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Updates

Industry insights and news including Bb Chief Executive Professor Chris Turner's observations, thoughts, updates and announcements can be found below.

Budget 2021 - letter to Chancellor

Ahead of Budget 2021 this Wednesday (27th October), we have written to Chancellor Rishi Sunak in which we have asked for the below practical measures that will help our high streets, towns and cities.  Read the full letter here. 1. Keep the 66% business rates discount in place until the tax is...

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October's Insight from Chris Turner

October is proving to be a very busy month for BIDs across the British Isles in both the ballot and policy arenas. Ballots are returning in number, sometimes with great success and sadly in some cases failure. Thus, our congratulations to Destination Cathedral Quarter BID, Strabane BID, Hull BID, Station...

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High street app attracts thousands of visitors to Lanark

Members of the public had a roar-some time exploring Lanark this summer through the LoyalFree app. Discover Lanark invited intrepid hunters to track down 20 giant dinosaurs with their family-friendly, Jurassic Lanark Trail. LoyalFree and Discover Lanark began working together in June 2020 and currently 4,300 people use the app...

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September's Insight from Chris Turner

Business slowly returns to normal across BIDs up-and-down the British Isles. Clearly some of our big city centres are responding very differently to the smaller market towns and suburban BIDs. Nonetheless, the world feels that it is returning to some degree of normality as schools, colleges and universities reopen; last...

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Getting back on track

Last week the rail industry warned that unless workers start taking the train again, there could be long-term adverse effects on city centres and High Streets. We took this opportunity to catch up with Ruth Duston OBE, OC, Managing Director at Primera and British BIDs Advisory Board member.  Ruth Duston...

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August's Insight from Chris Turner

August is a time of holidays and for many BIDs across the country that means massively increased footfall, and a dramatic return to normal. Work we are doing with TownandPlace.AI, who are a provider of footfall, visitor behaviour and tourism data for over 2,300 town centres across the UK, suggests...

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The future health of our High Street Businesses

As UK businesses reopen fully, the need to reassure consumers that the issue of safe, clean indoor air in our shops, offices and the hospitality sector is being addressed, is vital. Any business that relies on people entering their premises needs to demonstrate that this previously over-looked and undervalued commodity...

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July's Insight from Chris Turner

This month sees the next stage of the Covid reopening, and for many it cannot come soon enough. There is a slow return to normal in some BIDs, but life is still demanding in many others. Some of the key data sets for June are presented by Dr Regine Sonderland Saga of...

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Freedom day is coming… and BIDs are performing an incredible public service

We had a big announcement from the Prime Minister this week where he set out the details of his planned unlocking for the final step of his roadmap – on 19 July. Pretty much all Covid rules, including face masks, social distancing, and home working look set to become optional...

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June's Insight from Chris Turner

It is now midsummer; the reopening has been put off for a further four weeks and BIDs across the four administrations are flat-out with levy payers, helping them return to full operational activities. Some BIDs are planning their next ballots, many are working with their local authorities on collecting their...

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