Walsall is one of the worst performing towns in the country when it comes to empty shops, according to new research published today.
A quarter of shops in the Black Country town were empty in the first half of 2016, according to research firm the Local Data Company (LDC), making it one of the worst performers in Britain.
This is despite the town improving its empty shop rates after they fell from 26 per cent in 2015.
Dudley had a shop vacancy rate of 20.1 per cent - unchanged from 2015 - making it one of the worst performers among towns in Britain with 200 to 399 premises.
Across Britain, the run-up to the EU Referendum saw shop closures exceeding openings, with 22,801 closures in the period from January to June, 1,997 more than the 20,804 shop openings.
In the second half of 2015, openings had been more numerous than closures by 335 in Great Britain.
The dramatic turnaround was the result of openings falling by 15 per cent, while closures dropped just five per cent.
Demolitions and re-uses of retail premises exceeded the supply of new buildings, so the percentage of empty units actually fell until right at the end of the half - at which point it just began to tick upwards.
The latest figures from the LDC show England has the lowest national vacancy rate at 11.3 per cent, followed by Scotland at 12.1 per cent and Wales at 15.1 per cent.
Across Britain, Burslem in Stoke-on-Trent has the highest vacancy rate at 33.3 per cent, while Beaconsfield is the top performing town by occupation with no vacant units.
Matthew Hopkinson, of the LDC, said: "Growth slackened significantly in the half year leading up to the referendum at the end of June, taking the steam out of the gentle improvement in vacancy that has improved by 2.3 per cent since 2011.
"Since the end of June, we have seen the vacancy rate in leisure outlets inch upwards.
"Whether this will be just a twitch in the statistics or the beginning of a long-term reversal will become clear over the coming months. For example, the 23 per cent net growth in restaurants since 2010 is unlikely to continue."
