Hexham Business Improvement District 2016 Business Plan2021 to

foreword

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This is a great opportunity to vote YES to create the first Business Improvement District (BID) in Northumberland here in our wonderful town of Hexham. A YES vote will generate over £1m dedicated funding to help local businesses prosper over the next five years joining hundreds of towns and cities who have successfully established BIDs in the UK. Whatever type of business you are the BID will deliver real, visible improvements throughout our vibrant town centre and in the range of commercial and industrial locations across Hexham. It will be led locally by business for business. This new, democratically elected not-for-profit organisation will hold existing service providers to account and deliver new additional projects to improve our town for businesses, residents and visitors alike. Together we can make Hexham an even greater and prosperous place so please read this plan and Vote YES!

Malcolm Eglin, Chair, Hexham BID Steering Group and Owner of Malcolm Eglin Antiques, Haugh Lane Industrial Estate Janine Armstrong, Vice Chair, Hexham BID Steering Group and Owner of Ashley Matthews Jewellers, Market Place

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Top 10 Reasons to vote “Yes” to the BID 1

Strong Business Voice The BID will act as a champion for the business community, run by business for business in Hexham delivering practical improvements for both the town centre and industrial estates. The BID will ensure that the business community’s views are represented working with public, private and voluntary sector stakeholders and ensure existing services are delivered to recognised minimum standards

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£1million Dedicated Funding

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The BID will help businesses to improve and grow offering training, mentoring and support and by organising regular networking and collaboration activities 7

Accessible Hexham The BID will invest in and secure additional funding to improve access and signage into the town centre and industrial estates improving legibility and making it easier for visitors, residents and workers to find their way around and discover the variety of businesses across the whole of Hexham

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Increasing Visitors and Spend The BID will invest in events, marketing and projects designed to target key consumer segments to increase footfall, dwell time and spending in Hexham

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Attracting Investment The BID will encourage new and appropriate businesses to locate in Hexham, increasing quality and variety across all commercial sectors

Improving the Market The BID will invest in improving the quality, variety and frequency of the town’s markets

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Cleaner, Greener, Safer The BID will improve the overall appearance of the town by keeping it cleaner, investing in projects that improve the look and feel of Hexham and ensuring that town centre and industrial business locations are safe and secure

The BID will deliver projects with £1m of dedicated long term funding for Hexham over the next five years, using this resource to secure additional investment through grant funding, sponsorship and by leveraging existing funds 3

Supporting Businesses

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Delivering Major Projects The BID will act as a catalyst for major projects and infrastructure improvements to improve the town for businesses, residents, and visitors

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Best Value for Hexham Governed by the local businesses, the BID will work with expert partners to deliver projects, securing commitment, excellent standards for the town and delivering value for money for the BID’s levy paying businesses

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Introducing Aims & Objectives Bid Projects

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Access & signage Doing business better Marketing The Hexham experience Business-led

Budget How the BID will be financed How the BID will be organised & managed How the BID will be implemented Statement of Baseline Services Map of BID area Where can I find out more?

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Introducing… The Hexham Business Improvement District Hexham is a busy, thriving market town. But this is not by accident. It’s a result of the town’s businesses working in partnership with the Town Council, the County Council, Hexham Community Partnership, Hexham Business Forum and others to make Hexham a vibrant and attractive place in which to live, to visit and to do business. But we can’t afford to stand still. Hexham needs its businesses to thrive and grow; to encourage more businesses into the town; to improve its attractiveness for visitors and residents.

That’s why Hexham needs a BID – an organisation run by business for business that will benefit the whole town.

The Hexham BID has been developed over the last two years on behalf of all businesses in the town by a voluntary project steering group. This includes local businesses from the town centre and industrial estates, representatives of Hexham Business Forum, Hexham Community Partnership, Hexham Town Council, and Northumberland County Council. Hundreds of local companies and other partners have given their time to input to the development of the BID through the range of open, inclusive events, consultations and surveys undertaken during 2015. Based on this input, the BID Business Plan sets out a programme of deliverable projects to address the issues the local business community have identified to benefit the whole town over the next five years and beyond.

