Welcome to our October Newsletter
This month has been an incredibly busy one for the BID team as we put the finishing touches to our Halloween and Christmas campaigns.
And in addition to what we are delivering in and around Harrogate town centre this festive season, we are delighted to be partnering with Harrogate Borough Council and Visit Harrogate to co-fund a number of fantastic elements for the Destination Christmas campaign.
In a matter of weeks our Christmas lights will swiched on, and not long after Harrogate town centre will be the temporary home to a helter skelter, carousel, big wheel, road train and the North Pole Post Office.
To say we are excited is an understatement!
I hope you enjoy reading this newsletter, which has more information about our Christmas campaign as well as information about a meeting for businesses to examine the updated Harrogate Station Gateway project plans.
As ever, if you have any questions, please do get in touch via email, at info@harrogatebid.co.uk
Yours sincerelySara Ferguson
BID Chair
|
|
 |
|
Harrogate BID unwraps ‘The Harrogate Father Christmas Experience 2021’!
Harrogate BID has taken the wrapping off one of its major festive activities – The Harrogate Father Christmas Experience 2021!
Last year, social distancing rules brought about by the Covid pandemic denied children the opportunity to visit Santa in his Grotto, but this year he’s back and will be taking up residence in the town’s Crown Hotel.
Starting on Saturday, November 20, the town centre venue will become the home of a magical interactive elf-training experience hosted by chief elf, Tinsel. It will run for 15 days, finishing on Christmas Eve.
Families will enjoy a sing-along, an elf-tastic performance full of festive fun and North Pole magic. After the Elf Training Show, everyone will have the chance to meet Father Christmas himself, and all the newly-trained elves will receive a 2021 Elf Graduation Certificate, and an early Christmas Present.
The Harrogate Father Christmas Experience 2021 Santa’s will be known to a host of families, as for a number of years he and his grotto have been located at Harlow Carr Gardens/Horticap.
Harrogate BID Chair Sara Ferguson said: “We are really excited to be bringing The Harrogate Father Christmas Experience 2021 this festive season.”
Read the full story here:
|
|
|
|
 |
|
BID and Rotary Club launch Christmas Shop Window competition 2021
Harrogate town centre retailers are being invited to enter this year’s Christmas Shop Window competition.
For the second year running, Harrogate BID (Business Improvement District) has partnered with The Rotary Club of Harrogate, to organise and judge the annual festive contest.
Aimed at promoting town centre shops and pushing the ‘shop local’ message in the run up to Christmas, the competition was one of the main features of the Channel 5 documentary, Harrogate: A Yorkshire Christmas.
Once again it is being limited to a maximum of 50 businesses within the BID Levy area. And, as in previous years, there are three categories: large retailer, medium retailer, and small retailer
Before dressing their windows, participating businesses are asked to take into account the following criteria:
- illumination: There is a historic link between the competition and the Christmas lights. How well is the window lit up?
- Innovation: How new or different is the window display?
- Spirit of Christmas: This is a ‘catch all’ category. How well does the display convey the ‘Spirit of Christmas’?
Full details and how to enter your shop are available here:
|
|
 |
|
BID helps Harrogate get in the half-term Halloween spirit
BID is helping Harrogate get in to the Halloween spirit this half term with a number of special events, including a live outside broadcast by Your Harrogate this Friday morning (10am- noon).
A spookily-dressed, Halloween-themed photobooth has ‘popped up’ in a vacant unit in Victoria Shopping Centre, where there will be a number of backdrops for people to come along, get into character and take a selfie. There’s also the opportunity of winning one of three £50 Harrogate Gift Cards.
A Halloween-themed interactive trail on our LoyalFree app – just like the summer Lego trail – whereby there will be 13 locations to find around the town centre. These 13 locations, dotted around the town, feature Halloween-themed items, including posters, floor stickers. They will have a QR code on them, which will take participants to a webpage that will play a short, interactive video, with voiceover on spooky, true Harrogate & District stories.
Those who check in to all 13 locations will get entered into a free prize draw for a family ticket for the newly launched Harrogate Ghost Walk. This trail runs until Sunday, October 31.
‘Trick & Treat’ street performers who will be moving around the town centre on Friday and Saturday 30.
And if you see one of our social media posts, remember to share them.
|
|
 |
We are delighted to hear that hundreds of people came to visit to the 1571 The Water That Made Us light and sound installation which we co-sponsored to hep celebrate the 450th anniversary of William Slingsby re-discovering the mineral waters at Tewit Well.Produced by Harrogate International Festivals, it was part of the run up to last week’s Raworths Harrogate Literature Festival, staged in the Crown Hotel.
|
|
|
 |
|
Harrogate Station Gateway Project Consultation Update
Harrogate District Chamber of Commerce’s November meeting is an opportunity for BID Levy payers and members to review the revised plans for the proposed £10.9m Harrogate Station Gateway project, hear from the team leading it, and put any questions they may have to them.It is proposing the narrowing of Cheltenham Parade and Station Parade from two lanes down to a single carriageway, plus parttime pesedtrianisation of James Street, from its junction with Princes Street to Station Parade.
It is being held from 5.30pm on Monday, November 8, at The Cedar Court Hotel.
Please book your place here:
|
|
November BID Club
Our next BID Club is beig held from 4.3-pm until 6pm on Thursday, November 4, in the BID office (first floor, Victoria Shopping Centre).
It is going to be a drop-in session for businesses to meet and speak to the team, and offer ideas and suggestions which Harrogate BID can consider, and possibly impletment, during 2022.
|
|
|
 |
BID ELECTIONS – DEADLINE TO STAND THIS MONDAY
As flagged in our September newsletter, we have started the process for electing the Directors for the fourth year of the BID.
We want to give every levy payer the opportunity to participate in the process, but to be able to put your name forward or to vote, you need to be a Member of the Harrogate BID company.
A Membership Application form, together with the Rules, will be sent to all Levy Payers, with an attached form, which needs to be completed and returend to info@harrogatebid.co.uk before noon on Monday November 1, 2021.
The applications will be processed and presented to the BID Board on Thursday, November 4.
The next communication from us will be to Harrogate BID Ltd members only, inviting them to express an interest in being a Director of the Harrogate BID, and enclosing a Candidate’s form to be completed.
Should we receive more names than vacancies to represent a business sector, then there will be a secret ballot.
|
|
 |
|
Harrogate Gift Card scheme
Join existing town centre businesses who currently participate in this scheme, aimed at boosting the local economy.
They also make perfect Christmas presents and great staff reward gifts.
Further information is available here:
|
|
|
Your ideas welcomed
We are always keen to hear from our Levy Payers and Members, particularly if they have ideas and suggestions which will benefit the town centre environment for residents, visitors, employers and employees alike.
Please contact us on info@harrogatebid.co.uk
|
|
|
|
|
