Scan Around.....Barnard Castle

We’re a team of school children from Barnard Castle who have been working on a project to help bring more life and excitement back to our local high street. We noticed that a lot of people now shop online or go to big out-of-town shopping centres, and that means fewer people are visiting the amazing local shops we have right here in Barnard Castle. We wanted to come up with an idea that would encourage more people to shop locally and support the businesses that make our town special. That’s how we created Scan Around – a fun and easy-to-use app that acts like a digital loyalty card. Every time someone makes a purchase in a local high street shop, they can scan the app to collect points. These points can then be turned into rewards, like discounts, special offers, or even small treats from local businesses. The more people shop locally, the more points they collect, which means more rewards and more reasons to keep coming back. We believe this idea will help remind people how great our high street is and make shopping there more fun and rewarding. It’s also a way to support small businesses and help keep our town centre full of energy and life. We’re really proud of Scan Around and we hope you love the idea as much as we do — please vote for us and help bring our idea to life! What’s really exciting is that Scan Around isn’t just for Barnard Castle — it could be used in towns all over the country that are facing the same problem of fewer people shopping locally. The app can be easily adapted to work in other places, with each town having its own version linked to their local shops and rewards. This way, more communities can benefit from a simple idea that brings people back to the high street, supports small businesses, and helps local town centres thrive again.