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Interview with Lesley Crisp, Principal Economic Development Officer at Hertsmere
How Hertsmere Borough Council replaced intermittent surveys with systematic evidence for markets, recovery and the night-time economy.
The Challenge
Before huq, Hertsmere Borough Council had no systematic town-centre monitoring and relied on surveys conducted at different times and locations. The team needed consistent evidence to evaluate market days, post-pandemic recovery and the night-time economy.
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Replace intermittent surveys
Establish a repeatable monitoring baseline across four towns instead of relying on occasional pedestrian responses.
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Test market performance
Understand whether market days were attracting more people as restrictions eased.
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Monitor recovery
Track town-centre and night-time activity against pre-pandemic behaviour.
The Solution
huq provided a live behavioural intelligence layer that unified movement trends, catchment visibility, and district benchmarking into a single platform.
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Movement Intelligence
Live visibility into visitor activity and engagement patterns.
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Catchment Analysis
Postcode-level insight into visitor origins and regional movement.
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Recovery Tracking
Monitor behavioural recovery and engagement trends over time.
Intervention Evaluation
Measure how funded initiatives and place-based interventions affect behaviour and local outcomes.
Hertsmere Borough Council replaced intermittent surveys with systematic evidence for markets, recovery and the night-time economy.
Hertsmere used Catchment, Footfall and Hourly Footfall insight as an evidence base for Welcome Back Fund and Shared Prosperity Fund activity. Four years of data established a pre-pandemic benchmark for markets, town centres and the night-time economy.
Case study highlights
- Systematic monitoring: Consistent data replaced surveys carried out at irregular intervals.
- Market benchmarking: Footfall during market hours and days was compared with normal town-centre performance.
- Recovery tracking: Friday and Saturday activity showed how the night-time economy changed after restrictions.
- Resource prioritisation: Evidence helped the council redirect effort toward activities with stronger demand.
The analysis confirmed that market days produced little uplift, supporting the decision to close Borehamwood market and invest resources elsewhere.
Results & Operational Impact
With huq first clients achieve significantly stronger visibility into commercial demand, engagement growth, and estate performance.
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Faster leasing evaluations
Improved understanding of real-world commercial demand
Stronger investment confidence
Behavioural intelligence supported more evidence-led decisions
Improved district visibility
Teams benchmarked engagement across multiple locations
Better recovery tracking
Live movement signals replaced delayed reporting cycles
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Empowering strategic teams with the world's most accurate and accessible location intelligence.
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