Recruiters have claimed that a government investment will not reinvigorate some of the country’s high streets hit hardest by the recession.

Last week, the government announced that 57 local authorities will be given grants worth more than £50,000 each to help prevent their high streets from becoming ghost towns.

Stefan Brown, director at ROC Recruitment, told Recruiter: “The figure they have given will not do enough to make an impact on the high street. They have recognised there is a problem but it will not regenerate the high street in any way.

“It depends on how run down the area is and how long ago it was built. I would have thought you would need at least £1m for a council to make a significant difference.”

Peter Burgess, director at Retail HR, adds: “They can’t compete on price with the supermarkets. Where I am, close to the Archway Road in London, so much help has been offered to the independents and they have not accepted it.

“They have all got hideous shutters up, covered in graffiti. The local authority offered them a grant to redo their shopfronts and only one shop took them up on their offer.”