Knaresborough Business Collective, which was set up to encourage more people to visit the town, has folded.
The group, which was established in the wake of the vote not to create a Knaresborough Business Improvement District, announced the news on social media today.
Founders Natalie Horner and Annie Wilkinson-Gill said “the time has come to say enough is enough”.
The duo organised numerous initiatives for the town including Christmas trees for traders, a scarecrow festival and business awards.
Their decision followed the theft of 20 Christmas trees last week, which Ms Horner described as “absolutely sickening”. Her own printing business Sid Horner and Sons was burgled six days earlier.
It prompted numerous messages of support from people saying how grateful they were for all that the two women have done for the town.
Peter Lacey, from Knaresborough Chamber, thanked the group for all its “hard work for the town”.
The collective’s demise may reignite calls for another ballot on whether to establish a BID.
Ms Horner and Ms Wilkinson-Gill said on social media:
“This was not an easy decision, and one not taken lightly by either of us. We have powered through adversity, harassment, theft, abuse, criticism, vandalism, complaints, slander, all of which has crossed the line to personal attacks on our own businesses and characters.
“We did what we did because we love Knaresborough, it’s businesses, it’s community, it’s residents, but we could only handle so much when we are doing every part of it voluntarily. We have neglected our businesses, our families, our homes and our health, both mental and physical, and the time has come to say enough is enough.
“We have achieved so much over the last few years, and while we loved it, every single thing we have done has been met with some form of negativity or been destroyed. We both have strong shoulders and thick skin but it is too much for two people to take. We have six young children between us and five businesses. It feels as though what turned from people being grateful soon became what people just expected.”
The post said Ms Horner, who runs printing firm Sid Horner and Sons, had lost lost thousands of pounds by printing items for free and Ms Wilkinson-Gill had paid her own staff to work at events.
It added the two women will still do things for town on a personal level, including the Knaresborough Business Awards.
Knaresborough Business Awards. Pic Brian King
They will also spend funds accrued on CCTV cameras for traders “as our parting gifts for town”, with any money left being split between local charities.
The post concluded:
“Thank you to everybody who has helped us, thanked us, supported us and volunteered, we are so grateful and think Knaresborough really is the best place, not just all the wonderful businesses but the people who make it what it is.
“We are proud of what we have achieved in just a few years and hope if anything comes of this it is that everybody supports each other and their businesses.”
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Free parking in Harrogate multi-storey to boost town centre
People driving to Harrogate will be able to park for free in the Jubilee Multi-Storey Car Park from 4pm on each day next week.
Harrogate Business Improvement District is funding the initiative to give traders an autumn boost before the busy Christmas period.
It is timed to coincide with three events next week. They are Harrogate BIDs Harrogate Music Weekender, the Visit Harrogate Restaurant Week and Harrogate Theatre’s Comedy Festival.
Free parking will be available from Monday, October 9 to Sunday, October 15 from 4pm until the car park closes, which is at 11pm from Monday to Wednesday and on Sunday and at midnight on Thursday to Saturday.
The initiative follows on from the free parking after 3pm scheme Harrogate BID ran in the lead up to Christmas last year.
Matthew Chapman, Harrogate BID manager, said:
“This is just one of the examples of how Harrogate BID is supporting town centre businesses and partner events.
“By providing free parking in Harrogate during this exciting week of events, we are giving residents and visitors an added incentive to come into town to shop, eat, drink and enjoy three great Harrogate initiatives.”
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- Harrogate Restaurant Week returns to offer discount dining
- Harrogate set to host three-day music weekender
Natalie Rawel, marketing manager at Harrogate Theatre, said:
“Free parking for this week of the comedy festival will be brilliant for our audiences as it means they can drive into the centre of town without having to think about where to park and how much it might cost.”
The photo shows (left to right) Matthew Chapman, Harrogate BID manager, Natalie Rawel, Harrogate Theatre marketing manager, Helen Suckling, partnership and commercial manager at Destination Harrogate and Bethany Allen, marketing and business executive at Harrogate BID
Knaresborough councillors reject call to prevent second BID voteTown councillors in Knaresborough have rejected a motion to prevent traders having another vote on creating a business improvement district until 2026.
