Today (15th December) a number of major UK banks have announced plans to work together and share services to ensure that communities can continue to access their cash.
The collaboration has been achieved through the Access to Cash Action Group and signals a long-term commitment to ensuring that consumers can continue to have access to cash and banking services.
Communities will also be able to request a review of their community’s needs from the summer of 2022.
The Scottish Government has announced that the introduction of a deposit return scheme bottles and cans has been delayed and will go live across Scotland on 16 August 2023.
The announcement follows an independent review which highlighted the impact of Covid-19 on the scheme. The scheme was originally due to be introduced in this year and this was then pushed back to July 2022 but has now been delayed for a further year.
Vikki Howells MS has been elected as the Chairperson of the Cross Party Group on Small Shops, re-established for the sixth term of the Senedd.
The core purpose of the group is to raise awareness in the Welsh Parliament about policy issues concerning the small shopkeepers who trade across communities in Wales.
The group has previously hosted the Supporting Entrepreneurship Inquiry and held several set piece meetings with Ministers in attendance on a range of issues affecting convenience stores including: business rates, retail crime and planning reforms.
ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) is calling on retailers to share their experiences of retail crime over the last 12 months for ACS’ Crime Report.
The survey aims to look at the impact that crime is having on the convenience sector and colleagues working in stores, including the number of incidents and how much crime has cost local shops over the past 12 months.
ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has responded to a consultation on the Kickstart Scheme, making a number of recommendations for how the Department for Work and Pensions can support job creation in the convenience sector.
The Kickstart Scheme provides retailers with funding to create new job placements and training for 16–24-year-olds on Universal Credit and deemed at risk of long-term unemployment.
ACS’ submission makes a number of key recommendations:
Policing Minister Kit Malthouse has announced that the Government will act to introduce tougher sentences for attacking a shopworker.
The Home Office notified the National Retail Crime Steering Group, of which ACS is a member, that an amendment has been tabled which would make attacking a retail worker an aggravated offence, resulting in tougher sentencing for offenders.
ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has responded to a consultation on the future of transport, calling on the Government to provide more support to the convenience sector to help the expansion of the electric vehicle charging network.
Today (22nd November) the Prime Minister announced new regulations for new homes and buildings in England in relation to electric vehicle charging points.
DEFRA Minister for Rural Affairs Lord Benyon has been confirmed to speak at the parliamentary launch of ACS’ Rural Shop Report 2022, taking place in the Churchill Room, House of Commons on Tuesday 25th January 2022.
The launch event will explore the findings of the report, providing a comprehensive overview of rural shops in the convenience sector and the role that they play in communities across the UK.
There’s just two weeks until ACS’ annual Innovation Showcase, taking place virtually on 24th November.
The Innovation Showcase is the unique chance for retailers and suppliers to come together to explore the latest products and services set to transform the sector.
This virtual event provides an opportunity for suppliers to showcase a product or service that has been launched in 2021 or will be launching in the future and shows clear innovation in the retail industry. A panel of retailers will then offer their expert opinion on each entry.
