Our Bury St Edmunds BID to continue until 2030

Businesses in Bury St Edmunds have given another resounding vote of confidence in the work of the town’s Business Improvement District (BID) with more businesses than any previous ballot using their vote.  Our Bury St Edmunds BID has been elected for a fourth term of five years with 146 or 78.5% of those who took part voting yes.  The rateable value of those who voted yes was 87.8% of the votes cast.  The number of those voting (186) was a significant increase on the 2019 ballot at 43% compared to 35%

Chairman of the BID’s Board of Directors David Marjoram who owns The One Bull and Damson and Wilde said: “This will only be beneficial for Bury St Edmunds and I’d like to thank the businesses in the town centre for this show of support.  The BID is run by a small team who have worked incredibly hard for the town centre – especially this term given the challenges of the pandemic – to increase footfall, run some excellent events and work with partner agencies on issues that affect all who have a business here.”

Our Bury St Edmunds BID CEO Mark Cordell launches the ballot.
Picture credit: Our Bury St Edmunds BID

Chief Executive of Our Bury St Edmunds BID, Mark Cordell, added: “This result means we can progress plans to achieve even more for the town and our businesses by building on the last three terms and working collaboratively with other key stakeholders. Although Bury St Edmunds has been doing comparatively well against other towns with increased numbers of people coming here, we must continue to carry this momentum forward because there is no room for complacency as prosperity in the town increases.”

Just over 400 businesses in the town centre were eligible to vote in the ballot.  Since it came into effect in 2010 the BID has provided additional services and support to businesses, beyond those supplied by public authorities.  These have included major events and marketing Bury St Edmunds and all it offers through traditional and digital campaigns.  It’s kept the town centre looking good by partnering other agencies to provide free training courses for businesses, more hanging baskets, more litter bins and a free graffiti removal service for its members.  The official tourism brand for the town, Bury St Edmunds and Beyond is now fully integrated into the BID, ensuring more visitors are aware of all the town has to offer which is resulting in more visitors to the town centre.

The BID organises some of the town’s biggest events including the Spring Fayre, the Food & Drink Festival and the Christmas Lights Event.  It has recently launched a new marketing brand for independent businesses and a marketing campaign to promote the BID Ale Trail.  Additionally, the BID previously negotiated on parking initiatives including pay on exit and free from three.