Knaresborough firms voted against setting up a BID by 80 votes to 73 in October 2021.
But the creation of a Facebook group called Get the BID for Knaresborough Back on Track has led to suggestions some businesses could push for another ballot.
If firms vote to set up a BID — as has happened in Harrogate and Ripon — town centre traders pay an annual levy to support schemes that boost footfall.
Cllr Kathryn Davies, a Conservative who represents Aspin and Calcutt, proposed the motion at this week’s full council meeting.
She said BID terms lasted five years and there should be “parity in the time lapse” between ballots when one is rejected.
Cllr Davies said another ballot would ignite “old tensions” and the motion would “bring some calmness to the situation”. She added:
“Businesses in the town will have the certainty of no additional taxes for that period.”
This week’s Knaresborough Town Council meeting.
But Cllr Matt Walker, a Liberal Democrat who was also elected in Aspin and Calcutt, said it could equally be argued the town had lost out on £400,000 of investment the BID levy would have generated and that ultimately it was a decision for traders, not councillors.
Cllr Walker said:
“If the business community wants a BID I’m happy to support them. If they don’t want a BID I’m happy not to support one.”
The Castle Courtyard shopping centre in Knaresborough.
Nobody has formally called for a second ballot and Cllr David Goode, a Liberal Democrat who represents Castle ward, said “it would be madness for any local group to move forward without knowing the majority of local businesses were in favour”.
He added:
“This is not an issue for the town council. This is an issue for the business community.”
The motion failed when John Batt, a Conservative who represents Eastfield, withdrew his support as a seconder to the motion.
Cllr Batt agreed “it’s not our job to dictate to the business community what they should do”.
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Discussions revive idea to create Knaresborough BID
Discussions have begun about reviving the idea of creating a business improvement district in Knaresborough.
Traders in Harrogate and Ripon both voted to have BIDs but Knaresborough firms rejected the idea by 80 votes to 73 two years ago.
However, a Facebook group called Get the BID for Knaresborough back on track has been set up.
Supporters say the move would boost trade and improve the town centre. Opponents say a BID is unnecessary and would reopen wounds.
If a BID is created, town centre businesses with rateable values above £2,500 would pay levies that would generate about £140,000 a year for schemes that increase town centre footfall.
Neil Smith, a disabled former taxi driver who set up the Facebook group, said the BID could improve the town’s notoriously difficult parking and lead on issues such as street cleaning and floral displays.
Mr Smith said his experience as a Blue Badge holder had highlighted how acute town centre parking problems were for people with mobility issues and a BID could push for solutions.
He said:
“If people can’t park, businesses will fail because of lack of footfall.
“If I was a business owner in Knaresborough and could have things like better parking, cleaner streets and a more appealing town centre all for a £1 a day I’d be all for it. Who else is going to do these things?”
‘We don’t want this to happen again’
Knaresborough Business Collective, which was formed in 2021 in response to the failed BID vote, runs various town centre initiatives such as supplying hanging baskets and Christmas trees and organising annual awards.
It published a social media post this week saying there was no need for a BID, and questioning whether another ballot so soon was appropriate. It added:
“It is less than two years since a no majority was received, if a yes majority had been achieved we would not be allowed a revote for five years. I believe the same should be the case now.
“The town was massively divided after BID and we really don’t want this to happen again.”
The post urged businesses to contact Knaresborough Town Council with their views on a second BID vote.
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Peter Lacey, an executive member of business group Knaresborough and District Chamber, said:
Hot Seat: The man luring shoppers to Harrogate“Chamber has neither initiated nor can comment on an official basis as to whether it would be in support of rerunning the BID process in the town at this time.
“We are focussed on promoting our great town, addressing concerns about the recent installation of electric vehicle charging points in the town in as constructive way as possible, and preparing to work collaboratively across the town to attract new investment through North Yorkshire Council’s shared prosperity funding.”
