Retail spend rose 1.3% in September, but footfall and shop prices declined on a year-on-year basis according to the latest report from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and retail analysts Springboard.

Footfall in September was down 0.9% compared with a year ago, which marked a return to the decline in footfall before the 0.1% rise in August. Footfall on the high street fell after two months of growth, a total fall of 0.5% in September following a 1.1% rise in August.

In shopping centres footfall fell 2.5% in September, a further fall from the 1.9% decline in August.

Said Springboard marketing and insights director Diane Wehrle, "While the very warm and sunny weather will have drawn consumers to high streets in September, resulting in a greater drop in shopping centre footfall of 2.5 per cent, this is not just a one off result as shopping centre footfall has dropped by 1.8 per cent for the year to date compared with – 1.4 per cent in high streets and a rise of 1.2 per cent in retail parks."

“The issue for shopping centres could be that many have lacked the investment required to maintain their appeal for shoppers whose standards and expectations have risen.”