News

The Bank of England will be withdrawing legal tender status of the paper £20 and £50 notes after 30 September 2022, and we are encouraging anyone who has these at home to spend or deposit them at their bank or Post Office.

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has welcomed the Chancellor’s measures to stimulate growth and cut taxes in the short term, calling for longer term support on energy costs.

Measures announced by Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng MP in today’s mini-Budget include:

The Welsh Government has introduced a Bill which bans or restricts the sale of some of the most commonly littered single-use plastics in Wales, including a ban on plastic bags which are currently subject to a 5p charge.

The Association of Convenience Stores has welcomed the new Energy Bill Relief Scheme, which will support thousands of local shops and other non-domestic businesses for six months from October.

ACS has called on the government to introduce a targeted package of measures to support the UK’s 48,000+ local shops.

Ahead of the planned fiscal event, or ‘mini-Budget’, on Friday September 23rd, ACS has called for the following measures to support retailers:

Book your place at ACS’ Heart of the Community 2022, ACS’ unmissable annual conference taking place at One Great George Street Westminster on 18th October.

This year’s conference will focus on two high priority areas: levelling up and sustainability and this will be explored through industry experts and prominent figures from across retail.

The keynote speaker for this year’s conference has been confirmed as Katy Balls, deputy political editor of the Spectator, who will be providing analysis of the current political landscape and how this affects convenience retailers.

The 2022 Local Shop Report has revealed the enormous contribution that convenience stores in the UK make to people’s lives, not just as essential grocery businesses, but as job creators, community hubs and beacons of entrepreneurship.

This year’s report highlights the decisions being made in the UK’s 48,590 convenience stores in areas like investment, staffing, product mix, technology and service offerings, and delivery.

Book your free place at the launch of ACS’ 2022 Local Shop Report, taking place virtually at 10am – 12pm on 15th September.

This virtual launch event will explore the findings of this year's report and provide a comprehensive look at the stores, people and services within the convenience sector.

Confirmed speakers and panellists include:

A period of National Mourning for Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II has now started and this will continue until the end of the day of the State Funeral on September 19th.

Today (8^th September) new Prime Minister Liz Truss announced the much-anticipated support plan to help households and businesses cope with spiralling energy costs.

Speaking to the House of Commons, Prime Minister Liz Truss said: “I recognise that people are struggling with their energy bills and that is why I have brought forward this debate as soon as possible to give people reassurance before this winter that energy bills will be affordable.”