The BRC-Springboard monitor showed a 0.6% drop in overall footfall year-on-year. Retail Week takes a closer look at the figures.

4.4%

The increase in footfall in Scotland compared with July last year, the highest regional increase anywhere in the UK.

5.2%

The footfall decrease in Northern Ireland, which suffered the sharpest decline of any region and the first decline in footfall since February.

1.2%

Wales’ drop in footfall. It recorded a vacancy rate of 12.7%.

3

Number of regions in England to buck the national UK average for footfall, as visitor numbers fell 0.3% in the East Midlands and 0.1% in the North and Yorkshire but increased 0.2% in the Southwest.

1.7%

The average decline in footfall on the high street in July compared with out-of-town, which recorded an increase of 1.7%.

0.5%

The footfall decline at shopping centres - an improvement on the 1.2% fall in June.

10.1%

The overall UK vacancy rate in July, a decline on April’s 10.6% level. This number is at its lowest level since the monitor began in 2011 but every tenth shop still remains empty.

6

The number of UK regions that have seen a decrease in vacancy rates for each of the past three quarters.

9.1%

The vacancy rate in Scotland, the only region with a rate below the UK average, although three regions in England had vacancy rates below the UK average: Greater London at 7%, the East with 8.6% and the Southeast at 8.2%.