Welcome to the August edition of the Harrogate BID newsletter.
The summer has been another busy period for Harrogate, with the successful return of our LEGO Trail, preparations for Christmas well underway and continued work across a range of projects supporting businesses and promoting our town.
Our Dinky Dinosaurs LEGO Trail has been a fantastic success, with more than 40,000 QR codes scanned throughout the trail. It has been great to hear from participating businesses about increased custom, with businesses including Otto Café reporting additional trade during the trail. The trail was designed to encourage families to explore more of the town centre, and the response we’ve seen shows the value of creating reasons for people to visit, spend time in Harrogate and discover our businesses.
Looking ahead, we’re already planning for Christmas, with an exciting new programme of festive attractions and experiences coming to Harrogate in partnership with Visit North Yorkshire, North Yorkshire Council, Harrogate Town Council and Victoria Shopping Centre. From Santa’s Grotto and interactive curling rinks to the Ice Trail and Harrogate Ice Pavilion, there will be plenty to encourage residents and visitors to come into the town centre and support local businesses during this important trading period.
Supporting our businesses remains at the heart of what we do. We’ve continued to strengthen our Business Crime Reduction Partnership through ShopSafe Alert, encouraging businesses to report incidents and share information so we can build a clearer picture of issues affecting businesses and use that intelligence in our conversations with the police, council and other partners.
We’re also launching our first Harrogate Action Days in September, bringing businesses, community groups, volunteers and local organisations together for four days of practical action across the town. It’s an opportunity to encourage civic pride and demonstrate what we can achieve when the wider community comes together to care for the place we all share.
As always, our focus remains on delivering value for levy payers, supporting local businesses and ensuring Harrogate continues to thrive as a vibrant and welcoming destination.
If you have any feedback, ideas or would like to get involved with any of our projects, we’d love to hear from you. Please get in touch with the BID team at info@harrogatebid.co.uk.
Thank you for your continued support.
Yours sincerely,
Simon Midgley
Chair, Harrogate BID
Dinky Dinosaurs LEGO Trail brings thousands into Harrogate
Our Dinky Dinosaurs LEGO Trail has proved a huge success, with more than 40,000 QR codes scanned during the trail.
Running throughout August, the trail encouraged families to explore Harrogate and visit participating businesses and attractions across the town centre as they searched for the dinosaur models.
We’ve also heard directly from businesses taking part that the trail has helped generate additional visits and trading opportunities, with businesses including Otto Café reporting increased custom during the trail.
The trail was designed to give families another reason to visit Harrogate, while encouraging people to explore more of the town centre and discover its shops, cafés, restaurants and attractions.
Thank you to everyone who took part, and to all of the businesses and partners who helped make the trail such a success.
Harrogate set to sparkle this Christmas
Harrogate is set to sparkle this Christmas with a new programme of festive attractions, family experiences and seasonal entertainment designed to bring even more magic to the town centre.
Working in partnership with Visit North Yorkshire, North Yorkshire Council, Harrogate Town Council and Victoria Shopping Centre, this year’s programme will encourage residents and visitors to explore Harrogate, support local businesses and enjoy everything the town has to offer throughout the festive period.
At the heart of the celebrations will be a series of attractions organised by Harrogate BID, including:
🎅 Santa’s Grotto
🧊 Two interactive curling rinks
❄️ A giant snow globe
⛸️ An interactive Ice Trail
On Saturday 12 December, visitors will be able to discover five spectacular ice sculptures located throughout the town centre, encouraging families to explore Harrogate while visiting its shops, cafés, restaurants and attractions.
Families will also be able to visit Santa’s Grotto on selected dates throughout December, with further details to be announced. A scheme will also be available to help ensure children from lower-income families can enjoy the festive experience.
Further details, including attraction opening times, market information and event schedules, will be announced over the coming weeks.
Harrogate Action Days – get involved
From 16–19 September, Harrogate BID is bringing businesses, volunteers, community groups and partner organisations together for the first Harrogate Action Days.
The four days will provide opportunities for people to take part in practical projects across the town, including:
🧹 Litter picking and street sweeping
🌱 Weeding, planting and refreshing planters
🪑 Cleaning street furniture
🎨 Painting utility boxes, where permissions allow
🖌️ Removing graffiti
🔧 Reporting maintenance issues
🌿 Supporting small environmental improvement projects
You don’t need specialist DIY skills and all necessary tools and protective equipment will be provided.
We’re particularly keen to hear from businesses who would like to offer their teams a corporate volunteering opportunity.
Our initial target is 80 hours of action. If 20 people volunteer for four hours each, that’s 80 hours of practical work helping to make a visible difference to the town.
The Action Days are about more than the number of hours contributed. They’re an opportunity to bring people together, encourage civic pride and show what we can achieve when businesses and the wider community work together.
Want to take part?
Please register your interest with info@harrogatebid.co.uk before Friday 11 September.
