Healey calls for retail-led regeneration

Published	29 October 2007

Local Government Minister John Healey called for the retail sector and local authorities to work more closely to bring investment to deprived areas.

Publishing a 'how to' guide, John Healey said that retail-led regeneration can provide employment and training in deprived areas as well as offering competitive advantages to business. Speaking at the launch of the guide, 'Under-served Markets: Retail and Regeneration', he said:

'The benefits are twofold. Firstly, local authorities can improve the lives of their residents by tapping into the retail potential in their areas and at the same time providing an entry point to employment. Secondly, deprived areas also offer commercial opportunities for retailers as they would be filling a gap in the market.

'The guide shows that strong local partnerships between the public and private sectors are crucial to success. We recognise that this can be challenging, but the reforms the Government has made to the planning system can assist with this process. Our planning policy for town centres sets out a positive framework for regeneration of deprived areas and I believe these will play an important part in promoting new development opportunities.'

An investigation into the potential role of retail investment in regeneration in deprived areas was undertaken by the Under-served Markets project, which was a joint initiative between the Department and Business in the Community. Julia Cleverdon, Chief Executive, says:

"Business in the Community is committed to supporting business to improve their positive impact on society and sees the Under-served Markets project as an innovative approach to bringing private sector investment to England's most deprived areas.

We recognise the important role the retail and property sector can play as catalysts for regeneration, as well as its ability to bring direct benefits to local businesses and to counter deprivation and social exclusion. This publication promotes the collaboration and dialogue necessary for the private sector and local government to create benefits for both communities and business."

The initiative included funding for pilot projects looking at how best to stimulate private sector investment in areas of deprivation. One of the key focuses of the guide is a successful pilot project in Oldham, where a partnership between the local authority and Tesco led to the opening of a new store, creating around 400 jobs - many of which went to the long term unemployed. The guide will be rolled out at forthcoming regional workshops for practitioners to spread the lessons learnt from the initiative.