IMPORTANT - THIS WILL AFFECT YOUR BUSINESS RATES

What is a Business Improvement District or BID? Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) are designed to improve the economic performance of an area.   There are currently more than 200 BIDs in the UK with others on the way.  BIDs create significant sums of investment in an area and participating businesses use the money they gather through a small levy on top of Businesses Rates to pay for improvements that benefit those businesses.  These include such items as improved public realm, Christmas lighting, events, security, town marketing and loyalty schemes which all provide a better environment and attraction for shoppers, employees and business visitors.  BIDs are owned and driven by town centre businesses, and what they deliver is up to you to decide.  BIDs can help to increase footfall and improve the overall perception of the town centre.  The goal is to improve an area so that all business sectors benefit, whether shops, restaurants, offices or hotels and others.

The Bognor Regis Town Centre Management Partnership is investigating the feasibility of establishing a Business Improvement District to provide new management arrangements for the long term benefit of the town centre. The current funding for the Town Centre Manager will finish in 2018 and without a BID to continue this work, there will be no-one dedicated to working to improve the town centre.  We are conducting this survey to see if businesses themselves are keen on this model and is something they would support.  If this is the case, we want to establish a Working Group/Shadow Board with local businesses to develop the concept further to make Bognor Regis Town Centre a better place to run your business, to work and to visit.   Thank you very much for taking the time to participate and we really appreciate hearing your views.

Part one: key issues in Bognor Regis town centre

Q1	How much of a problem do you consider the following to be?  (you may feel that some of these problems are not relevant to you; if so, please tick 'no response')
		Significant problem	Minor problem	Not a problem	No response
	The overall image of the town centre	The overall image of the town centre Significant problem	The overall image of the town centre Minor problem	The overall image of the town centre Not a problem	The overall image of the town centre No response
	Perception of the town	Perception of the town Significant problem	Perception of the town Minor problem	Perception of the town Not a problem	Perception of the town No response
	Availability of parking for customers and staff	Availability of parking for customers and staff Significant problem	Availability of parking for customers and staff Minor problem	Availability of parking for customers and staff Not a problem	Availability of parking for customers and staff No response
	Facilities for loading and unloading	Facilities for loading and unloading Significant problem	Facilities for loading and unloading Minor problem	Facilities for loading and unloading Not a problem	Facilities for loading and unloading No response
	Congestion and the impact of traffic	Congestion and the impact of traffic Significant problem	Congestion and the impact of traffic Minor problem	Congestion and the impact of traffic Not a problem	Congestion and the impact of traffic No response
	Quality of the streets	Quality of the streets Significant problem	Quality of the streets Minor problem	Quality of the streets Not a problem	Quality of the streets No response
	General cleanliness of the pavements	General cleanliness of the pavements Significant problem	General cleanliness of the pavements Minor problem	General cleanliness of the pavements Not a problem	General cleanliness of the pavements No response
	Management of street traders	Management of street traders Significant problem	Management of street traders Minor problem	Management of street traders Not a problem	Management of street traders No response
	Availability of toilets in the town centre	Availability of toilets in the town centre Significant problem	Availability of toilets in the town centre Minor problem	Availability of toilets in the town centre Not a problem	Availability of toilets in the town centre No response
	Quality of toilets in the town centre	Quality of toilets in the town centre Significant problem	Quality of toilets in the town centre Minor problem	Quality of toilets in the town centre Not a problem	Quality of toilets in the town centre No response
	Crime and anti-social behaviour	Crime and anti-social behaviour Significant problem	Crime and anti-social behaviour Minor problem	Crime and anti-social behaviour Not a problem	Crime and anti-social behaviour No response
	General fear of crime	General fear of crime Significant problem	General fear of crime Minor problem	General fear of crime Not a problem	General fear of crime No response
	Visitors finding their way around the town centre	Visitors finding their way around the town centre Significant problem	Visitors finding their way around the town centre Minor problem	Visitors finding their way around the town centre Not a problem	Visitors finding their way around the town centre No response
	Quality of the retail outlets	Quality of the retail outlets Significant problem	Quality of the retail outlets Minor problem	Quality of the retail outlets Not a problem	Quality of the retail outlets No response
	Quality of places to eat or drink	Quality of places to eat or drink Significant problem	Quality of places to eat or drink Minor problem	Quality of places to eat or drink Not a problem	Quality of places to eat or drink No response
	Availability of evening and night time attractions	Availability of evening and night time attractions Significant problem	Availability of evening and night time attractions Minor problem	Availability of evening and night time attractions Not a problem	Availability of evening and night time attractions No response
	Finding and retaining the right staff	Finding and retaining the right staff Significant problem	Finding and retaining the right staff Minor problem	Finding and retaining the right staff Not a problem	Finding and retaining the right staff No response