Harrogate has one. So has Ripon. But Knaresborough hasn’t.
We are talking about business improvement districts, which are set up when businesses agree to work together to fund schemes that encourage more shoppers into town and city centres.
You might not know much about Harrogate BID but you have probably seen its work.
The recent Harrogate floral summer of celebration, which saw nine town centre floral installations ranging from a Buddha to giant cakes, was its handiwork.
So are the town’s Christmas lights, street entertainers and street ranger Chris Ashby, who buzzes around in an electric vehicle cleaning and weeding.
One of nine Harrogate floral summer of celebration displays by the BID.
In June, 76% of almost 500 Harrogate businesses eligible to vote did so in favour of supporting the BID for a second five-year term.
Such landslide support seemed inconceivable in the BID’s early days, when it was riddled with in-fighting. But the appointment of Matthew Chapman as chief executive in 2021 heralded a change of fortune.
Former semi-professional rugby league player Mr Chapman has navigated his way through the Harrogate business world with a deftness and charm not usually associated with cauliflower-eared rugby bruisers.
June’s vote, which means town centre businesses with a rateable value of at least £19,000 will continue to pay a levy to fund the BID’s work, was a testament to faith in the BID and his rigorous campaigning.
Was he surprised by the whopping majority?
“No. We had done a lot of homework. The groundwork started 14 months before the ballot. We were confident we could prove our worth and I spent a lot of time talking to businesses.”
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Even Mr Chapman’s sunny disposition was tested when North Yorkshire Council, whose Harrogate businesses include the Turkish baths, the tourist information office and the library, abstained from the vote.
The now-defunct Harrogate Borough Council’s block vote helped the BID win its first ballot five years ago. Was he disappointed its successor local authority didn’t offer the same support?
“It was a tough pill to swallow because we were the first BID in the UK to have a local authority abstain. But at least we can say it was a true business decision.”
(from left) BID staff members Bethany Allen, Chris Ashby and Matthew Chapman join chair Dan Siddle and vice-chair Andrea Thornborrow to celebrate the ballot result.
The yes vote means the BID’s work, which also includes events such as fashion shows and dog shows, the Harrogate Gift Card, street art and targeted free parking, will continue.
But will Mr Chapman? His departure for a managerial role at North Yorkshire Council was announced last year before her performed a U-turn and stayed. He says:
“I’m very confident of staying for the next five years. What that process made me realise is I’m very passionate about BIDs and Harrogate is a great place to deliver one.”
Harrogate ‘vibrant — but needs big brands’
Mr Chapman previously worked for BIDs in Leeds and Huddersfield but says “coming to Harrogate was like going from the second division to the premier league” because of the town’s prestige. He says:
“I’ve learned that Harrogate is a very traditional place where people are really passionate about its history.”
Harrogate, he says, is vibrant and people have a lot of pride in it, adding shop vacancy rates are below average and footfall is above average for a town of its size.
But he says the town centre “could do with some big brands” and some parts, such as Cambridge Street, are “looking tired and could do with a makeover” although he adds Harrogate’s affluent reputation makes it harder to win bids for regeneration funding.
“Look at Montpellier — that says ‘Harrogate’. We would like all the town to say that.”
Which brings us to the £11.9 million Station Gateway scheme — is he for or against?
‘Tired’ looking Cambridge Street
Mr Chapman displays a nifty rugby player’s sidestep by asserting the BID’s neutrality. Some retailers oppose the loss of parking spaces and part-pedestrianisation on James Street, while some hospitality businesses think it would encourage cafe culture, he says.
Mr Chapman commutes in daily from York, where he was born, to the three-strong BID team’s Victoria Shopping Centre office.
Its term two income is set to fall from £540,000 a year to £485,000 a year, mainly because the council’s latest reassessment of rateable values took more businesses below the levy threshold.
But Mr Chapman is confident his team will continue to delight and keep members happy.
“I want to show a clear return on investment. I have got to be able to stand in front of businesses and show what we are doing in return for charging a levy.”