Footfall fell again in May, though far less sharply than the month before, as consumer confidence climbed to its highest level in years despite the lingering shadow of the Iran conflict.
Britain’s shops drew more visitors in May than they had a month earlier, a modest sign of life after a difficult spring, and yet the recovery never quite arrived. A spell of record-breaking heat in the final week of the month kept many would-be shoppers at home, leaving overall footfall lower than it had been a year ago.
The figures matter because retailers have spent recent months absorbing the fallout of the conflict involving Iran, which has pushed up fuel and energy costs and left households uneasy. May’s numbers, watched closely as a gauge of how consumers are coping, suggest the economy may be holding up rather better than many had feared at the start of the year. Whether that holds is another question entirely.
A Recovery Undone by the Weather
According to the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and Sensormatic, total UK footfall fell 2.6 per cent year-on-year in May. That was a marked improvement on April, when footfall had slumped by 10.7 per cent. Shopping centres took the heaviest knock, down 2.4 per cent, while high streets proved the most resilient of the lot, slipping by just 1.5 per cent.
The weather, it seems, cut both ways. Warm conditions early in the month tempted people out of doors, but the intense heat that followed had rather the opposite effect. Helen Dickinson, the BRC’s chief executive, said the record temperatures at the end of May resulted in a sharp decline in footfall, particularly at shopping centres and retail parks. High streets bucked the trend, she added, as those who were already out and about took the chance to pop into their local stores.
There were brighter signals on spending, mind you. The accountancy firm BDO reported that total high street sales grew 3.4 per cent compared with the same month in 2025, according to The Guardian, a reminder that fewer visits did not necessarily translate into lighter tills.
Confidence Climbs, but the Warnings Have Not Gone Away
Consumer confidence, for its part, recovered some of the ground lost earlier in the year. A poll by YouGov and the Centre for Economics and Business Research found that May saw the largest rise in sentiment since 2021, with the index up 2.6 points to 104.9; any reading above 100 points to an overall positive mood. The improvement followed a sudden drop to 102.4 in April, a low not seen since late 2023.
Broader indicators pointed in much the same direction. According to The Independent, the OECD this week forecast UK growth of 0.9 per cent this year, an upgrade on the 0.7 per cent it had pencilled in back in March, while inflation eased to 2.8 per cent in the year to April.
Even so, economists have cautioned that the brighter mood may prove short-lived. Ofgem‘s energy price cap is due to rise by £221 from July, and Sophie Michael, head of retail at BDO, warned that already high costs could climb further following the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Dickinson, for her part, noted that households remain anxious about the longer-term impact of the Iran conflict and inflation, and expect prices to rise over the year ahead.
