York BID is working to transform eight of the city’s main snickelways – snickelways are a unique part of York’s identity, but they are also dark, neglected, and attract criminal activity including drug offences, anti-social behaviour, and violent crimes. We aim to tackle this through a deep clean, installation of permanent festoon lighting, additional cigarette bins, and an education-based project in partnership with the Civic Trust and the University of York to create public art inspired by the history of the city.
We currently have three exciting opportunities for creatives to make their mark on York city centre:
🎨 Back Swinegate Mural
🎨 BT Exchange Box Murals
🎨 York Nutcracker Trail
Please contact us at info@theyorkbid.com for more information and copies of the creative briefs.
We can’t wait to see your submissions!
The project intends to deter criminal activity, help residents and visitors feel safe, and improve the appearance and use of the city’s snickelways and alleys. It is being supported by grants from the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, Safer York Business Partnership and the Civic Trust.
As part of this project, we are keen to hear from York businesses on their perceptions and experience of the snickelways. This feedback will be crucial in shaping the project and measuring success. Please complete this 2-minute survey or contact info@theyorkbid.com.
Snickelways Rejuvenation Project - Business Survey (surveymonkey.com)
In January the BID coordinated four rejuvenation days to freshen up city centre infrastructure that was looking past its best. Here are some key stats:
🤝 Over 40 volunteers
🛣️ 8 Streets improved
🤯 Around 150 pieces of individual infrastructure rejuvenated
🗑️ Including bins, bollards, bike racks, signage, posts and exchange boxes
⏳ Over 250 volunteering hours committed
You can find out more about the partnership-wide project over on the blog.
Due to popular demand, we are pleased to announce more rejuvenation days, taking place on 30th April, 2nd May & 7th May. Everything will be taped up by our cleaning supervisor Chris so no DIY skills are necessary!
The January Rejuvenation days were hugely successful in bringing together partners and businesses from across to the city to have the most impact - if you or your team members would like to be involved with the Spring Rejuvenation Days please contact info@theyorkbid.com with the date/s you can commit to.
York Restaurant Week has had its most successful event to date in terms of the boost in trade for hospitality businesses. Brand new features for this event included updated website features and filters, making for a smoother customer experience. Over 100 businesses participated with a collective offering of over 200 deals across food and drink. Around 17,300 vouchers were downloaded from the event website, with a monetary value of over £319,770.
The nine York Restaurant Week events that York BID have run to date are estimated to have delivered £1,449,555 for hospitality businesses in York city centre.
York Restaurant Week would like to thank all of the participating eateries and those who completed the business feedback survey. We truly appreciate your support. We'll be back 14th-20th October 2024 for more feasting - stay tuned!
You can read more on the blog: York Restaurant Week breaks all-time record! - The York BID
EARN WITH BETTERPOINTS YORK
BetterPoints York aims to help local people to make healthier and more environmentally friendly travel choices by rewarding walking, wheeling, cycling and public transport trips.
They are looking for independent cafes who can offer hot drink vouchers for £1 or less. Your voucher will be available to thousands of BetterPoints app users, who will be able to select it from the rewards catalogue when they have enough points.
You'll be paid for redeemed vouchers and the scheme will bring you new customers and generate additional spend. Getting set up is super simple and the BetterPoints team can list a voucher in a matter of days. If you're interested, get in touch via jack.windle@betterpoints.uk.
SAFER YORK PARTNERSHIP UPDATE
Read the Safer York Partnership March newsletter to learn more about Martyn’s Law, new guidance on cyber security for small businesses, and the Protect UK app.
For a wealth of useful information, advice and toolkits that you can use to protect your business, staff and customers, Safer York recommends downloading the Protect UK App for free from Apple or Google App stores. Alternatively, you can register online.
Have your say: Riverside path project takes next steps