Manchester Met Academic to Chair National Conference on Restoring the High Street
The Institute of Place Management at Manchester Metropolitan University is pleased to announce that Professor Nigel Morgan will chair the Restoring the High Street Conference 2026, which takes place online on 22 September 2026. The national conference will bring together leading voices from local government, community organisations, healthcare, business and the regeneration sector to explore how high streets can become more vibrant, inclusive and resilient.
The programme reflects many of the themes currently shaping national policy, including community-led regeneration, health and wellbeing, the nighttime economy, youth engagement, meanwhile use, vacant property, community safety and partnership working.
Professor Morgan, Professor of Social Sustainability at Manchester Metropolitan University, will open and close the conference and guide discussions throughout the day. Speakers include representatives from Power to Change, Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust, the Night Time Industries Association, Save The High Street, Meanwhile in Gloucester, Cumberland Council, the Safer Business Network and the British Retail Consortium.
One of the conference’s keynote sessions will focus on community-led regeneration and examine how neighbourhood boards, devolution and local partnerships can help ensure investment delivers meaningful and long-lasting change. Other sessions will explore the growing role of healthcare on the high street, strategies for revitalising the nighttime economy, and how meanwhile use can transform vacant spaces into community assets.
The Institute of Place Management is actively contributing to both the emerging High Streets Strategy and Parliament’s inquiry, drawing on more than two decades of research, policy development and practical experience working with towns and cities across the UK. Professor Morgan’s role at the conference comes at a particularly important time, as both the Government’s emerging High Streets Strategy and Parliament’s inquiry into the future of high streets examine many of the themes being discussed during the event, including local powers, community participation, public services, vacancy, safety and long-term regeneration. The Institute of Place Management is actively contributing to both the emerging High Streets Strategy and Parliament’s inquiry, drawing on more than two decades of research, policy development and practical experience working with towns and cities across the UK.
Ian Harvey, Head of the Institute of Place Management, said:
“This conference comes at an important moment for the future of high streets. National policymakers are currently considering what the next generation of high street policy should look like, while local authorities and communities continue to grapple with the realities of regeneration on the ground.
We are delighted that Nigel is chairing this event. His involvement reflects the breadth and depth of expertise that exists across Manchester Metropolitan University in areas such as place, regeneration, social sustainability, health, communities and high streets. It is another example of Manchester Met colleagues helping to shape national conversations by bringing together research, policy and practice to support the future of our towns and cities.”
The conference takes place online on 22 September 2026, and colleagues, members and partners interested in the future of high streets and place-based regeneration are encouraged to attend.
