A PROPOSAL FOR A BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT
Make your mark this summer Vote YES for a Successful Sutton
A Message from the Chair Over the past months it has been my pleasure to chair the group intent on ensuring a Successful Sutton. We want a town centre to be proud of – a place that our clients and customers want to visit, and that rewards quality businesses. Perhaps the most rewarding part of my role has been the opportunity to meet and work with so many people who share this aim. Support has been forthcoming from the council of course and from the community and voluntary sectors, all of whom have vital roles to play. But my key purpose here is to enlist the widest possible support from businesses in the town centre to the programme that we have developed by listening closely to what they feel will make a more Successful Sutton. Having ideas is one thing, but putting them into practice is another. This depends on having the resources available to make the investment we need. That’s why we want a Business Improvement District (BID) for Sutton. During the past weeks and months a series of pilot projects have begun to illustrate what would be possible if a BID were in place. What follows in this proposal is a costed programme of projects and services designed to address the issues identified by you. It has two main objectives – we want to attract more people to the town, and give everyone: shoppers; workers; visitors and residents, a great time while they are here, while delivering values and cost savings to our businesses. I urge you to vote YES in the forthcoming ballot. Your support will allow us to build on the great work that has already happened, and allow Sutton’s businesses to play a much more significant role in the management of the town centre. We can compete on equal terms with Kingston, Croydon, Wimbledon and the increasing number of other centres that already have BIDs in place.
Yvonne Mackey Times Square Shopping Centre Successful Sutton Chair
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“ Successful Sutton is for businesses who want to make Sutton a busier, cleaner and more prosperous town centre. Working together, we’ll be able to bring real change and make a real difference.”
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Trinity Square planting Barclays Sutton Rail Station
A Message from the Chair Our 10 pledges to you Area map Enhancing Sutton Delivering Value Protecting Sutton Brighter Sutton Investing in Sutton’s future Important questions answered When is it all happening? Our management committee
1 2 3 5 7 9 11 13 15
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Our 10 Pledges to You Our programme consists of four themes and ten pledges: Enhancing Sutton Delivering Values Protecting Sutton Brighter Sutton
1 2 3 4 5
Enhancing Sutton
We will raise the town’s profile through increased and robust marketing and a co-ordinated approach to all town centre activities.
Enhancing Sutton
We will organise and coordinate a calendar of events and a range of markets to drive footfall into the town centre.
Brighter Sutton
6 7 8 9 10
We will create a pleasant, welcoming and attractive environment for all those who visit the town centre with street trees, hanging baskets and containerised planting.
Protecting Sutton
We will improve safety and security with initiatives such as the radio scheme, pub watch, shop watch & street pastors.
Delivering Values
We will represent the business community, ensuring we have a voice on the future direction of the High Street and development of the area.
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Delivering Values
We will realise cost savings directly to the businesses through collective purchasing and joint procurement of trade waste collections and recycling initiatives.
Brighter Sutton
We will promote sustainable travel options and the awareness and accessibility of business cycle schemes.
Enhancing Sutton
We will supply businesses and potential investors with first hand data on the town centre’s performance including footfall figures and dwell time.
Delivering Values
We will attract funding from other sources to enhance the levy provided by the businesses.
Delivering Values
We will ensure that all the services provided by us are additional to those paid for through business rates.
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All Bar One Holiday Inn Sutton Quadrant House
Area Map Business Improvement District Boundary
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WE WANT TO MAKE SUTTON BUSIER AND MORE PROSPEROUS Enhancing Sutton As a modern British town centre, Sutton has to work harder to attract its share of spend and activity.
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French Market
Competition is fierce from other centres and competing forms of retail and leisure. Successful Sutton will draw up a marketing plan to promote the town centre and attract additional footfall from inside and outside the borough, securing its commercial vibrancy. We will be ... Holding regular speciality markets backed with high-profile promotion Working closely with car park operators to maintain a competitive tariff Organising at least two main events – one at Christmas and the other at Easter Improving accessibility through maps, directories and signage Encouraging, supporting, promoting and developing late night shopping Incentivising journeys to the town centre by public transport and other sustainable means Continually evaluating the effectiveness of our promotional spend through measures such as footfall cameras and feedback from our main retail occupiers Commissioning co-ordinated centre wide advertising campaigns using press, broadcast and social media Developing a town centre website as an information and promotional tool for shoppers, visitors, employees and the community
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What others are saying about BIDs ”New West End Company ensures that there is a body that can put significant investment into the West End, targeted directly to the needs of the area and particularly the customers. Great progress is being made to improve Oxford Street and make it a great destination.” Sir Philip Green, Arcadia Group. New West End Company Business Plan, 2008 – 2013
Simon Warrender Warrenders Jewellers
“ We will have a more active business community and can improve the town centre for our employees as well as the local residents, encouraging more people to the town.�
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WE WANT TO PROVIDE INCREASED VALUE FOR MONEY FOR BUSINESSES Delivering Value
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South End of High Street
It is important that businesses within Sutton feel they have a voice. Successful Sutton’s business services programme will allow the BID’s members to secure the trading environment that they want. It will help them use their collective bargaining power to save money – by reducing costs and bringing in additional funds.
