Welcome to Visit Staines
Visit Staines BID is the trading name of Staines-upon-Thames Business Improvement District (BID) which is a not for profit, limited by guarantee company working on behalf of 300 businesses in the town centre.
Visit Staines BID is the trading name of Staines-upon-Thames Business Improvement District (BID) which is a not for profit, limited by guarantee company working on behalf of 300 businesses in the town centre.
Visit Staines is the trading name of Staines-upon-Thames Business Improvement District (BID) and is an independent, not for profit, business-led initiative working to create the environment for businesses in Staines-upon-Thames town centre to succeed.
Business Improvement Districts nationwide provide a mechanism for businesses in a designated area to pool their resources and invest in agreed products and services. Visit Staines BID was established in 2017 and is has now started its second term after a successful reballot in 2022 and has a mandate to deliver a set of proposals set out in our business plan over a 5-year term. We will be going to reballot in 2027.
A BID (Business Improvement District) is a designated zone (BID Area) in which businesses (BID Levy Payers) benefit from a wide range of additional services over and above those funded through the standard commercial rates and council services.
Constituted by UK law in 2004, a BID is a powerful, independent voice representing the interests of a varied community of organisations, committed to working together to ensure that the town continues to progress whilst providing the best possible trading and working environment for its occupiers.
The business led and business funded organisation will raise £1.5 million to invest in Staines-upon-Thames town centre over the five year term, raised from a levy of 1.5% of the rateable value of eligible business premises.
Visit Staines is governed by a board that meets monthly. If your business would like to join as a board member please get in touch with us on info@visitstaines.co.uk.
As well as our 300 levy payers, Visit Staines BID also works with a number of businesses outside of the town centre who want to support our initiatives and get involved. These are known as voluntary levy payers. For more information about becoming a voluntary levy payer, please get in touch.
BIDs are an arrangement whereby businesses come together and decide which improvements they feel could be made in their town or city centre, and also how they will implement these improvements and what it will cost them. BIDs are financed and controlled by the businesses within the selected area. BIDs can run for a maximum of five years and during this time they must be able to show that they are benefitting the businesses that fund it.
Staines-upon-Thames is a thriving market town in Surrey, yet it needs to evolve and change to remain competitive in the face of growing competition. It will need to do this against the background of tighter public sector finances and other towns who already have BIDs in place injecting several hundred thousand pounds a year into their locations. By obtaining BID status for Staines-upon-Thames it enables the private sector (retail, leisure, tourism, office and commercial) to decide the projects and services that should be delivered in their area to ensure that Staines-upon-Thames has a stronger profile, attracting visitors, increasing footfall, more spending, directly supporting businesses and encouraging investment.
It’s up to you as a business to help shape what the BID in Staines-upon-Thames might deliver. BIDs can deliver any projects or services that are agreed by the businesses in the BID area. These projects must go over and above anything that is already provided through business rates and by the local authority.
BIDs have the ability to increase footfall to an area, reduce business costs and improve services. As they can run for up to five years they also give businesses the opportunity to plan ahead. BIDs put the control into the hands of the businesses themselves. BIDs do not substitute services provided through business rates, they must provide additional services.
We provide added value around 5 key areas of work