As the main news headlines tell us that we’ve emerged from recession, it may now be the time to consider what, if any, affect this may have locally. Now that we can assume the economy is in a stable position, or at least reaching it, we should now be urging our local councils and authorities to consider spending more money on the areas that most need it, as a way of creating a better quality of living.

According to a poll carried out in 2002 by CABE (The Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment), Streatham High Road was voted “Britain’s Worst Street”. Although this poll could be argued to be considerably outdated, we must still ask ourselves how Streatham High Road has changed since then, and what more can be done to make it more attractive. It seems that Streatham High Road is, and always has been, just a drive-through, rather than a destination. If authorities would spend a little more money on renovating the area and improving the variety of social hotspots, perhaps our local businesses would benefit from it, which would in turn, cause the area to thrive and even become an excellent place for tourists.

The fact that Streatham High Road is Europe’s longest high street is quite eye-opening; the fact that it is also “Britain’s Worst Street” is quite alarming and suggests that changes need to be made so that people want to stop along the high street, rather than just drive on through. Apart from the Odeon and Ice-rink which have always been popular social hotspots, it’s time that the local council give spend more on setting up restaurants, cafes and other areas of social interest. Now that we are out of the recession, it is time that local authorities realise this and start planning renovations and refurbishments in our local area.