The UK's leading retail trade event launches a Parliamentary petition after new research reveals retailers and consumers agree on one practical step that could help bring people back to Britain's high streets.

The UK’s leading retail trade events, Spring & Autumn Fair, has today launched a new national campaign calling for a minimum of 90 minutes' free parking in town and city centres across England. The campaign follows new research revealing retailers and consumers have independently identified the same practical measure to help encourage more visits to Britain's high streets.

Launching under the banner ‘Support Free Parking. Back Local Businesses. Bring People Back', the campaign centres around a Parliamentary petition urging local authorities to view parking as part of a wider strategy to increase footfall, support independent businesses and strengthen local economies.

The campaign has been developed from Voices of Retail, Spring & Autumn Fair's annual research programme produced in partnership with Faire. Drawing on the views of retailers and consumers across the UK, the latest findings uncovered a striking consensus: 38% of independent retailers believe free parking would have the greatest positive impact on their business, while 63% of consumers say it would encourage them to visit town and city centres more often.

The research also highlights the opportunity facing Britain's high streets. Almost all consumers (95%) say they would spend more if their local high street offered a better mix of shops, while 96% want to see more independent retailers alongside cafés, bakeries and other experiences that encourage them to spend longer in town centres. The findings suggest people want to support local businesses when high streets are easy to access, enjoyable to visit and offer compelling reasons to stay.

As the UK's leading retail trade events, Spring & Autumn Fair brings together thousands of retailers, brands and industry leaders every year, giving it a unique insight into the challenges and opportunities facing the sector.  Jackson Szabo, Portfolio Director at Spring & Autumn Fair, said: "Retailers aren't asking for special treatment. They're asking us to remove one of the practical barriers that both businesses and shoppers believe is discouraging visits to our town centres. When retailers and consumers independently arrive at the same conclusion, I don't think we should ignore it, we should act.”

Rather than viewing parking solely as a transport issue or source of revenue, the campaign encourages it to be considered as one of several practical tools available to support local economic growth. Making town centres easier to access encourages people to spend more time on the high street. More time creates more opportunities to browse independent retailers, stop in cafés and bakeries, visit markets and support the wider mix of businesses that give every town centre its character.

Jackson continued: "The best high streets are places where people don't just buy one thing and leave. They browse independent shops, stop for lunch, meet friends for coffee and discover businesses they hadn't planned to visit. That's exactly the kind of local economy retailers tell us they want to build, and making town centres easier to access is one practical way of encouraging that behaviour."

Alongside the petition, retailers across the country are being invited to join the campaign through a dedicated Retailer Toolkit, including window posters, QR-code till stickers, social media graphics and digital assets, enabling businesses to encourage customers to sign and share the petition. Trade associations, suppliers, local business groups and industry organisations are also being encouraged to support the campaign and help build momentum.

The campaign is calling for:

Introduce a law which requires all local authorities in England to provide a minimum of 90 minutes' free parking in town and city centres across England. 
Greater recognition of parking as part of wider town centre regeneration and local economic growth. 
Practical measures that encourage more people to visit, spend and support independent businesses. 
Retailers, consumers, industry organisations and local communities to support the Parliamentary petition.

Jackson added: "For years we've talked about saving the high street. Perhaps it's time we started talking more about making it easier for people to use it. If retailers, shoppers, local authorities and industry partners all get behind practical changes like this, together we can help create town centres that people choose to visit again and again."

The Parliamentary petition is now live, with retailers, consumers, suppliers, trade bodies, local authorities and communities encouraged to sign, share and help demonstrate the strength of support for practical action to help Britain's high streets thrive.

Sign the petition here. 

To download the retailer campaign pack email: visitor@autumnfair.com  

To download the findings of the full Voices Of Retail Report: Voices of Retail Report - Autumn Fair 2026

To register to attend, visit www.autumnfair.com