August -October 2025

IT’S HAPPENING...

AUGUST – OCTOBER 2025 EDITION

IN SUNDERLAND

Inside... everything you need to know about Women’s Rugby World Cup, Sunderland Restaurant Week, the Seafront Audit, Funding Opportunities, as well as all the usual stuff!

YOUR SUNDERLAND BID NEWSLETTER

IT’S HAPPENING...

WELCOME TO OUR NEWSLETTER Welcome to everyone in both the City Centre and the Seafront BIDs – we’re delighted to get this opportunity to share with you everything we’ve been up to.

Hopefully, you’ve seen us out and about, doing our bit to deal with any issues you have and helping to improve the look and feel of both BID areas, including the Sheepfolds.

Our overall aim is to ensure that the experience for both residents and visitors is a good one, which in turn benefits everyone because it gives a positive – and lasting – impression of the city.

You may have been to Blandford Street recently and hopefully have seen some of the great work that’s gone on there.

We’ve been working with businesses and have painted some of the buildings so they match the existing mural.

The colourful display of spheres which now hang overhead in the street has really elevated it. We also want to say a big thank you to the volunteers from Nissan who helped us spruce up

LET’S STAY IN TOUCH...

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the street ahead of our special event, Proudly Preloved, where we partnered with the retail charity shop sector and Pride in Sunderland.

As SR Street Rangers, we are currently going through a process of visiting all levy payers to say hello and offer help and support. If you haven’t had your visit yet, feel free to give us a call on 07940 519270.

I’m sure you’ll agree that the transformation of the Sheepfolds has been amazing and we’ve been involved in giving it an extra bit of a spruce up.

We painted electrical boxes, removed graffiti, facilitated the movement of planters around the Stables area, as well as some litter picking and tidying up the area near the Stadium of Light car park.

Workers from construction companies currently working on developments in the city downed their tools and came to support us on a volunteering day.

They tidied up the area underneath the new bridge at Sheepfolds by picking up facebook.com/ sunderlandexperience/

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litter, weeding, and pruning, resulting in more than 30 bags of litter and debris being removed.

On the subject of volunteers – we’re very grateful to the Sunderland College students who also helped out on a special day at the seafront, where they litter picked along with finding out more about the area.

It’s been just over a few months since we launched the Seafront BID, but we haven’t let the grass grow under our feet and have already reported more than 100 jobs and repairs to the council.

We’ve tidied up the car park outside of Prego, fixed fencing around the Marina and removed graffiti from a whole host of locations.

We have also been involved in an audit, which you can read more about in this newsletter.

We are always happy to help if we can, so please don’t hesitate to get in touch.

SR Street Rangers, Lee and Ethan l inkedin.com/company/ sunderlandbid/

tiktok.com/ @sunderlandexperience

sunderlandbid.co.uk will be cleaned up and painted.

Lee spotted damaged planters, and this has been flagged up to the council so we can work together to fix them. with partners to address all of these issues.

As previously mentioned, the Seafront BID has been in operation for a few months, and our SR Street Ranger, Lee, has been working on an audit of the area to look at local assets as well as what needs to be fixed, updated or replaced.

This mammoth task involved inspecting more than 400 assets and logging what needed to be done to improve the look and feel of the area.

We checked and counted all the lampposts, noting those which needed replacement light bulbs, a lick of paint or fixing because they weren’t working.

The majority of them had brackets missing that could be used to attach banners, and we are now working hard

We discovered that a number of the brown tourism signs were in need of cleaning, so now our SR Street Rangers are working with the council to enhance their visibility for both drivers and pedestrians.

We are also looking at sprucing up some of the other signage by giving it a lick of paint.

Cleaning up the bins is also high on our list of priorities, with our SR Street Rangers removing all of the stickers or other residue that makes them look unattractive.

As you can probably tell, this has been a massive task but one that is certainly worthwhile so we could get an accurate picture of how we can improve the seafront.

We are now in the process of collating all the information before working with partners and starting on some of these jobs. This is not going to be an overnight fix, but hopefully, you will begin to see the difference very soon.

If you have spotted anything that you think needs our attention, please get in touch at streetranger@sunderlandbid.co.uk

Some of them have fire damage, and again, we have reported this to the council, and hopefully, they will be replaced in the near future.

The SR Street Rangers noted that some of the street furniture, such as the seating and directional signage, needs some maintenance, so these too

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IT’S HAPPENING...

#HAPPENING INSUNDERLAND WOMEN’S RUGBY WORLD CUP

The international spotlight will turn on to Sunderland in August, as the city hosts the Women’s Rugby World Cup. It’s a huge honour to be able to have the opening match of the tournament played in the city, when the English Red Roses take on the USA at the Stadium of Light on Friday 22 August.

