News

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.”

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has responded to a consultation launched by the Welsh Parliament’s Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee on reducing single-use plastics in Wales, calling for clarification on timescales for the proposals.

ACS has briefed MPs on the important role that local shops play in ensuring that their communities have access to healthy foods ahead of a Westminster Hall debate on the Healthy Start Scheme.

Healthy Start is a government scheme for those who are at least 10 weeks pregnant, parents, carers and young children in low-income families, to help them buy healthy food and milk and get free Healthy Start vitamins. It is a digital scheme that offers a prepaid card to those applying for Healthy Start instead of paper vouchers. 

We’re calling on retailers facing huge hikes in their energy bills to write to their MP, outlining the need for urgent action from Government.

Retailers can write to their MPs by putting their store postcode into our online tool here: ACS.org.uk/campaigns

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