My town...

[TheOstrich]

Sutton Coldfield was a bit depressing; no shops seemed to last long, but there again, it was a large enough centre to provide a pretty good range of services, from House of Frazer down to the occasional farmers market and general "antique" fair.

Birmingham city centre, I really got to dislike - far too many people, way too frenetic and too cosmopolitan for my conservative tastes.

Down here, both Gillingham and Shaftesbury are pretty laid back, but Gillingham town centre is virtually dead, thanks to a proliferation of supermarkets (Lidl, Asda, Waitrose, Iceland - the Co-op burnt down about 5 years ago and never reopened, and Aldi have this year had planning consent for an out-of-town store rejected). Shaftesbury is more of a traditional centre, with a small WH Smiths, Boots, Superdrug, Edinburgh Woolen Mill, all the "big" banks, and a number of medium sized independent clothing stores. However, the in-town food store (Budgens) went bust last year and remains empty, and their only supermarket is now Tescos, a small distance away from the High Street.

With umpteen hundred new homes due to built between the two conurbations in the coming years, hopefully it'll revitalise the towns - or at least sustain what we have ....

[AliasAggers]

Our nearest shopping centre is Solihull, which is the finest one we have ever known. It has everything.

If you get a chance, come and see for yourself. You won't be disappointed.