The decline of traditional high street retail has left many UK town centres grappling with empty retail units, reduced footfall, and a loss of vibrancy. How to revitalise town centres has been a much-debated question for local authorities and one that successive governments have looked to address.
Diversification is clearly central to reimagining town centres – not just as places to shop, but as places to live, work, and connect. As part of wider town centre regeneration strategies, innovation centres can be a valuable component for a successful transformation, repurposing vacant retail units or offices into vibrant business spaces for ambitious startups.
Building communities of early-stage businesses, innovation centres offer more than just office space. They provide coworking areas, meeting rooms, business lounges, networking opportunities, events and – crucially – tailored business support delivered by in-house experts. This ecosystem fosters collaboration, innovation, and community, while also helping to increase footfall, spend and dwell time in town centres. In turn, helping to support surrounding businesses, shops, cafés and restaurants as well as contributing to local economic growth.
Stockport: A blueprint for success
A standout example of this approach is Merseyway Innovation Centre in Stockport. Managed by Oxford Innovation Space on behalf of Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council, the innovation centre has transformed a former retail unit in a 1960s shopping centre into a thriving hub for early-stage businesses.
Opened in November 2023, Merseyway Innovation Centre is already thriving and home to over 25 fast-growing startups and established firms. Many more businesses and entrepreneurs use its coworking and meeting spaces, contributing to a vibrant, collaborative environment.
As part of the Council’s wider regeneration programme, the innovation centre has contributed to the increased footfall at Merseyway Shopping Centre which has seen footfall rise year on year since 2022 and achieve a record-breaking 2024 with seven million visitors.
Merseyway Innovation Centre forms part of Stockport Council’s portfolio of Innovation Centres, known as ‘Innovate Stockport’ which includes Stockport Business & Innovation Centre and Merchants House. The renovation project was enabled through funding from Stockport Council, the European Union Regional Development Fund, UK Shared Prosperity Fund and the Department for Culture, Media & Sport’s Cultural Development Fund.
Stockport Council’s bold vision demonstrates what’s possible when local authorities take a strategic, place-based approach to regeneration. Integrating innovation space into the heart of the town centre, has breathed new life into an unused space and created a growing community of entrepreneurs alongside retail and leisure facilities.
A historic transformation in Greater Manchester
It is not just vacant retail space in town centres that can be reimagined either. Housed in a Grade II listed building that dates back to 1870, Ashton Old Baths innovation centre in Greater Manchester has transformed a disused public bathhouse into a thriving innovation hub for businesses in the digital and creative industries.
Thanks to funding secured by Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council, the project repurposed a much-loved landmark that had been closed for 40 years and on the English Heritage at-risk register – placing it back at the heart of the community.
Since opening in 2017, the centre has been supporting local people to start and grow a business, helping the area retain local talent, inspiring the next generation through its work with schools, and opening its doors to the public each year through Heritage Open Days that celebrate the building’s remarkable transformation. Providing flexible workspace alongside business support, the centre has created a vibrant entrepreneurial ecosystem and is currently home to 27 businesses. In fact, 79% of businesses that have graduated from the centre have remained in the Tameside area – a clear sign of its long-term impact on the region.
By repurposing a historic landmark into a dynamic innovation space, the centre has created a model for sustainable regeneration and social value delivery. It illustrates how public-private sector collaboration can drive good growth.
Boosting business in Bolton
The Wellsprings in Bolton is another recent example of innovation-led regeneration. A newly renovated building in the heart of Bolton, this new innovation centre is situated alongside a Central Library and close to new residential developments. Opened on 1st September, the centre is a key part of Bolton Council’s regeneration strategy to drive investment, encourage innovation and create more quality jobs. Providing flexible office, meeting and co-working spaces alongside in-house business support, The Wellsprings will help nurture the region’s next generation of businesses.
Leading a town centre revival
Innovation centres can be a powerful tool in the regeneration toolkit for local authorities. Aside from repurposing vacant space, they can support local economic development, foster innovation, attract and retain businesses, create high value jobs, build an entrepreneurial ecosystem and deliver social value.
So, what are the conditions for a successful investment into an innovation hub? Ultimately, the success of an innovation centre starts with it being deeply rooted in its location. Every place is unique, so each centre should reflect and build on local strengths rather than simply replicate models from elsewhere. A centre should be shaped by the identity and ambitions of its local area. This place-based approach gives each centre a stronger foundation for long-term success.
At Oxford Innovation Space, we work closely with local authorities and developers to design and manage dynamic environments for early-stage businesses that work for that specific location, meet commercial objectives and deliver positive socio-economic impacts.
If you would like to discuss how an innovation centre could feature in your town centre regeneration strategy, please do contact us via space@oxin.co.uk
