Empty shops can be converted into local art displays with the help of a £3 million fund to combat the recession in local high streets.
The fund is a joint initiative by government departments including the Department for Culture Media and Sport, to find creative ways to reduce the negative impact empty shops have on the high street and business confidence.

Under the proposals, planning application waivers, new types of lease and allowing local councils to temporarily take over empty shops woukld enable the spaces to be used for cultural, community or learning services, says Hazel Blears, whose Communities Department is spearheading the plan.

Chorley plan to set up a semi-permanent exhibition because of how popular turning empty shops into craft exhibitions, informal learning, and summer music workshops have proved.

The Department has published a practical guide Looking after our Town Centres which suggests ways of keeping town centres thriving.
Culture Secretary Andy Burnham, who flagged up the idea at a local government culture conference last month, said:”.By transforming otherwise empty town centre premises into hubs for culture and creativity, we can regenerate both the physical space itself and the hope and ambition of all those that have a stake in them.”