- Pharmacies, Post Offices, and convenience stores lead in essential services and community contribution.
- Convenience stores ranked second in supporting the local economy and third in positive impact.
- Stores serve as parcel hubs, social spaces, and provide vital services like Post Office access and bill payments.
Pharmacies, Post Offices and convenience stores are the three services that make the biggest positive difference to communities, according to new findings released today.
The 2025 Community Barometer, released by the Association of Convenience Stores, asks UK consumers to rank 16 different local services on areas like supporting the local economy, having a positive impact, and being the most essential.
Across the main categories, pharmacies, Post Offices and convenience stores ranked as a clear top three.
- Most essential services: Pharmacy (1), Post Office (2), Convenience Store (3)
- Most positive impact: Post Office (1), Pharmacy (2), Convenience Store (3)
- Most important in supporting the local economy: Pub/Bar (1), Convenience Store (2), Restaurant (3)
The Community Barometer also looks at the services that people are most in need of locally. The most wanted service on UK high streets was banks, followed by specialist food shops in second and non-food shops (for example hardware stores) in third.
At the other end of the scale, the businesses that people were keen to see less of were vape shops, pawnbrokers and fast food shops.
Association of Convenience Stores chief executive James Lowman said, “Communities across the UK clearly recognise the importance of their local convenience store in providing secure and flexible employment, supporting the local economy, and making an overall positive difference to the community.
"Our Community Barometer provides a blueprint for the kind of services that people want on their local high streets, and highlights the need for crucial services like banking, prescription collections and Post Offices – many of which are already housed within convenience stores.”
As part of the Community Barometer, ACS also asked consumers about the main reasons why they use their local convenience store. The top ten reasons are:
- Picking up additional bits of shopping through the week to top up the main shop
- Dropping off or collecting parcels
- Using Post Office services
- Getting additional bits of shopping because they’re the only shop that has what I need
- Getting cash out from a cash machine
- Doing the main shop for the week
- Buying lottery tickets or scratchcards
- An opportunity to get out of the house and see other people
- Paying bills over the counter / topping up electricity (e.g. PayPoint)
- Using other services, such as laundry, dry cleaning etc
Lowman continued, “It’s clear that people use their local shops for diverse range of products and services, and increasingly as parcel hubs to bridge the gap between online and physical shopping, but also for the intangibles like as a social hub.
“Every community has different needs and our members’ superpower is adapting their offer to make sure the right products and services are available. It’s the local knowledge and range of solutions we offer customers that makes us such an essential and resilient part of society and the economy.
"We’re proud of our members’ commitment to making everyone welcome in store and being at the heart of their communities.”
The full 2025 Community Barometer report is available here.