The challenge for urban planners in responding to our changing town and city centres is nothing new. It has been a constant source of debate during the time I have worked in regeneration.

But accelerated changes in how people use our urban centres, most notably since the pandemic, have added urgency to this work. A key feature of our response should be reassessing how we manage public spaces. Both urban greening and the diversification of our urban centres need to be at the heart of this.