Final week of "Eat Out to Help Out" scheme boosts footfall

The final week of the government’s "Eat Out to Help Out" scheme saw footfall rise 6% across all retail destinations in the UK – covering 23-29 August, 2020, and the Bank Holiday weekend - seeing “the most positive footfall result of any week since the start of lockdown,” according to the latest data from Springboard.

All three retail destinations types benefited from a footfall rise, with shopping centres seeing an increase of +9.1%, high streets +4.8% and retail parks +5%.

The rise led to an annual footfall decline of -26%, a noticeable improvement on the year-on-year drop of -£30.7% in the week before.

The Bank Holiday weekend proved to be a success for all retail destinations, with an annual drop of just -11% up to 5pm on Bank Holiday Monday.

Diane Wehrle, Insights director at Springboard, commented: “The last full week of the ‘Eat Out to Help Out’ scheme led to the most positive footfall result of any week so far, with increases in all three destination types from the week before, and year-on-year declines that were the most modest since the start of the lockdown.

“Not only did the week as a whole yield far more positive results those previously but, given the situation we find ourselves in and the much cooler weather this year, the Bank Holiday weekend proved to be a remarkable success for retail destinations.”