Reinvigorating the High Street 17Reinvigorating the High Street

I have recently taken on the role within Spelthorne Borough Council of town centres manager for Ashford, Shepperton and Sunbury and I am really looking forward to meeting and working with the people and businesses that make these towns ‘tick’. My role is to act as a focal point to assist in all the good things that are already happening and to help coordinate the efforts, resources and interests of all stakeholders to further promote, enhance and revitalise these great villages. With regards to our businesses, there is a huge amount of support ‘out there’ from various levels of government, business organisations and LEPs, but this is not always straightforward to identify. My role will be to identify what is available and communicate that effectively. I will look to build strong and effective business forums to help identify issues and communicate solutions. Obviously, there are always going to be challenges but, by working together, I believe we can develop realistic and achievable action plans to make the environment and experience of each centre attractive for business, retailers, residents and visitors alike. I am keen that any activities that we undertake are ‘with’ the community as opposed to ‘for’ the community. This can be achieved by having strong, effective partnerships both of and between the various stakeholders. Each village has its’ own strengths (and challenges) and, therefore, identity and I look forward to working towards a cohesive promotional message that all can use across all their various media. ‘May you live in interesting times’ is much quoted as an ancient Chinese curse. (It is actually Western in origin and quite modern). Well, we are certainly living in ‘interesting times’ and the challenges for town centres communities and high streets across the country, with or without Covid, are very real. But, with challenges come opportunities. The current crisis has shown us so many examples of how caring and supportive our communities are – and it is the town centres where these communities come together.

I look forward to working with you all. In the meantime, I would encourage all businesses to follow our social media channels and regularly check the council website for news updates and business advice.

Andy Willmott Town Centre Manager - Ashford, Shepperton & Sunbury Spelthorne Borough Council Mob: 07939 244548 a.willmott@spelthorne.gov.uk www.spelthorne.gov.uk