Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) BIDs are local organisations in designated areas where businesses collaborate to invest in improvements for the area’s development, with an agreed but mandatory levy. Northampton is blessed with two local BIDs, the Northampton Town Centre BID, run by the hard working and innovative Mark Mullen, and the Brackmills BID, run by the dynamic and big-hearted Sara Homer, who does so much for the county’s businesses and charities. T e BIDs off er the following:
■ Improving Local Business Environment: focus on making improvements like better security, marketing and infrastructure that benefi t the local business community.
■ Events and Marketing: BIDs often organise local events, festivals and marketing campaigns to attract footfall.
■ Collective Voice: represent the interests of businesses within the district to local government, ensuring the area’s development supports local enterprises.
■ Economic Growth: help in boosting the local economy through targeted investments that attract businesses and consumers to the area.
Institute of Directors (IoD) T e IoD is an infl uential organisation supporting business leaders and directors through professional development and advocacy. Membership is personal to the individual, not company. Established since 1903, the IoD has the ear of Government with weekly meetings to advocate on behalf of medium-sized businesses. T e IoD is regionally based, with a branch covering the SE Midlands.
To date it has had a lesser presence in Northamptonshire, but there is now an IoD Northampton Hub opened at the Vulcan Works. T e IoD is keen to raise its presence in the county. Anyone interested in learning more can contact me as Deputy Chair of the IoD’s SE Midlands Branch. You may also like to access the IoD’s National Sustainability Group, which has a lot of free as well as member-only resources. T e benefi ts of the IoD are:
■ Professional Development: offering a range of leadership and director-level training programmes, including Chartered Director qualifi cations.
■ Lobbying and Advocacy: representing the interests of company directors and senior leaders to the UK government and internationally.
■ Networking: local and international networking opportuni- ties, including events, seminars and access to a community of business leaders.
■ Director Advice Line: free legal and tax helplines tailored for directors and executives.
■ Workspace: exclusive access to workspaces in prestigious loca- tions across the UK, including meeting rooms and co-working spaces at the prestigious 116 Pall Mall headquarters
Silverstone Technology Cluster (STC) STC is a not-for-profi t cluster support organisation for advanced engineering, electronics and software and their supplier businesses. Based in the Silverstone Innovation Park, it is a locally based member- ship organisation successfully run with drive and passion by CEO Pim Van Baarsen and his team. Membership is open to all relevant com- panies within an hour’s drive of Silverstone. STC assists its members with promotion, support, networking and thought leadership events.
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NNBN Run by the dynamic Simon Cox, NNBN membership is open to every- one that operates or provides services in the NN post code. It off ers well-attended networking events, plus a range of member discounts and perks, health care benefi ts, a fuel card, social media promotion with a monthly newsletter, digital magazine, one-to-one business support, and it punches above its weight in advocacy for the county – now even more so since Simon has joined the Chamber of Commerce as its Head of Policy alongside his work with NNBN.
T ere are a number of other national organisations such as the
Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and Make UK, which cater for large and manufacturing businesses, but they have less of a local presence. T ere are also several sector specialist groups such as the Made in Northamptonshire food and drink initiative, run by the doyenne of the county’s food and drink sector, Rachel Mallows, doing a great job supporting small and artisan producers. The University, through its Knowledge Exchange team,
collaborates with all these groups, who often meet together to share knowledge, best practice and increasingly coordinate their activities for the good of the county’s business community. A good example is their recent input into the Northamptonshire innovation ecosystem mapping exercise commissioned by the University, being undertaken by the strategy consultancy Whitecap Consulting. Whitecap are due to report soon, and their results will be covered
in a future article. T e report will build on the insights of the local BSOs who have contributed to the study, and facilitate even closer collaboration between all the above to help you drive innovation and thus support Northamptonshire’s economic growth and development. Why not make sure your voice is heard – and that you are getting the benefi t of a connected business support community?
For information, contact Adrian on 07720 297402 or email
Adrian.pryce@
northampton.ac.uk
Scan the QR code to fi nd out more about the IoD
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