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Aims & Objectives: To deliver for Hexham, the BID will be the voice for Hexham businesses, it will make Hexham a better place for all and it will promote and champion Hexham attracting new customers and investment to make the town even stronger. The aims and objectives below set out how we will deliver against the priorities local businesses have raised, these are the issues the BID will focus on over the next five years.

A voice for the town’s businesses: The Vision

• A professional, efficient, businessled organisation, influencing and lobbying both the private and public sectors • Provide networking, training and mentoring support for existing and new businesses and entrepreneurs • Maintain or improve footfall, dwell time and spend in the retail and leisure sectors

Hexham’s BID will help our businesses to build on existing strengths and use new projects to grow and improve, enhancing the town for residents, visitors and the business community.

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Aims & Objectives: Improve Hexham for visitors, residents and businesses: • Improving access and signage • Improving the quality and variety of retail and services available in the town • Enhancing the overall appearance of the town keeping it cleaner and ensuring that public and private sectors maintain the highest standards

Market the town as a place to work, a place to live, a place to shop and a place to visit: • Use conventional marketing to raise the profile of the town for residents, businesses and visitors • Use digital communications to produce new marketing opportunities

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BID Projects The Hexham BID will deliver a £1m programme of exciting and innovative projects which will bring new initiatives to Hexham, reduce costs for businesses, add to existing services in the town and complement the Hexham Town Plan and Neighbourhood Plan. The BID provides dedicated capacity for the town’s businesses to innovate and collaborate. It will use the certainty of its five year funding to draw in additional investment from other organisations and provide a dedicated service and staff on the ground that will be able to respond to and address issues in Hexham rapidly with a focus on the business community’s needs. The projects are grouped into five themes. Overall, the BID’s delivery programme will attract new customers to town, ensure the best services are being delivered for Hexham and provide the boost that ensures Hexham as a retail, tourism and cultural destination and as a location for business consistently exceeds customer’s expectations in the years to come.

• Deliver a significant project to improve signage and legibility around the town reflecting its image and identity. This will include a comprehensive needs analysis, development of guidelines for both public and private signage, and investment in new and improved signage to car parks, to and from the town centre, around the town and at entrances to, and throughout industrial estates • Work with the county and town councils as well as private car park operators to improve car parking across the town for all users • Develop new projects to improve pedestrian and road traffic flow around the town and influence the Local Authorities to ensure traffic flow and access to the town’s industrial estates is optimised

Access and Signage: Businesses have told us that they want to see improved signage, not just to the historic centre of the town, but at the entrances to the town and in the commercial and industrial areas. The Hexham BID will work with the county, town and parish councils and the private sector to improve public transport, traffic flow and car parking with the aim of making the town more readily accessible to all including employees, regular and first time visitors, pedestrians and cyclists. The BID will: 5

BID Projects Doing Business Better: Businesses can learn and grow by working together, sharing ideas and developing trading opportunities. The Hexham BID will establish regular networking events, specialist training schemes and mentoring to support businesses across all sectors. It will promote opportunities for business development in the town and encourage new business start-ups. The BID will: • Facilitate the provision of training schemes and apprenticeships across all business sectors, engaging with young people and helping to create productive workplace placements and trial trading opportunities (market stalls etc…) • Provide a costs reduction service to levy paying businesses and provide support for businesses to adopt green initiatives • Implement a town-wide recycling scheme for business • Provide support to businesses to access information, advice and mentoring • Establish a series of business-to-business networking events • Work alongside existing providers to expand the Enterprise Hubs and incubator units around the town encouraging new business start-ups • Work with partners to create a dedicated inward investment package for Hexham adding to existing services

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BID Projects Marketing: The Hexham BID will develop a clear marketing strategy and brand identity. It will encourage visitors and other users of the town to spend more time and money in Hexham and put Hexham on the map as a place to do business. It will work alongside the existing town events and develop further events to increase town footfall and visitor spend, including the regular and occasional markets in Hexham. The BID will: • Invest in the town’s marketing strategy and brand identity and build on existing marketing initiatives in the town • Develop digital solutions for the town, including a consumer facing website, digital marketing to both businesses and consumers, appropriate use of apps and e-commerce • Introduce new town ambassadors, making Hexham a more welcoming place • Support providers of town events including regular markets, Bonfire Night, Book Festival, Christmas Market etc to improve them and draw in additional visitors • Invest in initiatives to develop activities in the town on Sundays • Develop new major events to attract additional visitors and spend to Hexham

