Our high streets were once bustling, buzzing hubs for the community but over the years they have gradually changed.

During the Chippenham Folk Festival, the High Street was alive and flourishing – it was a wonderful sight and I would like to congratulate the organisers and everyone that was involved. It was lovely to see our community come together and it is very important that we support events like these but we also need to do so much more to revive our high streets.

Unfortunately over the years the wide retail offering has declined in our towns and long gone are some of the unique independent shops that filled the streets. Bradford on Avon has bucked this trend with some wonderful local shops like J Alex Browns, Tillions and Fetch. However Melksham and Chippenham have suffered and over the past year a number of shops have been forced to close in Corsham. We need to stop this trend and ensure that our high streets not only survive but go from strength to strength.

In each of our towns I want to engage landlords, councils, residents and community groups with a variety of schemes to regenerate our towns. From the use of empty shops, more parking spaces, marketing our towns to joined up promotional offers and a co-ordinated approach.

This week I awarded Topps Hair Salon with a trophy for being Melksham’s Best Shop. I launched the competition for local people to vote for their favourite shop to encourage people to think about their high street and the hard work of our shopkeepers. I did similar initiatives in Corsham and Bradford on Avon last year. The response was overwhelming, highlighting the value that people attach to their High Street within our community. This is just one step on the long staircase that together we must climb to re-energise our towns and their offerings.

I had a jam-packed bank holiday weekend with a street stall in Chippenham, volunteering with Doorway at its Spring Fair, attending the Chippenham Folk Festival, visiting the new Splash Pool at John Coles Park, holding my first surgery in Melksham and a Meet Michelle event in Gastard. If you have an event coming up or need help with your organisation please email michelle.donelan.mp@parliament.uk

I want to use this column to ask for your help as well. I am a trustee of Help for Victims of Domestic Violence. A Wiltshire organisation providing practical support to families, individuals (male and female), young people and children who have experienced domestic violence. We are about giving people the ability and independence to take back control over their own lives once again. We need storage facilities to store donations of furniture and household items for those in need. In addition we need funding for our van – any contribution would be more than welcome. Please email hdv@sky.com or call 0777 200 3353 and visit hvdv.webs.com