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Indie retailers should start to feel the benefit of business rates drop

12 Apr 2023

Shops, pubs and other high street businesses should be tax cuts of more than 50% after new property valuations came into effect earlier this month.
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ActSmart/IndieRetail address change

11 Apr 2023

ActSmart/IndieRetail have moved office. We’re still in the same business centre but have moved unit.
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Get behind the #ShopKind campaign and help spread the word

4 Apr 2023

With the week commencing 17 April being designated as #ShopKind Week, we are urging all our members to get involved in the campaign by sharing the materials on social media and across their... Read more…

Competition watchdog warns online retailers on pressure-selling tactics

4 Apr 2023

The UK's competition watchdog has announced a crackdown on online pressure-selling tactics that can push consumers into making hasty decisions they later regret.
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Free Easter Toolkit Download!

31 Mar 2023

Checkout Bira's FREE opening times and social media toolkit downloads for Easter!
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Jewellery sector’s Inspiring Independents Top 100 returns for 2023

30 Mar 2023

Retail Jeweller’s Inspiring Independents, the annual list of the top 100 independent jewellery and watch retailers in the UK and Ireland, is back for 2023 with voting open from everyone... Read more…

Local Bike Shop Day set for April 29th

29 Mar 2023

The ACT has announced that the annual Local Bike Shop Day https://localbikeshopday.co.uk/ will take place on Saturday 29... Read more…

Convenience stores saw record levels of theft in 2022, according to ACS report

29 Mar 2023

New figures from the Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) have revealed record levels of shop theft being committed against local convenience retailers over the last year.
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Local leaders claim up to 40% of shops must be repurposed in next five years

27 Mar 2023

Up to 40% of shops will need to be reinvented into anything from go-kart tracks to food markets over the next five years or “wither on the vine” as demand for physical retail wanes,... Read more…

New research reveals the top emotions shoppers feel when buying FMCG products

27 Mar 2023

‘Comfort’ (34%), ‘curiosity’ (28%) and ‘nostalgia’ (19%) are among the top feelings consumers experience when buying a new FMCG product, according to a new... Read more…

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GPs to prescribe cycling to help improve mental & physical health

Posted on in Cycles News, Outdoor News

The Department for Transport has announced a £12.7m trial to begin later this year, in which GPs in England will be able to prescribe walking or cycling as a way of improving mental and physical health and easing the burden on the NHS.

Initially 11 places will receive funding for doctors are to start "social prescription" pilots. The plan aims to reduce GP appointments and people's reliance on medication. The pilots run until 2025 in Bradford, Leeds, Doncaster, Cumbria, Gateshead, Nottingham, Staffordshire, Suffolk, Plymouth, Cornwall, Bath and NE Somerset.

The new Gear Change Plan pilots would be "hugely beneficial" to overall mental and physical health, said the DfT. The pilots will include adult cycle training for all abilities, plus more walking groups for exercise and mental health. Free bike loans will be offered.

Walking and cycling minister Trudy Harrison said more cycling and walking would "ease the burden on our NHS" as well as "improving air quality and reducing congestion".

The government said the authorities must also improve infrastructure, so people felt safe walking and cycling.

"We need healthier, cheaper and more pleasant ways to get around for everyday trips," he said cyclist Chris Boardman, commissioner of National Active Travel, a government agency set up to improve the UK's cycling and walking infrastructure.

"Moving more will lead to a healthier nation, a reduced burden on the NHS, less cancer, heart disease and diabetes, and huge cost savings."

However, while GPs agree the pilot funding is "great news", with obesity a risk factor for Type-2 diabetes, cancers, liver and respiratory disease, some say overstretched surgeries cannot take on even more work created by the pilots.

"Should GPs refer people to these schemes, or should they look after sick people?" asked Doncaster GP Dr Dean Eggitt.  "We don't have capacity for both."

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