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BID Projects The Hexham Experience: Hexham is a great place, but it can be even better. The Hexham BID will invest significant amounts into making the town more attractive, cleaner and tidier, whilst ensuring that the public sector fulfils its obligations. It will seek opportunities to improve our public spaces, in partnership with councils and the private sector. It will work with property owners to find new, innovative uses for empty properties. The BID will:

• Invest in enhanced standards of cleanliness for the town and work with Northumberland County Council to ensure efficient use of public resources • Work with property agents and owners of vacant premises to bring these back into use, either via shortterm, pop-up activity, by improving their appearance or by securing long-term tenants • Improve the physical appearance and quality of the town’s markets, either through direct investment or by securing additional resources to do so

• Only deliver services over and above those provided by the County Council and the Town Council and hold the public sector accountable for its obligations to keep the town clean and tidy • Invest in “greening” projects to make industrial estates and outof-town commercial hubs more attractive • Audit the streetscape across the town’s public spaces and lobby for removal of redundant objects • Invest directly in and seek additional funding to improve the public realm appearance

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BID Projects Business-led: The Hexham BID will be business led, ensuring that all businesses can have an input into decisions that affect the town. The BID will be proactive – a team that ‘makes things happen’ in Hexham. The BID will: • Act as a single, co-ordinated voice for the business community of Hexham, influencing, lobbying and engaging with public, private and voluntary sectors to ensure the best deal for the whole town • Employ a BID Manager whose role will be to develop and deliver the projects in the business plan costeffectively and efficiently, support the voluntary board of directors and ensure that the BID is properly serving its membership • Seek to secure additional income for projects and other initiatives thereby providing even greater value for money for businesses in the BID area • Act commercially and transparently at all times • Work with stakeholders and other partners to bring greater resource, impact and value to the BID

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Budget Budget overview Year 1 Year 2

Year 3

Year 4

Year 5

Total

Marketing

33,000

71,000

51,000

51,000

51,000

257,000

Access & Signage

10,000

35,000

45,000

20,000

15,000

125,000

The Hexham Experience

13,000

53,000

50,500

49,500

53,501

219,501

Doing Business Better

18,500

34,000

26,653

36,153

31,153

146,459

Business-led

67,777

68,517

49,257

50,257

66,257

302,065

Contingency @5%

11,053

11,053

11,053

11,053

11,053

55,265 1,105,290 1,105,290

Total Budgeted Spend Income

153,330 272,570

233,463

217,963

227,964

221,058 221,058

221,058

221,058

221,058

Outstanding Income At Year End

67,728

3,811

6,906

0

16,216

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Full budget breakdown

Year 1

Year 2

Year 3

Year 4

33,000

71,000

51,000

51,000 51,000

Invest in the town’s marketing strategy and brand identity and build on existing marketing initiatives in the town

15,000

25,000

15,000

15,000

15,000

85,000

Develop digital solutions for the town, including a consumer facing website, digital marketing to both businesses and consumers, appropriate use of apps and e-commerce

10,000

15,000

5,000

5,000

5,000

40,000

20,000

20,000

20,000

20,000

80,000

8,000

8,000

8,000

8,000

40,000

3,000

3,000

3,000

3,000

12,000

10,000

35,000

45,000

Deliver a significant project to improve signage and legibility around the town reflecting its image and identity. This will include a comprehensive needs analysis, development of guidelines for both public and private signage, and investment in new and improved signage to car parks, to and from the town centre, around the town and at entrances to industrial estates

5,000

25,000

40,000

Work with the County and Town Councils as well as private car park operators to improve car parking across the town for all users

5,000

5,000

Marketing

By using town ambassadors, make Hexham a more welcoming place Support providers of town events including regular markets, Bonfire Night, Book Festival, Christmas Market etc., to improve them and draw in additional visitors

