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Gloucestershire Business News

What benefits will the new Business Improvement District bring to Gloucester?

Details have been announced of the advantages the proposed new Business Improvement District (BID) will bring to Gloucester.

And according to BID chairman Nick Brookes, owner of the Knobbly Cob café in Westgate Street, the scheme will help give the business community a major boost.

The benefits are said to include:

• A safer city, with city protection officers, patrolling Gloucester's streets night and day

• A cleaner city

• Better signage and street environment

• New and improved events to drive footfall including over Christmas

• Extra marketing for businesses in the BID area

• Saving money on recycling and waste

• A strong voice for businesses in the BID area, lobbying on parking and other issues

Jason Smith of Marketing Gloucester is supporting the BID task group and commented: "On behalf of the BID task group and with our consultants CMS we have conducted over 700 one-to-one interviews with businesses in the proposed BID area. The list of actions the BID is aiming to deliver is a direct reflection of what businesses have told us they want."

A BID is an organisation run by businesses within a specified geographical area with the aim of improving trade and environment for businesses in that area. In the UK and elsewhere BIDs have been successful in delivering extra footfall, business cost reduction, area promotion, improved safety and security, assistance in dealings with local councils to make parking better for visitors and businesses.

Potentially the proposed BID for Gloucester could raise up to £2.5 million to spend on improvements to the city with the opportunity to raise many other millions in match funding.

The recent BID consultation has revealed areas of importance to businesses in Gloucester as being crime, cleanliness, marketing. From listening to what businesses in Gloucester would like to see from a BID, the BID Task Group says it will be tackling these issues.

In December 2016, the Gloucester BID Task Group cooperated with Gloucester City Safe in a pilot scheme to introduce City Wardens. The pilot was heralded as a great success. It is proposed that Gloucester BID will provide funding to support highly visible City Protection Officers. They will patrol the city be linked through radio and cell phones and will have real powers to ensure that the city is perceived as a safer place to be. BID members and BID voluntary members will be able to call for their assistance to incidents.

The BID proposes to tackle cleanliness and the overall appearance of the city by looking at things from hanging baskets to signage. A trial with a "Clean Squad" service for BID members and BID voluntary members, will be set up.

The events and festivals in Gloucester are rapidly developing a reputation regionally and nationally and are established favourites locally. They have added vibrancy - boosting reputation and footfall for the city.

Gloucester BID proposes to expand upon their success with the delivery of a structured calendar of high quality events to build on and compliment those already taking place in the city.

Gloucester BID board plan to build a platform to promote activities across the whole city centre, using traditional, outdoor, digital, print, broadcast and social media.

Many BIDs around the country have been successful in reducing the cost of recycling, insurance and so-on for their members. These benefits are ones that the BID task group is keen to bring to businesses in Gloucester.

The BID will also be a strong voice, representing the needs of businesses with the council, police and other public bodies, specifically around the need for continued, sufficient, accessible car parking, dealing with anti-social behaviour and ensuring levels of cleanliness are maintained.

Besides the BID chairman Nick Brooks the task group includes Kieron Bates of the Café Rene Group; Matthew Bird who is centre manager of Gloucester Quays; Nick Bishop a partner of PGT Accountants; Matthew Cass from Cass-Stephens Insurances Ltd; Justin Hudson chairman of the LVA (Licenced Victuallers Association) and manager of Butlers; Alex Kell of Quayside Wealth Management; Chris Nyland of Nettl; Christopher Price, partner at Tayntons Solicitors; Jason Robinson, chairman of City Safe and Manager of the Eastgate Shopping Centre and Peter White who is part of the governing board of Gloucester Chamber of Commerce and manager of Kings Walk Shopping Centre; Ivan Taylor who owns Truscott's Jewellers and is involved with Four Gates and the Beatrix Potter Museum and Ella Treloar who is the manager of Marks & Spencer.

The BID task group have been supported through this process by Gloucester city council and Marketing Gloucester's Jason Smith who with his team has led on the operational development of the BID.

The proposed BID area covers the city centre, docks and Gloucester Quays (see map)

In order to make the BID happen there is a small levy being charged, which Chris Nyland of Nettl claims offers remarkable value for money.

"Many businesses in the BID area will only be paying a very small amount of money which works out as about the same to the cost of buying one cappuccino a week or a pint of beer. For all the benefits the BID will bring to the area I can't see why anyone wouldn't want to contribute from less than £3 per week," he said.

Business that are legible to vote for the BID are those of and above a rateable value of £10,000 and only if a business' rateable value is above this threshold will they be expected to contribute to the planned 1.5 per cent levy. There is the opportunity for those outside the BID area to contribute to the Gloucester BID also. BID levy money is ring fenced for use only in the BID area - unlike business rates which are paid in to and redistributed by government. Voting to decide whether to establish the BID in Gloucester opens in June and will run for four weeks.

What do you think? Email mark@moosemarketingandpr.co.uk 

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