BID Newsletter August 2024
Hello everyone and welcome to the August edition of our BID Newsletter!
I’d just like to start off by thanking Andrea Thornborrow after she stepped down as BID Chair last month as she moves onto a new role in a new location! Andrea has been a vital part of our town’s business community for many years and she will be greatly missed by everyone. She has been pivotal in the success of the BID in Harrogate and we wish her all the best for the future.
August has been an exciting month at the BID, with the Harrogate Lego Trail bringing a magical, fairy tale theme to different town centre locations. We’ve had so much positive feedback on this year’s event – with business owners stating it had a massive impact on driving both footfall and spend into Harrogate!
We recently announced plans for the Harrogate Music Weekender to return in October this year. Last year was the first time we held this event in our town and we can’t wait to bring it back for you even bigger and better this time around. We’ve already got a number of venues signed up and the programme is coming together, so get ready for a celebration of all things music!
We’ve also increased out public realm presence around the town centre with the installation of new creative lighting, allowing us to mark different milestones across the year – from Halloween to Christmas!
We’ve got special plans in place for both Halloween and Christmas this year, with further details set to be announced over the coming weeks and months…
You may see one of our new street art projects getting underway in the town centre over the coming weeks, so keep an eye out for a new installation!
We’re also delighted to be working in partnership with Visit North Yorkshire to deliver the Harrogate Restaurant Week next month! There will be plenty of top offers around town, so be sure to make the most of them.
Our teams on the street have been hard at work continuing to ensure Harrogate is a safe, clean and welcoming place for all. If you see our Street Rangers or Town Centre Support Officers out and about, be sure to say hello and ask any questions you may have.
Yours sincerely,
Matthew Chapman
Harrogate BID Manager
BID Chair says emotional goodbye to ‘second home’ Harrogate
Harrogate BID Chair Andrea Thornborrow said an emotional goodbye to her ‘second home’ recently as she takes up a new role in pastures new.
Andrea, who has been the Manager at the Primark store in Cambridge Street since it was first opened, has been an important part of the town’s business community for over 14 years. Andrea was appointed Chair of Harrogate BID earlier this year and has had vital involvement in the Business Improvement District since it was formed back in 2019, when she first became a BID Board Director.
Not only that, Andrea has also been a pioneer for different organisations, projects and initiatives to help support business in Harrogate over the years including Harrogate Homeless Project, the High Street Task Force, Harrogate District Chamber of Commerce, Destination Harrogate and Harrogate at Christmas, to name a few.
You can read the full story on this here.
Harrogate Lego Trail praised for success in 2024
Businesses in Harrogate have said this year’s Lego Trail from the BID had an important impact on driving footfall and spend into the town, with models visited almost 27,000 times.
Data shows that 26,900 visits were made to the designated QR code pages and the BID website during the Lego Trail, which is more than double the last time the trail was held in 2022.
But, as the Lego Trail was mainly completed by families and groups of two or more, the figure of those that took part is likely to be closer to the 50,000 mark.
Feedback from BID Members has been highly positive and encouraging, with one stating: “It definitely increased our footfall and our income, so thank you for making such a difference to our work!”
You can read the full story on this on our website here.
Harrogate Music Weekender set to return for 2024
The BID team are delighted to announce that the Harrogate Music Weekender will return to town centre venues in October!
The three-day music event, set to be held from October 11th-13th, will not only showcase Harrogate’s hospitality offer, but also drive footfall into the town with the aim of increasing spend in local businesses.
The Music Weekender will see a series of live performances, DJ sets, street entertainers and special offers around Harrogate – and guests can expect some new additions from last year.
Harrogate Restaurant Week 2024
We are delighted to announce the return of Harrogate Restaurant Week for October 2024, in partnership with Visit North Yorkshire.
Following the format of restaurant weeks in many other towns and cities around the UK, the promotion is designed to help attract new customers and create regular repeat customers by creating the perfect opportunity for restaurants, cafes and bars to attract local residents and visitors to try out somewhere new at an affordable price.
To find out more on this, visit the website here.