8,000

Invest in initiatives to develop activities in the town on Sundays

Access & Signage

Ensure a strategic review of public and private transport traffic flow around the town and influence the Local Authorities to improve traffic flow into and around the industrial estates

The Hexham Experience

13,000

Year 5

Total

Budget 20,000 15,000

20,000

15,000

257,000

125,000

105,000

10,000

5,000

5,000

10,000

53,000

50,500

Invest in “greening” projects to make industrial estates and out-oftown commercial hubs more attractive

10,000

10,000

Audit the streetscape across the town’s public spaces and lobby for removal of redundant objects

10,000

5,000

Invest directly in and seek additional funding to improve the public realm appearance

10,000

15,000

30,000

34,001

89,001

7,500

7,500

52,500

Invest in enhanced standards of cleanliness for the town and work with Northumberland County Council to ensure efficient use of public resources

10,000

20,000

7,500

Work with property agents and owners of vacant premises to bring these back into use, either via short-term, pop-up activity, by improving their appearance or by securing long-term tenants

3,000

3,000

3,000

Improve the physical appearance and quality of the town’s markets, either through direct investment or by securing additional resources to do so

Doing Business Better Facilitate the provision of training schemes and apprenticeships across all business sectors, engaging with young people and helping to create productive workplace placements and trial trading opportunities (market stalls etc…)

1,0000

18,500

34,000

26,653

9,000

9,000

9,000

Provide a costs reduction service to levy paying businesses and provide support for businesses to adopt green initiatives Implement a town-wide recycling scheme for business

49,500 53,501 10,000

10,000

219,501 40,000 15,000

9,000

2,000

2,000

36,153 31,153

14,000

146,459

9,000

9,000

45,000

4,500

4,500

9,000

7,500

3,000

3,000

3,000

16,500

Provide support to businesses to access information, advice and mentoring

5,000

8,000

10,000

10,000

10,000

43,000

Establish a series of business-to-business networking events

2,000

2,000

2,000

2,000

2,000

10,000

Work alongside existing providers to expand the Enterprise Hubs and incubator units around the town, encouraging new business startups

2,500

2,500

2,653

2,653

2,653

12,959

Work with partners to create a dedicated inward investment package for Hexham

Business Led

5,000

10,000

5,000

67,777

68,517

49,257

BID Manager

31,257

32,257

33,257

34,257

35,257

166,285

Overheads

10,000

10,000

10,000

10,000

10,000

50,000

BID Loan Fund Repayment

20,520

20,260

NCC BID Levy Collection Costs

6,000

6,000

6,000

6,000

6,000

30,000

15,000

15,000

Reballot

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50,257 66,257

302,065

40,780

How the BID will be financed … The BID will primarily be financed through a BID levy applied to approximately 650 businesses that fall within the boundary of the Hexham BID area and which will raise approximately £1 million over its first five year term.

The levy This is based on the commercial value of your property and is calculated as a percentage of its rateable value. 1 To achieve a realistic income that can deliver on business needs for the Hexham BID, a levy of 1% of Rateable Value is proposed, or an annual contribution of £200, whichever is higher. On this basis, around 75% of businesses will pay the minimum amount every year, which works out at just £3.85 per week or £0.55 per day. Small charities (ie those with a rateable value of £20,000 or less) registered in Hexham will be exempted from the BID. Many businesses within the BID area will be in receipt of some form of relief on their business rates. Small Business Rates Relief, discretionary awards from the billing authority and any other reliefs have no impact on the levy which businesses will be expected to pay.

