Twelve local business people have been elected to the Newquay Business Improvement District’s (BID) Board of Directors following the successful AGM that was held last Wednesday 15^th May.

Newquay BID has to re-elect a new set of Board of Directors every two years. This year 15 business people stood and over 70 BID levy payers cast their vote.  Three existing members were re-elected and nine new faces were added to the Board’s line-up.

New Board members elected in include: Sara Black (GreyBlackWhite), Rachel Craze (Newquay Fruit Sales), Carl Lamb (Newquay Zoo), Colin Paull (Paulines), Drew Preston (The Newquay Voice), Jonathan Start (Start & Co.) and John Coltman (Trelinda Hotel). A number of members were re-elected including Andy Cole, Jane Hawkey and Stephen Hawkey. Rob Barber (Newquay Activity Centre) and Ben Ridding (Surfing is Therapy) were also newly elected as voluntary members.

Most BIDs follow the same management formula; board members are made up from the Town Council, Cornwall Council and Chamber of Commerce, BID levy payers, the voluntary contributions sector, and another body not included in any of the above but with an interest in securing the objectives of the BID proposals.

Newly elected Sara Black said: “It’s great to have been elected to the Board, and I’m keen to help the BID continue to make a real difference. I have seen how much this organisation has done to benefit Newquay and am pleased to have the chance to voice my opinion on issues that matter to the town. From what I have experienced, Newquay is lucky to have a host of proactive people working to make the town a better place.”

Re-elected Andy Cole said: “I’m delighted to have been voted onto the Board of Directors for the second time around. I’m a strong believer in the positive work of the Newquay BID and have seen first-hand how it has driven change in our town. We are stronger by working together and it will be a pleasure to see the input that some new faces will bring. Long may the BID’s success continue.”

The Board of Directors is a driving force for the BID, and provides crucial management support to the not-for-profit organisation. The Board is charged with helping the BID Manager continue to build on the work that the BID has carried out over the last two years, which includes a major positive shift in public perceptions.

In order to achieve this, the BID has implemented an exciting events programme to encourage visitors into the town, installed a footfall counter to help monitor numbers of shoppers on the high street and put up vibrant new signage, as well as running on-going social media and PR campaigns.

BID Manager Eve Wooldridge said:

“The voting response was very good and we had over 70 ballot papers returned. The nominees were all strong members of the businesses community and the final elected directors represent a range of different industry sectors in Newquay. As a result, there is a good mix of retail, hospitality, nightlife and professional services, and this mix is crucial to the success of a BID in a town centre.  

“There are of course still many opportunities for local businesses to be involved in the BID, as we have several committees and forums whose input gets fed into the board meetings and influences decisions taken by the  Board of Directors. The BID feels very strongly that all decisions must as far as possible take into account the needs of the local business community.” 

For more information on Newquay BID or the role of the Board of Directors, please contact eve.wooldridge@newquaybid.co.uk or telephone 01637 49859.