WARRINGTON has been named as having one of the most declining high streets in the UK. 

But many residents may argue just wait until next year. 

Ahead of a multi-million pound regeneration of the town centre which includes new restaurants and a cinema opening, Warrington has been named among some of the worst high streets in the country.

Asktraders conducted an analysis of the UK high street taking into acount ATM, bank branches, retail store closures and ONS % growth of the retail sector over the course of 2019.

Poole in Dorset was at the bottom of the table closely followed by Blackpool, Lancashire (-2%) retail growth and Warrington with -4% retail growth.

The town also had a -4% growth in paid-for ATMs in 2019 and 42% rise in closures of bank branches since 2015.

Comparing this to the national data over 6,000 ATMs have closed between January 2018 and August 2019 an average 12% reduction.

More than 1,100 bank branches have also been closed in the UK since January 2018.

RBS, Barclays and Natwest are amongst the worst hit.

Warrington Guardian:

Steve Miley, Senior Market Analyst at AskTraders, said: “The UK high street has been weathering tough trading conditions with many UK retailers dropping by the wayside.

"Traditional retail store closures are on the up as businesses grapple with a weak consumer in the face of Brexit uncertainty, the unabated rise of e-commerce, higher costs and changing tastes.

“There are, inevitably, going to be winners and losers. High street retailers with inflexible business models that have failed to adapt to their changing environment are and will be the most noticeable casualties.

Warrington Guardian:

"Big names have just vanished from our high street and there will certainly be more to come.

"The challenges that the High street is facing aren’t going anywhere fast. This will be a case of survival of the fittest. Those retailers that can evolve whilst still giving their customers exactly what they want could have a lot to gain.”