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North End of High Street
We will be ... Delivering free recycling collections and heavily subsidised food waste collection Making available micro-grants for High Street projects. Helping businesses meet their corporate social responsibility objectives with a particular focus on initiatives that benefit organisations within the Sutton area. Co-ordinating bulk purchasing of other goods and services i.e. utilities and stationary Forming a lobbying group to secure additional High Street funding representing business interests Organising town centre tours for businesses, employees and visitors Agreeing good practice codes for ‘chuggers’ (unsolicited charity collectors)
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What others are saying about BIDs “Since the KingstonFirst BID started in January 2005, retailers have enjoyed 3 years of impressive sales growth, which has taken many of us to the top of our peer group. The BID period has also seen Kingston rise to 12th place according to Experian, and 13th place according to the Javelin Venuescore, in their respective retail super leagues of UK town and city centres. I am confident the platform that our BID provides will allow us to continue to maintain Kingston as the place that people love to shop and visit.” David Barford, Managing Director, John Lewis Kingston and Chairman, KingstonFirst.
Pretesh Chudasama Hi Heels
“ Taking a collaborative approach to initiatives such as trade waste will help us save money whilst improving the environment.�
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SUTTON IS SAFE, BUT WE WANT TO MAKE IT FEEL EVEN SAFER Protecting Sutton Sutton boasts some of the lowest crime rates in London. Successful Sutton will help maintain this hard-won position, concentrating on those crimes that cause real problems for business while improving the perception of safety for Sutton’s visitors, shoppers and employees. The BID will seek to improve partnership working between businesses and other agencies involved in the reduction of crime. It will ensure that businesses are fully supported and equipped with the appropriate technology.
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Sutton Rail Station
We will be ... Managing, supporting and improving the town centre radio scheme. Subsidising radios to encourage wider take up Strengthening a Crime Partnership between Safer Sutton Partnership Service, Town Centre Partnership, Business Crime Reduction Partnership and the BID company Increasing the number of night time street pastors, and helping fund street pastor initiatives Enhancing the pub watch scheme under the crime partnership. Introducing the shop watch initiatives for retailers Providing safer night time travel information to businesses opening late
What others are saying about BIDs CBI members value BIDs. The close cooperation between businesses and local authorities enables BIDs to offer a new service proposition to local businesses that they do not get elsewhere. Crucially the fact that businesses can vote on each proposal demonstrates that when they see the value of a BID, they are willing to provide the necessary funding.� Dr Neil Bentley, Director of Business Environment, Confederation of British Industry.
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Sharon Golding St Nicholas Centre
“ The BID will support new initiatives that will improve the perception of the town centre as a safe place to visit, encouraging more people to visit later in the evening for shopping and leisure.�
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WE WANT TO MAKE SUTTON CLEANER AND MORE ATTRACTIVE Brighter Sutton Consumer and business feedback indicate that most people generally believe that our town centre is clean. Successful Sutton has established the current level of services provided by the council and included it in the agreement for the term of the BID. We will look to build on that where necessary. We will procure additional services on a closely targeted basis.
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Sutton businesses spring clean
We will be ...
Dressing up and exploring new ideas for vacant shops Responding to any mess resulting from night time activities Removing gum on a periodic basis Deep cleansing to tackle stubborn staining Looking for more opportunities to introduce containerised planting, hanging baskets and street trees. Introducing Dr. Bike, sustainable travel and cycle initiatives for employees Targeting hot spots that require additional attention over and above the council’s sweep through e.g. smokers’ areas, side alleys
What others are saying about BIDs “Marks and Spencer are keen supporters of the BID principle and are active participants in more than 20 locations across England and Wales. As a long-term contributor to town centre management projects, Marks and Spencer recognises the values that can be realised through this type of crosssector team working and it is our hope that Truro becomes another location that benefits from a BID.” Beverley Williams, Commercial Manager of Store Operations at Marks and Spencer, Lemon Quay.
