Single Industrial Estates Business Improvement Districts Chase Space Chase3 – Public Private Partnership Choice of partners – Governance arrangements – Collective activities – Dealing with Government – Business improvements - Networks FORUM – SSCCI the UK experience

What We Do Cannock Chase Business Improvement District (B.I.D) 2007 – businesses over 5 out of town business parks Additional contribution through business rates £150,000 per annum for five years - £750,000 Provides sustainable funding and long term investment Unique approach to tackling problems faced by businesses Improve, manage and sustain trading environments Forum

In depth consultation for 18 months to inform and consult Surveys - common goals identified  Crime and Security  Image Enhancement – signage / grounds maintenance  Traffic Congestion Agreed baselines Vote – 52% voted YES 48% voted no or did note vote Measurable outcomes / K.P.I’s from Municipality Forum

Dedicated Business Park Co-ordinator – all issues Image Business Partnerships was formed Business led self help group Multi Agency involvement Project planning and implementation Long term sustainable approach – five year project Re-ballot in 2012 Forum

B.I.D Services and Business Provide services and facilities that are additional to existing municipality services Create a more attractive, vibrant, cleaner and safer environment Improve the trading performance Raise property values Attract inward investment Strong links with all parts of the community Prevents free loaders Forum

Our Route To Businesses Existing relationship – trust and confidence there 275 companies in the BID plus ‘Chase Space’ Long term sustainability through Chase3 – we have a long term vision for project and will involve all our projects – traders associations – will roll out the program Discussion What are the other partners route to businesses? Do you have an existing relationship with BIZ areas? How have you chosen your areas? What is their authority? Forum

Data Management Baseline Surveys and Profile Strategy and Objectives Communication and Public Relations Integration of MoMa.BIZ into networks – Gaps to be filled – Employee behaviour – Community awareness – Interpretation of need METHOD – SSCCI the UK experience

An Approach Engage with ALL businesses Collate accurate database Highlight issues and barriers to growth (crime / identity / Environment) Identify investment opportunities Develop interest in business led improvement Build up trust and confidence Press Release – they are part of something prestigious and new to the area Method

The Way Forward Conduct a baseline survey Supply a detailed report of findings Identify ‘champions’ from the business community – advocate from each BIZ Highlight site improvements Set up a business forum Produce a master plan Develop a sustainable plan for the future Method

Engagement Participation is about engagement – need to create an Engagement Strategy Identify BIZ areas Ask municipality for names and addresses – their assistance is key Create awareness – introduce project through newsletters / letters / initial survey to sense response rate Follow up with telephone calls Follow up with face to face visits for those that do not respond – explain in more detail Method

Start Need to get businesses commitment and support Need to gain the stakeholders trust and confidence Inspire them – their involvement is worth the risk Now we have names and information – inform them of a start date – Public Launch Date – invite press and record event Create a ‘group’ that they can be part of – much higher chance of long term success rate – name the group Quick wins – shows our interest and assertiveness / action Clean up the BIZ areas Maintenance – prune hedges, road sweeps Method

Baseline Survey for each BIZ Remember it is challenging to engage people in caring about the environment and climate change Choose another route to communicate the MoMa.BIZ Project – the message Transport problems affect all – Highlight how the project assists with transport problems – parking on double yellow lines, staff cannot park Conduct a baseline survey What are their issues – pick up the MoMa.BIZ Project through their concerns – they will not think that Mobility Management affects them If bus stops were installed at the entrance to all BIZ would they be used – participation levels – what would it take? Method

Make Event Appealing to a Wider Audience At the Activating Event invite ‘Guest Speakers’ to inspire businesses and speak on issues within Mobility Management Also invite other ‘Guest Speakers’ to attract a larger audience: Local municipality Highways Agency Bus Companies Local Chamber of Commerce Banks and Businessmen Job Centres Police Multi-Agency approach Question and answer sessions – unrelated to mobility management but would ensure that they were there to then engage Method

Marketing and PR Use interesting and different forms of marketing the project and the ‘Activating Event’ Post cards, eye catching literature – be creative it makes a powerful statement of who we are Inform local municipality – their website / residents magazine Local newspapers press release and create photo opportunity at event List of Companies that attend will be in local newspaper Prepare a booklet for stakeholders to be given on MoMa.BIZ Method

