Ahead of World Tourism Day, 27 September, the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has presented a plan to shore-up tourism in the UK through reviving high streets and town centres by better supporting small businesses on them to start-up and flourish. The move will advance economic, social and cultural enrichment to local areas across the UK, including job creation.

With almost half (44%) of all small tourism and hospitality businesses being on, or next to, the high street in the UK, reimagining and reviving high streets for the future is fundamental to a thriving tourism industry.

Over half (57%) of small hospitality businesses say that the establishment of new tourist attractions or cultural events in the area would be one of the biggest opportunities for the high street, according to a large-scale survey by FSB.

Now, FSB’s blueprint, The Future of the High Street, sets out achievable recommendations to make high streets more accessible and attractive, offering a wider range of experiences from innovative small businesses to bolster tourism.

FSB Policy Chair Tina McKenzie said:

“Small tourism and hospitality businesses bring in revenue and create employment, but they also establish a better market for small businesses across other sectors."

“High streets are more than just commercial spaces; they’re destinations in their own right and are inextricably linked to our tourism industry. To support the industry we must do more, as a nation, to make radical policy change to breathe a new lease of life into our high streets.”

Recommendations put forward include availability of affordable commercial space, which FSB says will not only fill vacant sites but also provide opportunities for small firms eager to launch on the high street; and calls for local authorities to create specialised funds to support pop-ups, markets, and temporary use initiatives for first-time businesses. This would encourage new ventures and help with their transition onto the high street.

Tina McKenzie said: “Attracting tourism to more high streets throughout the country by having modern and well-planned infrastructure, such as transport and parking; a unique variety of tourist attractions such as independent retailers, eateries and experience, would fuel economic growth. Every high street has a unique heritage and feel, but they all have one thing in common – the need for policies to make them safer, more peaceful, cleaner and more appealing and exciting.”

FSB also says that the Department of Culture, Media and Sport should work to encourage VisitBritain, Visit England and local visitor economy partnerships to prominently feature Britain’s local high streets as destinations in international tourism campaigns. This would invigorate the potential for tourism in new localities outside the typical tourist hot spots.

In 2023, 38 million international tourists visited Britain, spending £31.1bn, with an average spend per visit of £819. Visits were below pre-pandemic levels by seven per cent.