

Helen MoleWorcester City

Council

Ian HarveyCivic Voice

Diane SavoryGFirst LEP

Matt ColledgeInto Places

Today’s Panel

Simon QuinHSTF

BUILDINGPARTNERSHIPS

CIVICENGAGEMENT

WIDERSUPPORT

BRINGING IT TOGETHER

Helen MoleWorcester City Council

Key Lessons

• Clear objectives• Best practice• Ownership and accountability• Honesty and integrity

March 2020

May 2020

June 2020

July 2020

What’s Next?

Build Back Better

“We can only hope the leaders of our towns have used the lockdown opportunity to pause and reflect – and that decisive action will follow. We need to see ambitious plans to give all communities a proper stake in their economy. Old consumption driven thinking must make way for healthier driven strategies that meet the desires of a younger generation, embracing seasonality, community and unique experiences.”Grimsey 2020

Ian HarveyCivic Voice

Why would you want to engage?Why should we collaborate?

@ianmichharvey

Stop doing consultation Start having a conversation

@ianmichharvey

Why?

The problems we face cannot be solved alone

Whose town is it anyway?

Places are not limited by their opportunity; they are limited by their leadership

Nationwide issue…..

Places are not limited by their opportunity; they are limited by their leadership

Places are not limited by their opportunity; they are limited by their leadership

What do they have in common?

• Not sticking to outdated, top-down structures

• Partnerships that focus on the actual work of ‘doing place’… passing the power

• Funding from variety of sources • Enabling and facilitating• Building a brand as a place to be• Inclusive with community at the

heart of decision making process• Open and transparent on social

media • Not just public or private sector –

more civic partnerships

Leaders to establish partnership can come from anywhere!

So what should you do? • On the day you are submitting a 2 million pound funding bid.. Approach

the community and say that you need letters of support to say community engagement has happened…..

• Do act in a tokenistic manner….they should be grateful that you are even involving them

• Do seek the community in your work, but definitely then ignore what they say as it doesn’t chime with your thinking. Best to ignore them, than to explain that compromise is needed.

• Do ask volunteers to put themselves forward for a sounding board – and state that meetings will only take place between 10-4 and that no expenses will covered

• Remember they are just volunteers. I mean, they couldn’t possibly be experts in anything? Do not compromise on anything.

• Do all this and more you will build trust and mutual respect!

Communities: What should you be doing?• Do make sure you have a council officer in tears at the end of the

meeting. Follow it up with an email saying “I think it was really productive next meeting”

• Do let the council know that your voice matters above all else. So what if they have had funding cuts of record level. Not your problem, high streets needs addressing.

• Do go into conversations with a closed mind: The answer is no. What was the question? Don’t worry, the answer is no.

• Do expect an immediate response to your email. You sent it 5 minutes ago. They should be just sitting there waiting for you to get in touch.

• Ignore all the data and evidence that is shaping local thinking. Your opinion matters above evidence.

• Do say that you will not compromise on your ideas. You have 50 members in your community group. You are basically the community. Do call them all corrupt and liars. This really helps

• Do all this and I am sure they will be keen to work with you.

Positive relationships take work

Be out there. Be prepared to give up some ‘perceived power’

Get Things Done and make things happen. Lets other lead.

Be Fearless and try things… Some won’t work. So What!

Don’t stand for party politics.

Stand-up for your place. If you don’t?

Don’t worry about the Naysayers: They will say no to anything you do.

The majority want to help contribute in a positive manner… trust me!

Understand why you are engaging? To get sign off on things you’ve done?

Adrian Emmett of Treorchy Chamber of Trade:

“What we have is community-minded entrepreneurs, taking ownership saying 'this is our town' in partnership with the local authority and with the support of

the community. We are working together”

Mid Derbyshire MP Pauline Latham lauded said on Belper:

“This is a fabulous example of what can be done to keep the high street alive if

people work together".

Great British High Street…….

Think about what you will do to build an effective partnership?

Which community connecters are you going to phone up today and say How can we work together?

To community groups…. Which council officer/BID are you going to phone up and say –how can we help?

Diane SavoryGfirst LEP

Matt Colledge Into Places

Altrincham.A Collaborative Community

Partnership

True engagement

Retailers: chains/independents; bars & restaurants; leisure; arts & culture; existing town centre partnernships

Landlords; property agents and the town developers

Young people, residents, experts in planning, communication, public realm, environment, regeneration

Council; TfGM; NHS; Police

Creating a collaborative community partnership

Vision

PeopleArts & Culture

Health & WellbeingEvents

Education and SkillsAccess to Employment

Young People

EconomyDeveloping the town centre

business offer

Supporting the retail/commercial sector

Working with landlords and agents

PlaceWorking with major developers

and investors

Public Realm

Neighbourhood Planning

Pioneering Partnerships

Collaborative Community Partnership Working

Key actions

• Landlords Register• Landlords Forum• Retail Forum• Town Centre Loan Fund &Business Support • Communication, Marketing & Engagement Programme –

young people• Events Programme• Public Realm & Community Space Group • Neighbourhood Planning Group• Development Group

What we learnt

People make places – harness their innovation, creativity and passion.

Creating a shared vision for change increases ownership

Local leadership at all levels is keyWe needed to rethinking regeneration to go beyond

traditional masterplanningPublic/Private/Community Partnership very powerful.

Question responses

Last week, we asked you to…

Task 1

1. Baseline footfall now

2. Join manual counting programme

3. Register interest for HSTF Dashboard

highstreetstaskforce.org.uk/transformation-routemap-webinars/

Footfall in England:Analysis of reopening

highstreetstaskforce.org.uk/covid-19/

This week…

Task 2

1. Take the ‘Restructuring Diagnostic’

2. Reflect on local groups that can build capacity

3. Consider structures to bring these groups in

RestructuringE-learn

highstreetstaskforce.org.uk/frameworks/

Next week we look at

The myriad forces that are impacting high streets and town centres, including COVID-19

Data and evidence in making plans and strategies that solve problems

The importance of the visioning process

How to develop visions and strategies in a collaborative fashion that develop collective ambition for genuine transformation

https://www.highstreetstaskforce.org.uk

@HighStreetsTF