Building societies and estate agents vanish from high streets

The number of building society branches on the high street tumbled by 28.2% in the two years between October 2008 and 2010, and the number of estate agents fell  9.2% , according to Ordnance Survey.

Covering 27m high street addresses, the OS data also shows that recruitment agencies are down 13.4%, and town centre pubs and bars are down 4.7%.

The only type of high street business to increase was betting shops. The rise is fuelled by a legal limit on the number of fixed-odds betting terminals. With only four allowed per shop, some betting businesses take two shops in the same high street.

Dan Hughes, sector manager of land and property at OS, said that Wales, the Midlands and north of England were the hardest hit.

Whilst pound shops and supermarket convenience stores see their future on the high street, many national chains are closing branches or relocating. Mothercare is taking its shops out to retail parks, whilst Arcadia is closing 400 high street stores and HMV is shutting 60.

It is thought that 15% of premises in high streets are now empty, although in some towns – for example Margate and Rotherham – nearly one in three is vacant.

Simon Rubinsohn, chief economist for the RICS, said: “The repopulation of estate agents’ shops relies on housing market transactions picking up and I’m not optimistic that will happen this year or next.”