Places are limited, so please register early.
Restaurant Week to return to Harrogate
Harrogate Restaurant Week returns from 14–20 September, giving residents and visitors the chance to enjoy special offers from restaurants, cafés, pubs and hotels across the town.
With offers available at a range of price points, there’s something for different tastes and budgets.
Participating businesses include The Crown Hotel, Otto Café, Grane Coffee & Bakery, Konak Meze, Abu’s Indian Dining, The Inn South Stainley, The Drum & Monkey, Giggling Squid, Hotel du Vin, Bettys and Ambers Restaurant at Cedar Court Hotel, with more offers available through the week.
The full range of offers is available through Your Harrogate, with customers required to quote “Restaurant Week” when booking or ordering.
It’s a great opportunity for businesses to showcase their menus, attract new customers and encourage people to eat and drink locally.
ShopSafe Alert: help us build a clearer picture of business crime
Harrogate BID’s ShopSafe Alert is an important way for local businesses to report incidents, share relevant information and help us understand the issues affecting businesses across the town.
The information businesses provide helps us identify recurring problems, locations and patterns. We can then use this intelligence to drive conversations with the police, council and other relevant partners.
We are particularly encouraging businesses to report incidents of anti-social behaviour, even where an incident may appear relatively minor. Individual reports can help demonstrate when a problem is persistent and having a wider impact on businesses and their staff.
If your business isn’t currently signed up to ShopSafe Alert, we’d encourage you to get involved.
To find out more or sign up, contact Business Crime Officer Paul Evans:
📧 paul.evans@harrogatebid.co.uk
Free online crime prevention event – 16 September
Harrogate BID is sharing details of a free online event from ProtectUK and the National Counter Terrorism Security Office (NaCTSO).
Taking place on Wednesday 16 September, 12.30pm–1pm, the session will introduce NaCTSO INSIGHTS, an interactive resource bringing ProtectUK’s Crime Prevention Toolkit to life through a short video presentation.
The session will cover practical crime prevention measures that can help businesses:
- Protect staff, customers and visitors
- Reduce risks
- Strengthen security measures
- Improve public safety
- Increase awareness of crime and loss prevention
The event is particularly relevant to SMEs, retailers and businesses looking to strengthen their approach to crime prevention and security awareness.
Attendance is free, but registration is required.
Free Cybersecurity Event for Local Businesses
ASE Computers is bringing ASE CyberShield 2026 to the Pavilions of Harrogate on Tuesday 13th October, and it’s a must-attend event for local business owners and senior decision-makers.
The event is completely FREE and is designed to give businesses practical, straightforward advice on how to protect themselves from today’s growing cyber threats, as well as what to do if the worst happens.
You don’t need to be an IT expert. CyberShield is aimed at Business Owners, Managing Directors, Operations Directors and Managers, and anyone responsible for the resilience and future of their organisation.
The message is simple: this isn’t about replacing your IT team. It’s about supporting them and making sure the whole business understands the risks and knows what to do.
The event will cover:
- How cyber criminals are targeting businesses today
- Practical steps you can take to strengthen your defences
- How to reduce the risk of your business being disrupted
- What to do if you suffer a cyber attack
- How to make sure your people know what to look out for
- The latest technology and developments in cyber protection
Confirmed speakers include Microsoft, Sophos and the Police Cyber Resilience Centre, with further speakers and details to be announced next week.
There will also be opportunities to ask questions, see technology in action and connect with other local business leaders.
WHEN: Tuesday, 13th October 2026
WHERE: Pavilions of Harrogate
FREE to attend, but places are limited.
Last year’s event was a huge success and sold out, so don’t leave it until the last minute.
Book your place now:
Register for ASE CyberShield 2026
Beauclair spend data:
a new and more accurate picture of Harrogate
Harrogate BID uses Beauclair to provide data on spending in the town centre, helping us understand how much people are spending, how many transactions are taking place and where our customers are coming from. In August, Beauclair introduced a significant upgrade to the way that data is collected and calculated, giving us a more comprehensive picture of retail activity in Harrogate.
The upgraded methodology now incorporates credit card transactions alongside debit card transactions, with an improved approach to calculating total sales. Beauclair has also updated the historic data using the new methodology, meaning trends over time remain directly comparable. Reported sales and customer numbers will be higher as a result of the changes, but this reflects improved measurement rather than a sudden change in underlying activity.
The upgrade also introduces the new Beauclair High Street Index, covering more than 500 retail areas across Great Britain. This allows Harrogate to be benchmarked against other centres based on their classification as a Regional Centre, Major Town Centre or Town Centre, providing a more relevant comparison of how different types of high streets are performing.
For Harrogate BID, the upgraded data gives us a stronger evidence base for understanding what is happening in the town, identifying trends and considering where future activity can have the greatest impact. It also provides additional insight into sectors, customer catchments and demographics, alongside our existing footfall data.