What this also offers is a massive opportunity for businesses to capitalise on the hordes of visitors who will be in Sunderland and to ensure that they get a memorable welcome.

There’s a packed programme across the weekend and the council wants to create a carnival atmosphere, helped by 150 flags and banners.

The build up begins on Thursday 21 August when the Fan Village opens at Keel Square, with a programme of live music from 4pm to 10pm.

Additional seating and a bar are being installed at Keel Edge, along with a rugby-themed immersive and interactive light installation On the match day itself, the Fan Village will open at 9am, with a range of food and drink stalls plus a number of rugby-themed activities, with several top tribute 4

performances throughout the day, including Rock DJ, Mac Busted, ReTake That and Royal Rhapsody and interactive walkabout characters.

It will culminate in a fan parade to the stadium, ready for the match, after which there will be a spectacular fireworks display over the river.

Keel Square will keep its carnival atmosphere on Saturday 23 August, where Sunniside Market will relocate for the day.

A full programme of live entertainment, crafts and art workshops is planned – covering everything from an interactive bubble act to aerial hoop taster sessions.

We hope everyone will make the most of what will undoubtedly be a huge footfall. Hotels across the area are already fully booked and people will want to spend their money in Sunderland – so don’t miss out on this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Be aware, however, that a number of road closures will also be in place.

THURSDAY 21 TO SATURDAY 23 AUGUST ROAD CLOSURES From approximately 10am – A183 St Marys Boulevard will be closed in both directions until midday on 23rd August. This is to facilitate an

event in Keel Square. Access to St Marys Car Park will be permitted via diversion.

THURSDAY 21 AUGUST (from approximately 7pm) TO FRIDAY 22 AUGUST (midnight)

Sheepfolds will be closed. Access for site traffic will be permitted until such time that the street is full of fans.

FRIDAY 22 AUGUST A1018 Wearmouth Bridge – the usual northbound lane restriction will be introduced however the exact time is to be determined.

IT’S HAPPENING...

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RESTAURANT WEEK It’s back again – and hopefully bigger and better than ever before.

We’re now starting our plans for the next Sunderland Restaurant Week, which will take place from 6-14 September.

Our March event added around £500,000 to the local economy, with more than 16,500 diners, so we hope that if you do run a restaurant, pub, bar or café, you sign up to take part.

We’ve also taken on board the feedback from businesses saying they were struggling to do reasonable offers because of the price points we had, so this time round we’re introducing a £25 deal, which we hope will make a real difference, For more information or to sign up, they can contact info@sunderlandbid.co.uk The deadline is 11 August 2025.

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WHAT’S ON? 2 Aug

One City, One Voice @ across the city centre

2-3 Aug

Urban Fest @ Sunniside Gardens

2-3 Aug

Blast from the Past @ Seaburn Recreational Ground

20 Aug

Rugby at the Beach @ Seaburn

22 Aug

Women’s Rugby World Cup England vs USA @ Stadium of Light

22-24 Aug 23 Aug

Craft Beer Festival @ The Fire Station

31 Aug

Art Festival: Sunderland In The Frame @ Sheepfolds

6-14 Sept 27 Sept

Restaurant Week @ across the city

27 Sept

Stages Music Festival @ Keel Square

13-17 Oct

Sunderland Business Week @ across the city

Food Market and Entertainment @ Keel Square

Art Festival: Sunderland In The Frame @ across the city centre

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FIND YOUR FUNDING IT’S HAPPENING...

Part of our remit at the BID is to help businesses – and the good news is that currently there are a number of funding opportunities which organisations in Sunderland are eligible to apply for.

BUSINESS SUPPORT FUND If you are in the Sunderland City Council catchment area, you might be eligible for this fund.

To qualify, you must employ less than 250 people and an annual turnover of less than £54m. If you are planning to grow or need to safeguard existing jobs, this will also aid your application.

You could get 40% of the costs of a project costing between £3000 - £6000.

CITYLIFE BUSINESS SUPPORT This has similar criteria to the Business Support Fund and is for businesses adapting to new challenges, safeguarding or creating jobs.

Successful applicants will get 12 hours of free advice from BIPC Citylife experts which can be everything from general support to help for a specific project.

FESTIVAL AND EVENTS GRANT FUNDING Open to charitable organisations, CICs or social enterprises with money available to cover a range of expenses for any festivals or events taking place up to March 2026.

Applications can be made up to September.

BOILER UPGRADE SCHEME Eligibility is for people who own their property and are looking to replace a fossil fuel system, with grants up to

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£7500 for heat pumps and up to £5000 for biomass boilers.

