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LONDON, Jan 17 (Reuters) - Shopper numbers across Britain
rose 1.5% in the week to Jan. 15 versus the previous week,
driven by a return to high streets, researcher Springboard said
on Monday.
It said shopper numbers, or footfall, last week were up 7.2%
on high streets week-on-week, though down 4.9% in retail parks
and down 4% in shopping centres.
"It seems that whilst the government's (COVID-19) Plan B
guidance to work from home if possible is still in place, there
are the first signs that employees are starting to drift back to
the office," Springboard director Diane Wehrle said.
The researcher said overall footfall was 21.3% lower than
the same week in 2019, before the coronavirus pandemic impacted
traffic.
(Reporting by James Davey, Editing by Paul Sandle and Mark
Heinrich)