1- The BID levy will be increased each year by the annual inflationary factor for local non domestic rate bills as calculated by the government. There will be no adjustments during the year to reflect changes in individual rateable values due to appeals. Changes in values will be reflected in a corresponding change to the levy collected from the appropriate properties in the following year. Where a property is taken out of the Rating List, the BID levy will apply up to the day before the effective date of removal and the annual BID levy will be apportioned accordingly. Where a new assessment is brought into the Rating List, the BID levy will apply from the effective date as shown in the Rating List. The annual levy will be apportioned on a daily basis

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How the BID will be financed … Manufacturing and industrial businesses (as per standard industrial classification codes) with a rateable value of £1m or more will have their levy capped at £10,000 to mitigate against the disproportionate charge that they would otherwise be liable for at a levy of 1%. The BID is designed to benefit all businesses within the BID boundary, across all sectors, so every other business with a rateable value is included.2 For empty properties, if at the time of ballot there is no occupational lease, the liability of the levy will fall to the property owner until a new lease is confirmed and the owner will be entitled to vote in the BID ballot. For all businesses required to pay the levy, we feel that this represents exceptional value for money.

Other income The BID will seek to raise additional income through advertising revenue, selling BID services to non-BID businesses, other commercial activity, grant funding and in-kind support.

2- The BID levy will be applied to all hereditaments (premises) with the exception of public conveniences, ATMs, telecommunication masts, advertising hoardings and schools as assessed in the 2010 Local Non-domestic Rating List as at 1st April 2015.

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How the BID will be organised & managed …

The BID Company

The BID will be managed by a new, independent, business-led company limited by guarantee, the Hexham BID Company Ltd. The BID will be a not-forprofit social enterprise and will reinvest all income into Hexham. It will be managed by an elected Board of Directors.

Nevertheless, it is equally important that the BID Board is representative of the whole of the business community of Hexham, so wherever possible, directors will include: • Town centre independent retailers • National chain retailers • Large businesses operating in the town’s industrial estates • Independent businesses operating in the town’s industrial estates • Tourism and destination businesses • Professional services businesses • And other sectors as identified • Additionally, the BID Company will invite a representative from each of Hexham Town Council, Northumberland County Council and Northumbria Police to sit on the BID board in an advisory capacity to facilitate effective partnership work (and as levy payers in their own right).

The Board of Directors The Board will have overall responsibility and accountability to all the BID levy payers for the delivery of the BID and will direct the BID Manager. It will comprise of 12 voluntary Directors drawn from the local business community. The priority for the BID board will be to recruit and maintain a team of directors who are committed to driving the BID forwards and who have skills to help with the effective running of the BID Company.

The Board of Directors will be led by a private sector chairperson. The Board will elect a chair and vice-chair annually and a minimum of 3 Directors will be elected annually, by rotation.

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How the BID will be organised & managed …

Membership of the BID Company

All BID levy payers will be eligible to be members of the company and to vote at General Meetings as will any local organisations, as agreed by the Board, that make an annual contribution no less than the minimum annual levy.

Role of the BID Manager The BID Manager will be accountable to the BID Board and their role will be to design and implement BID projects and services, monitor feedback, explore ways to raise additional income, be a first point of contact for the BID and act as a champion for the business community of Hexham.

Interim Measures It is proposed that the Board of Directors and BID Manager will be appointed within three months of the BID ballot. To ensure continuity and an efficient setup process immediately after the ballot, an interim board will be put in place comprising of the Hexham BID Steering Group and additional representatives from the business community as identified.

Their immediate tasks will be to set up the BID Company, recruit a permanent BID manager and begin to implement projects identified within the BID Proposal. The Interim Board will step down when the permanent BID Board is established.

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How the BID will be implemented … The Ballot

All occupiers of eligible premises within the proposed BID area will be entitled to vote if they were listed as a non-domestic (business) rate payer on the date the ‘Notice of Ballot’ was issued. In the case of an empty, partly refurbished or demolished property where no occupational lease exists, the property owner will be entitled to vote. Each business rate payer in the BID area will have one vote for each property (hereditament) for which they are liable for business rates. Some businesses, for example where the business has expanded into an adjacent property, will have more than one vote. For the BID to proceed, the ballot must secure a majority (51%) of those who vote a) by number of votes in favour and b) by total rateable value in favour. Ballot papers will be issued by 21st January 2016 and must be completed and returned by 5pm on Thursday 18th February 2016. The Ballot will be issued, verified and counted independently by Northumberland County Council Election Services.

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How the BID will be implemented …

Levy collection

The BID levy invoice will be issued annually, invoiced on 1st April each year, with the final bill covering the period April 2020 - March 2021. The levy will be collected by Northumberland County Council and passed to the BID Company.

