As we near the end of 2024, we’ve put together a round-up of key projects the BID team delivered for our members this year! We look forward to bringing you even more exciting projects and campaigns for the year ahead.

Please note our office will be closed Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day.

From all of the BID team and the board directors, we wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

JANUARY

We kicked off 2024 with a Health & Wellbeing Month campaign to highlight health and wellness businesses in the area. This included a marketplace style event featuring 10 businesses and a series of radio interviews with Mix 92.6fm.

The BID also sponsored the majestic Peace Doves installation at St Albans Cathedral, attracting visitors to St Albans during the post-Christmas quiet time.

FEBRUARY

Throughout the month installations were placed in the city centre to mark key dates, including the Chinese Lunar New Year, Valentine’s Day and also the University of Hertfordshire graduation ceremony.

The BID also sponsored Home Start Hertfordshire’s annual Pancake Race.

We also hosted an awareness session on the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Bill or Martyn’s Law as it is commonly referred, which impacts businesses that host events. Find out more here.

MARCH

Encouraging tourism to the area and in time for spring, we released the 2024-25 St Albans Visitor Guide. Throughout the year, 50,000 copies of the guide are distributed to key visitor and tourist pick-up points within a 2-hour commute radius. Click here to view.

For the Easter school holidays we teamed up with High Street Safari for family-fun with the ‘Hunt for the Easterloper’, an interactive digital storytrail which was hosted by 10 BID businesses.

Advocating for businesses, BID wrote to the councils’ Strategy and Resources Committee and attended it’s meetings to raise BID area businesses’ concerns and seek clarity on council plans to alter street trading licencing and increase market days.

Lobbying of councils, both district and county, to improve the high footfall tourist area around the Clock Tower saw the relocation of a bin and a much-improved base of the tree, with maintenance of the spiral seating also taking place in the summer.

APRIL

The lamppost banners along St Peter’s Street were updated to mark the season and celebrate the horticultural history of the city. Bunting with the same colourful design was installed on French Row, George Street and St Peter’s Street.

We joined together with Arriva to offer savings on local bus travel for people working at businesses in the BID area with the Arriva Employer Travel Scheme. Click here to view Member Offers.

End of the month, we launched our first Fashion & Beauty Week. A week of exclusive offers and events hosted by BID businesses. The campaign saw 28 businesses take part and featured 37 activations.

BID joined in with The Business Community’s filming for charity and secured promotion for the Visitor Guide in doing so.

MAY

The floral displays were updated for the summer season. These feature 20 square planters, 4 rectangular planters and barrier baskets across the city centre.

Recruitment and retention is an ongoing concern for businesses, for this reason BID sponsored the Steps2Skill’s Inclusive Job Fair at The Alban Arena to help our member’s with this theme.

We invited the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) to visit St Albans and navigate between our visitor attractions and share their feedback so that we can learn how the city is perceived by those who are partially sighted or blind. Feedback was shared with key partners to inform service delivery. Read the accessibility report here.

JUNE

In June we hosted a launch event for two new initiatives. We commissioned Place Support Partnership to provide free support to member businesses to help reduce business costs and we also launched Disc, a new crime reporting app. Find out more.

The Business Crime Forum was relaunched for BID area businesses with updated terms of reference that underpin the use and launch of Disc. Find out more and join here.

The homes and interiors sector was highlighted with a paid for advertorial in Absolutely Hertfordshire, Absolutely Essex and Absolutely Buckinghamshire. View here (pg 57).

The community mural on Drovers Way was updated. Organised by Collective Gallery and supported by Bar Meze and sponsored by BID, it was created through a collaboration between the community and local artist Mandy Johnson.

JULY

In July we highlighted independent retailers for Independents’ Day which is an annual campaign supporting businesses. See coverage here.

We also welcomed Tara Tadlock to the team as a freelance Social Media Manager to manage the social media accounts for Enjoy St Albans. Our Facebook and Instagram accounts have over 22,000 followers combined.

AUGUST

Adding vibrancy and fun during the summer months, we arranged a couple summer activities including a caricaturist and an interactive art installation at Heritage Close.