	Please use this space to list other issues, or to include more details on your responses:
	? character count   [1000 maximum characters]

Q2	How much do you think the following could improve your trading conditions in Bognor Regis town centre? (if you feel an issue is not relevant to you, please tick 'no response')
		A lot	A little	Not at all	No response
	A co-ordinated marketing strategy positively promoting the town centre and tackling any negative perceptions of the town	A co-ordinated marketing strategy positively promoting the town centre and tackling any negative perceptions of the town A lot	A co-ordinated marketing strategy positively promoting the town centre and tackling any negative perceptions of the town A little	A co-ordinated marketing strategy positively promoting the town centre and tackling any negative perceptions of the town Not at all	A co-ordinated marketing strategy positively promoting the town centre and tackling any negative perceptions of the town No response
	A town centre loyalty card/discount card	A town centre loyalty card/discount card A lot	A town centre loyalty card/discount card A little	A town centre loyalty card/discount card Not at all	A town centre loyalty card/discount card No response
	A uniformed patrolling service to reduce shoplifting and antisocial behaviour	A uniformed patrolling service to reduce shoplifting and antisocial behaviour A lot	A uniformed patrolling service to reduce shoplifting and antisocial behaviour A little	A uniformed patrolling service to reduce shoplifting and antisocial behaviour Not at all	A uniformed patrolling service to reduce shoplifting and antisocial behaviour No response
	A security radio scheme to reduce shoplifting	A security radio scheme to reduce shoplifting A lot	A security radio scheme to reduce shoplifting A little	A security radio scheme to reduce shoplifting Not at all	A security radio scheme to reduce shoplifting No response
	Improved street cleanliness	Improved street cleanliness A lot	Improved street cleanliness A little	Improved street cleanliness Not at all	Improved street cleanliness No response
	A more pedestrian friendly town centre	A more pedestrian friendly town centre A lot	A more pedestrian friendly town centre A little	A more pedestrian friendly town centre Not at all	A more pedestrian friendly town centre No response
	Additional planters/greening projects to improve the environment	Additional planters/greening projects to improve the environment A lot	Additional planters/greening projects to improve the environment A little	Additional planters/greening projects to improve the environment Not at all	Additional planters/greening projects to improve the environment No response
	More special events to attract higher spending visitors	More special events to attract higher spending visitors A lot	More special events to attract higher spending visitors A little	More special events to attract higher spending visitors Not at all	More special events to attract higher spending visitors No response
	More arts and cultural attractions such as street entertainment	More arts and cultural attractions such as street entertainment A lot	More arts and cultural attractions such as street entertainment A little	More arts and cultural attractions such as street entertainment Not at all	More arts and cultural attractions such as street entertainment No response
	A co-ordinated evening and night time economy strategy	A co-ordinated evening and night time economy strategy A lot	A co-ordinated evening and night time economy strategy A little	A co-ordinated evening and night time economy strategy Not at all	A co-ordinated evening and night time economy strategy No response
	Business to business networking events to promote your business to other businesses	Business to business networking events to promote your business to other businesses A lot	Business to business networking events to promote your business to other businesses A little	Business to business networking events to promote your business to other businesses Not at all	Business to business networking events to promote your business to other businesses No response
	A town centre wide wi-fi scheme	A town centre wide wi-fi scheme A lot	A town centre wide wi-fi scheme A little	A town centre wide wi-fi scheme Not at all	A town centre wide wi-fi scheme No response
	A town centre app for visitors, promoting the businesses in the town	A town centre app for visitors, promoting the businesses in the town A lot	A town centre app for visitors, promoting the businesses in the town A little	A town centre app for visitors, promoting the businesses in the town Not at all	A town centre app for visitors, promoting the businesses in the town No response
	Improvements to public spaces	Improvements to public spaces A lot	Improvements to public spaces A little	Improvements to public spaces Not at all	Improvements to public spaces No response
	Collective purchasing of recycling, waste, utility, legal, fuel, training, to reduce costs, etc.	Collective purchasing of recycling, waste, utility, legal, fuel, training, to reduce costs, etc. A lot	Collective purchasing of recycling, waste, utility, legal, fuel, training, to reduce costs, etc. A little	Collective purchasing of recycling, waste, utility, legal, fuel, training, to reduce costs, etc. Not at all	Collective purchasing of recycling, waste, utility, legal, fuel, training, to reduce costs, etc. No response
	More parking for customers and staff	More parking for customers and staff A lot	More parking for customers and staff A little	More parking for customers and staff Not at all	More parking for customers and staff No response
	Cheaper parking	Cheaper parking A lot	Cheaper parking A little	Cheaper parking Not at all	Cheaper parking No response
	Training for businesses, covering topics such as digital, retail, customer service, etc.	Training for businesses, covering topics such as digital, retail, customer service, etc. A lot	Training for businesses, covering topics such as digital, retail, customer service, etc. A little	Training for businesses, covering topics such as digital, retail, customer service, etc. Not at all	Training for businesses, covering topics such as digital, retail, customer service, etc. No response