New creative lighting installed in Harrogate
Harrogate BID is excited to announce the installation of brand-new creative lighting on a town centre street to allow for celebrations across different events all year round.
The new outdoor lighting, fully funded by the BID, has been put in place along Beulah Street and in the trees around the Cenotaph area as part of the Business Improvement District’s (BID) public realm and street dressing schemes.
Over the next couple of weeks the BID team are working with partners and contractors on the installation of the lighting, which is hoped to be in place and shining bright for mid-September.
Latest BID Blog on Fairy Bricks
The latest edition of our BID Blog shone a light on Fairy Bricks and the great work they do to support children through difficult times in hospital.
We work with Fairy Bricks to bring the Harrogate Lego Trail to life every year. They create all of the masterpiece models that feature on the route, from famous Harrogate in 2021 to fabulous fairy tale creatures this year!
Since forming through a single hospital donation back in 2012, Fairy Bricks has grown to deliver Lego to more than 200 hospitals in the UK and 26 other countries on an annual basis.
Harrogate Beer Week 2024
Harrogate Beer Week is set to return later this month, thanks to another year of support from Harrogate BID.
This will be the fourth year of the event – a week-long, town-wide celebration of Harrogate’s craft beer, brewing heritage and beer culture in the local community.
Founded in 2021, Harrogate Beer Week will celebrate the quality of Harrogate’s social scene and night time economy, offering a programme of special events, offers and promotions hosted at bars, brewery taps and eateries across Harrogate.
On the programme for 2024 are free beer tastings, tap takeovers – including a Verdant 10th birthday party – live music events, pub quizzes, an Oktoberfest celebration, bring-your-own vinyl sessions, craft events, folk nights, special discounts and even a North vs South beer-off, with even more still to be announced.
Floral Summer of Celebration success
The BID team were delighted to bring another successful celebration of Harrogate’s floral heritage to key locations around the town centre.
Each of the 10 dazzling displays celebrated the theme of ‘Friendship’ and how relationships are formed through the floral community – to coincide with the Royal Horticultural Society’s (RHS) 60th anniversary. From Floral Arches of Bloom and a Heart of Flowers, to a Botanical Garden and a Flower Family, every installation had its own exclusive back story and meaning, helping to promote Harrogate as not only a fantastic floral destination, but also as the jewel in Yorkshire’s crown.
The BID has received plenty of positive feedback on this year’s trail, with both visitors and residents enjoying the floral-themed fun.
BID and Chamber host Summer Social
Harrogate BID was delighted to work alongside the town’s Chamber of Commerce group to bring together the business community for a social event.
More than 50 representatives from the Harrogate business community attended the ‘Summer Social’ on Monday August 12th – held at the newly refurbished Coach & Horses pub on West Park in the North Yorkshire town.
The gathering is held annually to give member businesses of both groups the chance to catch up with both old and new faces in a relaxed and inclusive environment.
Street entertainment brings joy to Harrogate
Harrogate BID was delighted to again work alongside the team at MarkMark Productions to bring Street Entertainment fun to the town.
From ‘Team BeeGee’ bringing the classic tunes, to explorers trying to navigate their way around the town centre, the fantastic actors really did bring comedy and wit to our town.
They will be back for further performances later in the year, so keep an eye out for some announcements…
BID Street Rangers launch deep cleans in Harrogate
Harrogate BID is delighted to launch a dedicated deep clean service to ensure the town centre is a safe, clean and welcoming place to visit, live and work for all.
The Street Rangers are now fully qualified to operate the brand-new street cleaning equipment in key locations within the BID area, bringing the operations in-house to ensure the most valuable return on investment.
In line with the Business Improvement District’s ‘Pride In Our Town’ objective, the cleans will help to strengthen the environment for businesses, visitors and residents in Harrogate.
Latest HUQ update
We’re continuing to work alongside HUQ to help us to plan for our events, campaigns and services.
We recently sent out an update on 2024 so far to our members, providing details on each aspect of HUQ and some of the figures from each.
To view this update, please click here.