The High Street may sometimes feel short of shoppers and - especially since the demise of Phillips, Evans' Travel Agents and the Crediton Stores in recent months - short of shops. But it's not short of campaigners and supporters, from all parts of the political spectrum. 

On 7 June the Federation of Small Businesses came to town as part of its Keep Trade Local campaign. A team including Chris Prentis and Jerry Allen, Chairman and Vice Chairman of the FSB's Mid Devon Branch, assisted by Town Councillors and Sustainable Crediton, visited every shop in town with window stickers to encourage local shopping. As the FSB says, every £1 spent locally generates £4 in the local economy. So shopping locally does more than keeping the High Street busy, important as that is. 

Prime Ministers have been known to quail when the Women's Institute throws its weight about, so it's great news that on 1 June its Annual General Meeting voted to make saving local shops its next major campaigning issue. Among other things, the resolution called on "every member of the WI to support their local shops and make the high street their destination of choice for goods and services".

The transition movement, has, of course, been working on local economy issues for years. Some of this work is now coming to fruition with Transition Town Totnes, as so often, leading the way. Their local economic blueprint is about much more than shopping, and is part of a wider Reconomy project run by the Transition Network.

When so many issues seem so huge that it's easy to feel helpless, it's nice to think that we can make a difference locally - every little purchase in a local shop helps . . .