Retail footfall rose for the first time in over a year in September amid the back to school rush.

Total shopper visitors edged up 3.3% last month, up from a 0.4% fall in August, the British Retail Consortium (BRC) reported.

Retail saw the biggest jump, with footfall up 7.3% in September, up from the 2.6% rise the month before. This was followed by shopping centres, where visitors were up 2.3% from the 1.8% dip in August, while high street numbers inched up 0.9% compared to a 0.3% fall the prior month.

BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson said that “mild temperatures combined with weak footfall last year led to strong growth in September”.

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“It was neither too hot nor too cold for customers, leaving retailers in the sweet spot for additional shopping trips. This compared positively to last year when the intense heatwave caused many people to stay home and delay purchases of autumnal clothes and products.”

However, she urged for action in the Budget on business rates to help retailers enjoy a continued boost.

“While retailers will welcome this autumnal boost, it is the next few months, in the run up to Christmas, that are most important. The Chancellor wants to boost confidence and help unlock business investment.

“A Retail Business Rates Corrector, a 20% adjustment to bills for all retail properties, would help mitigate the disproportionate impact of business rates on retail, driving investment and helping to rejuvenate high streets. This in turn would boost shopper footfall and create thriving communities up and down the country.”

During the summer, Sainsbury’s CEO Simon Roberts and Usdaw general secretary Paddy Lillis warned that more than 17,000 shops across the UK could be at risk of closure in the next ten years without government reform of the business rates levy.