LONDON ROAD TRADER
Welcome to the first edition of the London Road Trader Newsletter! As you may be aware London Road recently received some grant funding as part of the Portas Pilot, a government review into Britain’s high streets by retail guru Mary Portas. A London Road Town Team has now been formed and you’ll start to see some exciting changes in the area. Some of the projects include on-street security, pop up shops, a new website and marketing campaign, retail training, arts events and much more. Your town team includes local traders, business representatives, cultural venues, the council, local action team and educational institutes. There are a number of ways that you can be involved and help shape the future of our high street. If you have anything you would like to discuss then please get in touch. I look forward to working with you all over the next year. Joe Nichols - London Road Portas Pilot Manager Joe.nichols@brightonportas.com London Road Town Centre Liaisons (TCLs) Starting in September we’ll be trialling the use of London Road Town Centre Liaisons. The SIA licensed Liaisons will provide additional support for store security if you have had in-store theft, have problems with anti-social behaviour as well as being an information point for visitors. To begin with our TCLs will work 3 days a week on London Road. If the trial is successful there is an opportunity to extend this. A contact card will be distributed in the coming weeks with further information. London Road Traders Association London Road Traders Association is a fantastic chance to meet fellow traders, share ideas and discuss issues that you might be having. The meetings are open to all traders in the London Road area. The next London Road Traders Association meeting will be on Wednesday 25th September at 6pm at Boots, London Road. 1
City College – Work Place Learning The London Road Portas Pilot has partnered up with City College who are offering retail training through the work place learning scheme. If you or any member of your team is interested in gaining a Level 2 certificate in Customer Service and has less than 5 GCSE’s then you qualify for the free training programme. For more information please contact Portas Pilot Manager Joe Nichols - joe.nichols@brightonportas.com Safer Streets Following on from the last London Road Traders Association meeting in July the business community decided to take a stronger stance on crime and antisocial behaviour. A new zero tolerance approach is being championed. We’re asking businesses to take a more pro-active approach to reporting crime and anti-social behaviour. You should call 101 to report crime and any other concerns that do not require an emergency response. Accurate reporting will help the police allocate resources in the area. The Level – Grand Opening The South side of the level including the new playground, water fountains, pavilions, sensory gardens are now open to the public with the rest of the park due for completion in September. The grand opening including the new café has been scheduled for the 28th September so keep a look out for more information. The Level also features a Sussex Police Community Hub. The Central Neighbourhood Policing Team will be using the Hornbeam Room in the east pavilion as a Neighbourhood Policing base for a three month trial. London Road Local Action Team The London Road LAT is in the St Peters and North Laine ward, and covers the northern end of the ward. Meetings are currently held at the Calvary Church on Viaduct Road (next to the fire station at Preston Circus) on the first Tuesday of each month at 6.15pm. Meetings are attended by ward councillors, the neighbourhood policing team, council officers, community representatives, local residents and traders. Meetings are open to anyone living and/or working in the area and work towards public realm improvements and crime reduction. The LAT is chaired by local resident Philip Wells. Philip can be contacted by email philipwells@btinternet.com Association of Town & City Management (ATCM) As part of the Portas Pilot the London Road Town Team is working with the Association of Town & City Management to improve our understanding of how the town centre is performing. The ATCM will be conducting various pieces of research that will be used to help shape the future of the London Road area and highlight any particular areas that require focus. This includes trader surveys, personality tests, key performance indicators, Town Centre Health Check exercises and a mystery shopping programme. The mystery shopping programme will address key standards covering selling skills, staff attitude, staff image, service, store standards and local knowledge. If you do not wish to take part in the mystery shopping programme please get in touch - joe.nichols@brightonportas.com 2
New Biz - HiSbe Many of you would have noticed HiSbe CIC moving into York Place earlier this year. For those who don’t know HiSbe (how it should be) are a new ethical supermarket for everyone! HiSbe are creating a different kind of SUPER market – super ethical and super-modern with a buzz for shoppers. HiSbe will be a fantastic addition to the incredible food offering already available on London Road. The best news is that you can be involved. Anyone and everyone can help finance the pilot store whilst saving money on your food shopping. Every £10 you contribute buys you £12 worth of discount vouchers. For more information head to www.hisbe.co.uk Street Cleaning The London Portas Pilot have met with City Clean who have committed to enhanced cleansing in the London Road area including pavement jet washing in the Autumn. If you have specific cleaning issues you can report problems on the Brighton & Hove City Council website www.brighton-hove.gov.uk/ Website & Brand Development A new website for the London Road area is being built and will feature a full business directory, events section, news & features and general information. Keep an eye out for more information. Have something to say? The London Road newsletter goes out to over 350 businesses in the area. We’re looking for people to contribute to the next addition. If you’ve got something to say, get in touch. What’s on
What’s ON
London Road Traders Association 25th September, 6pm, Boots, London Road The Level - Grand Opening 28th September, from 12.00pm, The Level London Road Local Action Team 1st October, 6.15pm, Calvary Church, Viaduct Road
Opening this autumn, the newly refurbished Brighton Open Market will provide an outstanding modern day market promoting fresh, healthy food and providing a platform for local producers. The expanded site also offers affordable housing, a hub for arts based crafts and a venue for street art and entertainment. Watch this space for news on the development.
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LONDON ROAD TRADER
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Get Involved There are loads of ways that you can get involved. If you have any ideas on how to
LONDON ROAD improve the area or have any particular issues you would like to discuss then don’t PORTAS PILOT hesitate to get in touch. joe.nichols@brightonportas.com 4