EV CHARGERS AND INFRASTRUCTURE GRANTS Eligible to people who own or manage the property they’re applying for. You can get up to £350 or 75% - whichever is the lowest amount – to install a socket or up to £30k or 75% off the cost of items such as wiring and posts.

THE STOBART SUSTAINABILITY FUND Open to community groups, educational facilities or small businesses which are planning a project which benefits the environment. Money is available to run a scheme which helps protect the environment and/or impacts climate change.

Full details on how to apply for all of these schemes are available on the BID website at sunderlandbid.co.uk/business-support

sunderlandbid.co.uk

RIO BRAZILIAN STEAKHOUSE Knowing about the very cuts of meat and how to treat them with respect was something that Rodrigo Grassi Duarte learned at the youngest age.

At just nine he spent time at a friend’s family farm in his native Brazil, working with the cattle and learning about butchery.

As he got older and started to make a career for himself in the hospitality industry around the world, he had one passion – to recreate the Brazilian style of Churrasco dining, offering the finest meats, served in a unique way.

He was finally able to realise that dream when he opened his first Rio Brazilian Steakhouse in Jesmond, Newcastle where diners immediately started to flock to enjoy the meats that are carved at the table.

And now Sunderland foodies can also enjoy the experience, at the fastgrowing chain preparing to open in the city this autumn.

The steakhouse is taking over the former Halo bar on Low Row and plans to launch in early September, with a

100 cover restaurant that will offer not only the best meats but also the chain’s signature salad bar.

Every diner receives a Rio card at their table which has a green bull’s head on one side and a red on the other.

The chefs bring the meat round to the table and if the card is turned to green they’ll carve a portion. Anyone who wants to pace themselves or has had enough simply turns the card to the red side.

It’s a simple but highly effective way of visitors being able to enjoy the whole experience and sample a range of dishes.

Diners will be able to enjoy a range of desserts, an a la carte menu which also caters for vegetarians and a range of drinks and cocktails.

“We are very excited about coming to Sunderland as it’s a place we’ve been looking at for a while,” said Rodrigo.

“It was a very important city for us as there’s so much investment and regeneration going on and it covers a

large catchment area.”

Certainly the reaction so far has been extremely positive.

“As soon as we announced we were coming to Sunderland we have had so many people getting in touch, wanting to know when we’re opening,” said Rodrigo.

The Rio concept has been a huge hit in other areas of the North East, with two restaurants in Newcastle as well as Durham and Middlesbrough.

It has been rolled out as far afield as Edinburgh and York, with plans now for Glasgow, Bristol, Cardiff and London.

While some of the meat is sourced locally, Rodrigo firmly believes that the best guest experience is about having the best quality food, which is why produce comes from as far afield as Portugal and – not surprisingly – Brazil.

“Everything we offer is of the highest quality, a Brazilian style fine dining experience,” said Rodrigo.

“We can’t wait for people in Sunderland to experience it.”

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IT’S HAPPENING...

What have around 40 businesses got in common? From arts organisations to printers, from communications companies to property developers?

The answer is that they are all members of our Affiliate Scheme, which allows non-levy payers the opportunity to enjoy the many benefits that being part of Sunderland’s BIDs brings. They also financially contribute to support the activities across both BIDs.

AFFILIATE SCHEME

Our most recent additions include Sunderland Culture, IT security company NetDefence, training provider Uplift, city centre café Crave, fitness centre ARV and Just Travel Cover.

Being an affiliate member comes with a whole host of benefits, including invitations to exclusive events, enjoying special training opportunities and volunteering opportunities.

If you are interested in finding out more, please email roberta@sunderlandbid.co.uk

BUSINESS BREAKFAST What better way to start the day than at one of our Business Breakfasts, where we bring together people from across the city centre, the seafront and our affiliate scheme to connect, collaborate – and, of course, tuck into some early morning treats!

These informal get-togethers not only

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strengthen our business community but also give people the opportunity to work together as well as talk about the important issues that affect the city.

Each event is held in a different location with a different guest speaker who brings their own unique perspective on a relevant topic.

And that’s certainly true for our next event, which is being held on 10 September, where we’ll be looking at the impact of Sunderland AFC’s move into the Premiership on the Foundation of Light and the wider city.

Our guest speakers will be Lesley Spuhler and Jamie Wright from the Foundation of Light, Paul Kingsmore from SAFC and Jill Laverick from Sunderland City Council with the event being held at the Beacon of Light.

We’re always looking for new venues to host the breakfast and for new speakers from our business community.

Please get in touch at info@sunderland.bid.co.uk if you’re interested.