Commencement Date and Term It is proposed that the BID’s first five year term will commence on 1st April 2016 and end on 31st March 2021. Before this date, the BID Company may elect to seek a renewal of the BID for a further five year term and will seek a new mandate via a BID renewal ballot.

5YR

Alteration of BID Arrangements The BID area and BID levy (other than inflationary increases proposed) may only be altered via an Alteration Ballot or when a Renewal Ballot is held. BID projects, costs and timescales can be altered subject to approval by the BID Company Board providing they fall within the resources available to the BID.

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How the BID will be implemented … BID Performance and Measurement

Ensuring that our BID delivers purposeful outcomes and that these are positively reflected in customer perceptions is critical to our vision for the BID and to our asking of you to share our vision. The BID will monitor and measure its progress by setting clear KPIs against each project it seeks to deliver, by working with partners to measure wider impacts such as footfall and spend and by constantly talking to and communicating with businesses in the BID area. In addition we will seek feedback from businesses on a project basis, through business networks and through the successful delivery of BID initiatives. Management accounts will be reviewed quarterly and annual accounts will be subject to independent audit.

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Statement of Baseline Services

The Hexham BID will only deliver additional or enhanced services to complement those currently provided by Northumberland County Council, Northumbria Police and Hexham Town Council. The services listed below are those which are currently provided by the County Council at a baseline level that the Hexham BID will ensure do not fall below this standard and, wherever possible, will seek to improve. These services are protected by a Partnership Agreement and an Operating Agreement between Northumberland County Council and the Hexham BID: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Markets Commercial Waste Floral displays / Parks Cleansing Litter bin emptying Removal of street litter Streetscape Street washing and grafitti removal Highways Management / Maintenance Winter Services Street Lighting Parking Fire and Rescue Services Enforcement, regulation and licensing Environmental Health Community Safety Tourism, heritage, leisure and events Business Support

There are services delivered by the County Council that operate on a countywide basis including planning, transport and development. There is a commitment from the Council to engage and support the BID via these services in addition to geographically specific activity. A full statement of baseline services can be found on the Hexham BID website: www. reviveandthrive.co.uk/hexham-bid/

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Crown Copyright. All rights reserved. NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY COUNCIL - OS License No. 100049048

Map of BID area

Not to scale

The BID area encompasses the whole of the town of Hexham. There are a total of 78 streets within the boundary of the Hexham BID containing businesses that will be liable for the BID levy. For a full list of these, please visit the Hexham BID website: www.reviveandthrive. co.uk/hexham-bid/

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Where can I find out more? More information about the proposed Hexham BID can be found at: www.reviveandthrive.co.uk/hexham-bid/ If you have any other questions, please contact: Malcolm Eglin, Malcolm Eglin Antiques: [email protected] 01434 609609 (Chair)

Mike Rowlson, Cogito Books: [email protected] 07748 976295

Janine Armstrong, Ashley Matthews Jewellers: [email protected] 01434 601880 (Vice-Chair)

Sandy Rutherford, Hexham Courant: [email protected] 01434 602351

Tamsin Beevor, Forum Cinema: [email protected] 01434 603022

Cameron Scott: [email protected] 07796 914340

Alison Clark: [email protected] 07400 549604 Tom Dodds, Go North East: [email protected] 0191 4229217 Charles Enderby, Hexham Racecourse: [email protected] 01434 606881 Tom Gillanders, Hexham Town Council: [email protected] Jayne Pope, Deli @ Number 4: [email protected] 01434 608091

Rob Strettle, Northumberland County Council: [email protected] 01670 624749 Julian Weightman, Border Craft Group Ltd: [email protected] 01434 606632 If you have any questions about the BID Levy or Ballot, please contact: Matthew Powell Chief Operating Officer Revive & Thrive Ltd t: 07967 395621 e: [email protected] Keep up to date with further developments by following us on Facebook and Twitter: F: facebook.com/hexhambid T: @hexhambid 24

All photos in this document are intended to promote Hexham and do not promote or represent any views of individual companies or organisations regarding the proposed BID.