	Please use the space below to share your own ideas, or include more details on your responses:
	? character count   [1000 maximum characters]

Q3	Is there one specific initiative that would really benefit your business?
	? character count   [1500 maximum characters]

Part two: your thoughts on a Business Improvement District (BID)

Thank you for your time so far.  We would like to hear your thoughts on a Business Improvement District as the mechanism for helping businesses to deliver their desired improvements in Bognor Regis town centre.  Below is some basic information about how a Business Improvement District works, followed by questions asking for your views on this concept. Key information about Business Improvement Districts (BIDs):

(1) BIDs are business led partnerships to give businesses a stronger voice on issues affecting the town centre and their own business.  Town centre businesses will be able to  develop their own Action Plan of projects they would like to see that will improve the trading environment.  The Action Plan is voted on by a democratic ballot of all business rate payers in the proposed BID area. (2) If the ballot is successful, the businesses pay a levy (between 1%-2%) based on the current rateable value of their property.  This creates a pot of money which they get to spend as they see fit; tackling issues or running projects that have been identified by them and to benefit them. (3) A Management Company will be set up to run the BID with a Board of Directors made up of local businesses and stakeholders, driving and overseeing the work.

(4) BID services have to be in addition to the services provided by the Council and Police, so you will not be paying for services that the Council or Police should be providing.  The BID levy cannot be used to subsidise Council or Police services.  Whilst Arun District Council collects your business rates, these are a national tax set by national Government.

Q4	In principle, do you think BIDs are a good idea?
	Yes
	No
	Undecided
	Don't know

Q5	BIDs are business led. Would you be interested in getting involved in the Business Improvement District Working Group/Shadow Board?
	Yes
	No
	Maybe

Part three: about you and your business

Finally, we would like to ask you some questions about your business and its current situation.  This will help us to put the results of the survey into context.  Your answers will be treated in confidence and the findings of this survey will be reported anonymously.  Contact details collected will be used solely by the Bognor Regis Town Centre Management Partnership to keep in touch with you regarding a potential Business Improvement District in Bognor Regis.

Q6	Your details:
	Your name:
	Your company name:
	Your position within the company:
	Town centre address of the business you represent: (please include number, street name and postcode)
	Email address:
	Telephone number:

Q7	How would you prefer to be contacted?
	Email		Letter
	SMS		Telephone

Q8	Your head office details (if applicable):
	Head office address: (please include number, street name and postcode)
	Head office contact name: (usually property/estates department)
	Head office email address:
	Head office telephone number:

Q9	Which of the following categories best describes your business?
	Food retailer		Hotel		Motor related
	Clothing retailer		Personal services (e.g. hairdresser, spa)		Media and creative
	Newsagent/convenience retailer		Professional & business services (e.g. bank, solicitors, accountants)		Education
	Other retail		Storage		Health and  social care
	Restaurant, cafe		Leisure (e.g. bingo, gym, bookmakers)		Wholesale
	Takeaway		Arts and recreation (e.g. theatre, cinema)		Community facilities
	Public house, bar		Information computer technology		Religious facilities
	Nightclub		Construction/manufacturing		Other (please specify below)

Q10	Which of the following best describes your business?
	Independent		Regional multiple business
	National multiple business		Other (please specify below)

Q11	Roughly how many people does your business employ in Bognor Regis? (please include full and part time employees)

Q12	Over the last 12 months has your business turnover in Bognor Regis?
	Grown
	Remained stable
	Declined

	Please provide any comments:
	? character count   [500 maximum characters]

Q13	Looking to the future of Bognor Regis town centre, are you?
	Optimistic
	Pessimistic
	Unsure

	Please explain why:
	? character count   [500 maximum characters]

Q14	Are you currently recruiting staff in Bognor Regis?
	Yes
	No
	Don't know

Q15	Do you have any further comments?
	? character count   [3000 maximum characters]

Thank you for taking the time to complete this survey.   Please click the submit button below to return your response.