Press Releases

ACS has welcomed the launch of a new inquiry led by the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee on the future of UK high streets and town centres.

The inquiry will examine the future role of the high street in contributing to the local economy and the health, cohesion and cultural life of the local community. It will also look at how local areas are planning for the future of their high streets and town centres and creating the conditions to sustain them in the coming years.

ACS has welcomed the Welsh Government’s announcement that it will seek to work towards a UK-wide deposit return system in Wales.  ACS is calling for detailed consideration of the role that retailers can play in such a scheme, including the challenges and burdens that may arise from it.

ACS has submitted a joint response with SGF to the House of Commons Scottish Affairs Committee Inquiry on the ATM network, raising concerns about the impact that the removal of ATMs could have on local consumers, especially those in rural areas.

The Inquiry was launched as a result of a decision by LINK to reduce ATM interchange fees paid by banks to ATM operators and retailers by 20% over a four year period starting from July. The Inquiry is considering the impact of this decision on Scottish businesses, consumers and high streets.

The Home Office have published the latest figures from its 2017 Commercial Victimisation Survey, reporting that the number of assaults and threats committed against the wholesale and retail sector has risen significantly over the last year, from 524 incidents per 1,000 premises to 1,433 incidents per 1,000 premises.

The CVS also reports that wholesale and retail premises experienced around 8.1 million crimes over the last year, rising from 5.2m in 2016. Almost two thirds of these incidents (61%) are attributed to theft by customers.

The Office for National Statistics has published its latest crime statistics for England and Wales showing that shop theft continues to increase year-on-year.

The statistical bulletin covers the year ending December 2017 which found that there has been a 8% increase in the number of shop thefts from the previous year, increasing to 385,265 incidents.

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has responded to a consultation launched by Daniel Johnson MSP on plans for the creation of new offences designed to protect shopworkers from violence. The consultation explores the creation of new offences to deter harassment, abuse and violence against staff, triggered by asking customers for proof of age or denying sale of age-restricted products.

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has launched the ACS National Living Wage Survey 2018 as part of its evidence gathering process for a submission to the Low Pay Commission.

The Low Pay Commission is consulting on what the rates for the National Living Wage and National Minimum Wage rates should be from April 2019. The consultation will also consider the impact of a potential premium on top of existing wage rates to apply for working hours not guaranteed by an employment contract, following a recommendation from the Taylor Review into Modern Employment Practices.

Retail trade bodies the Association of Convenience Stores and the National Federation of Retail Newsagents have launched new materials to help small stores introduce a plastic bag charging scheme following the publication of the Government’s 25 Year Environment Plan.  

The Association of Convenience Stores’ 2018 Crime Report has revealed a significant rise in the number of shop thefts committed against retailers over the last year, with shop theft increasingly being linked to aggressive behaviour towards retailers and their staff.

ACS (the Association of Convenience Stores) has responded to the Chancellor’s Spring Statement, welcoming measures to bring forward more frequent business rates revaluations to 2021, with revaluations every three years thereafter and confirms that the Valuation Office Agency will continue to value premises instead of self assessment.

The Chancellor had previously announced that business rates revaluations would become more frequent in his 2017 Autumn Budget, but this was scheduled to take place from 2022. Today’s announcement brings those plans forward by 12 months.