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Paul Curtis Sutton Superbowl
“ Having a clean town centre provides the basis on how people judge you. The BID would improve the overall environment for everyone.�
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Investing in Sutton’s Future Successful Sutton will invest nearly £2million between 2012 and 2017 on its programme of improvements. We will aim to draw in a minimum of £25,000 in extra funding from other sources in the first year, with the view of increasing this figure throughout the life of the BID. 1
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£340,000 per annum
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3 6 5 Themes
%
Per Annum
1 Enhancing Sutton
30%
£102,000
2 Delivering Value
25%
£85,000
3 Protecting Sutton
15%
£51,000
Comprehensive marketing strategy Events for employees & visitors Footfall cameras Maps & visitor information
Free/subsidised recycling service Free/subsidised business workshops Co-ordinated bulk purchasing Subsidised radio scheme Street pastors Pubwatch
4 Brighter Sutton
10%
£34,000
5 Core Costs
15%
£51,000
6 Contingency
5%
£17,000
100%
£340,000
Regular deep cleans Containerised planting Gum/graffiti removal Corporate Communications Management/BID staffing
TOTAL
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Times Square Shopping Centre Subsea7 office David Guy, WH Matthews Green Wall, Wilkinson building Mark Rayner, Go Gym
Important questions answered A detailed statement of our Business Improvement District arrangements is available at www.successfulsutton.co.uk. Here are some of the key points: What is Successful Sutton? If the ballot is successful, every eligible business will pay an annual levy of 1% of rateable value to the Business Improvement District. So if the rateable value on your business premises is £10,000, you will pay £100p/a.
Successful Sutton is an unincorporated association with a management committee of 23 people, mainly drawn from local businesses. It has been set up to increase the attractiveness and appeal of Sutton as a retail, office and leisure destination and also to promote a possible Business Improvement District (BID).
The levy is discounted for charities at the same level as their mandatory rate relief. Shopping centre tenants will be given a 25% discount.
Why is Successful Sutton running a ballot in July 2012?
How much will you pay?
The BID levy will be collected in line with your current business rates system. We will be clear and transparent about how we are spending the money. There will be regularly updated information about income and expenditure available to all members of the BID.
If we are to become a BID, we need to run a ballot of eligible businesses. The ballot will ask a simple question: ‘Are you in favour of the proposals for the Successful Sutton Business Improvement District?’. In order for the BID to come into existence, a simple majority of those voting must vote in favour. But their votes must also represent a majority of the aggregate rateable value of the rateable properties that vote. We have already written to invite you to nominate who should vote on behalf of your organisation.
Which businesses are eligible to vote in the BID ballot? If your business premises falls within the proposed BID area (see map on page 4) and has a current rateable value of £10,000 or more, you are eligible to vote in the BID ballot.
Why do my business rates not cover this?
Business rates are collected by the local authority and handed over to central government. The BID is a privately funded, business led initiative, it provides services over and above the council in line with business desires and expectations for the area. Every service the BID provides will be additional to what the council already does.
How can I be represented?
If our July 2012 ballot is successful, Successful Sutton will be reconstituted as a new not-for-profit company limited by guarantee. The first AGM will take place soon after the BID starts its work on 1 October 2012. All businesses that were eligible to vote, and that pay the levy, may become members of the company. And any member can stand for election to the board.
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When is it all happening? 27 June 2012
26 July 2012
1 October 2012 - 2017
1st quarter 2017
You will receive your voting pack from Electoral Reform Ballot Services.
Ballot closes.
If successful, Successful Sutton will become a Business Improvement District (BID) and begin 5 years of investment and improvement
Decision on 5 year renewal based on our performance
Successful Sutton Management Committee Yvonne Mackey (Chair) Times Square Shopping Centre
Nick Mallett Tazza
David Guy (Vice Chair) WH Matthews
Kim Newland Debenhams
Mark Allis Sutton Music Centre
Justyna Nowicka Maxim Eyes
Simon Bruckland WH Smith
Mike O’Connor Melville Cars
Anna Burke Eco-Actif
Steve Pilbeam Champion Timber
Paul Cawthorne Sutton Chamber of Commerce
Kate Puleston Secombe Theatre
Pretesh Chudasama Hi Heels
Mark Rayner Go Gym
Paul Curtis Sutton Superbowl
Mike Smith McDonalds
Simon Denn Marks and Spencer
Richard Warrender Warrenders & Co
Sharon Golding St. Nicholas Shopping Centre
Simon Warrender Warrenders & Co
Richard Hall Police
Kirsty Allen Business Enterprise Manager London Borough of Sutton
Jez Heys Pearson’s Cycles Jayne Jones BHS
Martin Furtauer-Hayes Sutton Town Centre Manager
www.successfulsutton.co.uk info@successfulsutton.co.uk 020 8770 5987
cover images left to right Patisserie Valerie Trinity Square Trinity Square Planting Sutton High Street View from Quadrant House Printed by SM1 Print Studio, Sutton