SEPTEMBER

To highlight and promote the dog-friendly status of the city centre and encourage dog-owners to make use of the places that welcome dogs all year round we co-ordinated the second St Albans Dog Day. Find out more here.

Helping businesses learn how to elevate their social media activity, we hosted an online Social Media Workshop.

A popular event in St Albans social calendar, we also sponsored the council’s St Albans Feastival.

The BID team helped with liaison between the film company, businesses, and authorities to ease the filming activity for a Tesco Christmas advert.

OCTOBER

Kicking off the party season, we worked with George Street businesses to host Gin & Jazz, an evening of late-night shopping, food and drink. Find out more here.

For Halloween, 10 BID businesses hosted an augmented reality Halloween trail. ‘Totally Spooking Out’, encouraged families to get out an explore the city centre whilst collecting digital characters.

To help visitors and residents discover what’s on offer a new Food & Drink Map was released, listing 120 locations in the BID area. View the map here.

Taking place at St Albans Cathedral, we were proud to sponsor The Alban Film Week.

For National Safer Business Action Week, the BID invited Hertfordshire’s Police & Crime Commissioner, Jonathan Ash-Edwards, to visit city centre businesses to learn about our use of Disc and hear about the impact of retail crime on businesses.

The BID wrote to Daisy Cooper MP supporting our levy payers in raising concerns on the Government’s Autumn Budget and the potential impact on operational costs.

All ShopSafe radio users received new radios and sound quality improved for safety and security communications in the city centre.

NOVEMBER

This year we launched a new Christmas trail. The Felipe the Sheep Christmas Trail is a fun, free, family-friendly trail which invites residents and visitors to explore the city centre. Find out more here.

We have installed the Christmas lights including lamppost wraparounds, festoons lights and freestanding installations providing selfie opportunities to create happy memories.

This year the BID invested in a new 7.5m tall Christmas tree commanding attention in the heart of the city and providing the backdrop to the council’s Christmas Cracker event where BID sponsored the main stage.

To promote the city centre over the festive period, we delivered a Christmas campaign, which including advertising in print, social media advertising and a Christmas microsite. View website here.

Our new winter banners went up down St Peter’s Street. The banners continue the horticultural theme from the summer banners.

As part of the White Ribbon campaign, the BID sponsored the Domestic Abuse (DA) Alliance and supported their ‘Clock up the miles’ challenge to raise funds for their work towards preventing violence against women and girls.

Helping businesses with costs of preparing for the Christmas season, we gave away 4,500 baubles to businesses, with some amazing displays being created.

In November we also supported the Chamber Awards St Albans Community Business Awards, presenting and sponsoring the Excellence in Customer Service Award.

Commissioned by the BID and the council, Visit Herts’ St Albans Economic Impact Study for 2023 was published in November. It shows how Hertfordshire’s tourism industry is performing. Read the report here.

DECEMBER

Supporting local charities, we sponsored a Postbox topper with St Albans Postboxes. You can find our topper at the junction of Spencer Street and Verulam Road.

The Blue Plaques St Albans Group received our sponsorship to design and print the St Albans Blue Plaque Trail Leaflet to help visitors and residents discover the rich history of St Albans. View the trail here.

The BID supported Shopmobility’s promotion of their survey results and the launch of their ‘Room for Us’ campaign which provides window stickers to retail and hospitality venues who ensure adequate access and space is given to mobility scooter users.

The BID bought 3 Community Defibrillators and partnered with three host locations to enhance access to life saving equipment 24/7.

Winter planting of our barrier baskets and planters continues the floral welcome and enhancement of the cityscape.

A new lamppost was installed in High St, jointly funded between BID and the council, in readiness for the installation of a new CCTV camera and enhance the coverage in the area.

PR, Social Media & Advertising – Year-round

We manage and regularly update the city’s tourism website EnjoyStAlbans.com. The site features information on visitor attractions, things to do, travel, a business directory and what’s on listings.

The BID also manage social media pages and create content for @EnjoyStAlbans and @ShopStAlbans.

Through our PR agency, PR4 we produce a regular stream of press releases, what’s on listings and content highlighting St Albans and city centre businesses across various media including national, international and local print, radio, online outlets and influencer and press visits. View media coverage report here.