Tower and Town, April 2019

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Editorial: Marlborough's Independent Retailers

This month, pupils at Marlborough College have been offered the opportunity to contribute to Tower and Town. I gladly volunteered my sparky class of Year 9 (thirteen to fourteen year olds) for this challenge. At Marlborough College, we teach a hybrid course called ‘Form’ to Year 9 in which we combine the teaching of English, History, and Religious Studies. This allows us to challenge pupils and prepare them for the rigour required for GCSE study, so this commission is the perfect challenge for the pupils.

It seemed fitting to focus on local shops for our journalistic exploits, as High Streets across the UK struggle to stay busy and vibrant from fierce competition from out-of-town shopping centres and internet shopping. Some of the students are new to Marlborough whilst others were born here and know the town well. However, when asked about their shopping habits, a lot of students confessed to mainly using familiar chains rather than exploring the many independent shops in the town centre.

As a class, we would like to thank the many shop owners and employees who gave up their time to be interviewed. My pupils enjoyed meeting and talking to everyone whom they met and they were able to learn more about the challenges facing local businesses as well as how enjoyable this line of work can be. Fundamentally, I hope this reminds them to consider the impact of where they spend their money and open their eyes to the importance of supporting smaller independent businesses.

Isabel Marks