Information Share After conducting initial surveys and employee surveys and work package we will know: Their concerns for area Footfall Car parking figures Bus Figures Vacancy rates Chosen method of transport Distances Number of people commuting to BIZ – employees and visitors This information is the key to negotiations with bus companies, Landlords etc Method

Example Summary of Findings 850 employees 700 travel to work by car 75 extra car parking spaces needed for visitors and customers 600 official car parking spaces 45 spaces not used by current tenants 50 spaces at empty units This information will also be of interest to businesses and involve them Method

How to Engage with the BIZ Sometimes it feels hugely challenging to engage and excite people to take action against climate change Some people immediately understand the importance of this and start taking personal action. The first step of any campaign is to reach them and get them involved Talking beyond this small group to the large majority of people – who are often confused or doubtful about the issues, suspicious of the messengers and pre-occupied with their day to day lives- can be frustrating and sometimes daunting There will always be the handful of enthusiastic people who are keen to reduce their carbon footprint - it's encouraging all the others to do something that's the hard thing! Pippa Reeve, Northants Climate Friendly Communities Method

What is Communication Communication is much wider than you would think At a personal level, a great deal of communication is non-verbal: how we dress, hold ourselves and our body language are all powerful communicators – be enthusiastic from the start Appear tolerant, welcoming, active and having fun you will attract people by offering them positive reasons for being involved Traditional forms of written communication are important Even in the internet age, a good leaflet, poster, or display is still an important way of explaining our project The style and appearance of them make a powerful statement of who we are. Include photos of members (for example a group photo) and quotes from actual members - builds trust Method

Different Ways of Communicating Because of its very low cost, and its potential for spreading information by peer-to-peer contact, is the ideal Invite members to pass on communications to new people in their own networks. It is important to have some internet presence- even if it is just a page with your leaflet text and contact details. Talking, face to face contact and word of mouth are still king Because climate change is often technical and data driven, people want personal interaction – such as verbal presentations or face-to-face conversations – to help them to process and understand the information Method

Presentations Encourage people to display their membership and take ownership of your messages – they are part of something BIG and NEW Be creative As with any form of commercial marketing, always try to think of new and eye-catching ways of reaching people Community groups have tried beer mats, comics, banners, games, competitions Make sure you understand your community before deciding how best to communicate with them – ours are SME’s on out of town business parks Method

Community Led Plan Local consultation and relationship building begins before the steering group is established Establish the steering group Developing a project plan Community consultation Prioritising action and drafting the plan Finalising and implementing the plan Monitoring and reviewing progress Method

Partnership Working A community-led plan is most likely to wok if it is supported by all the key agencies in a local community. This is especially true of support from local municipalities Local authorities can provide advice and information to groups undertaking community-led planning and may even fund some of the process MoMa.BIZ is independent community-led plans ought to inform the development of statutory policies and plans as municipalities are required to consult with the community Method What Methods Will Partners Use?

Building face to face relations Training additional local advocates Developing cooperative opportunity Linking to direct business benefits Seizing positive local initiatives and publicising Building on existing foundations – Extending network activities – Constant feedback and encouragement – Sustainable and self generating program activity – Community dissemination – Adopting box solutions DELIVERY – sscci the UK experience

Get Business Owners Interested Networking opportunity for businesses Speak with travel companies and private shuttle bus companies to see if we can create a free or subsidised rate for all members of the MoMa.BIZ – Free bus passes for employees Make an announcement at event Free rental period on units if expanding – 3 months free rent Speak with Landlords / owners of empty units prior to meeting to gain their cooperation for a ‘Use Our Car Park Week’ Make an announcement at event Grants and Funding Make an announcement at event Food and drink laid on Delivery

Potential of Project Create other opportunities through the project More eateries / facilities in BIZ areas – what do businesses want – would this encourage them to stay on site at lunchtime? This is all part of Mobility Management Small business enterprise per BIZ Could create a business opportunity – could Council subsidise business rates or Landlord give a rent-free period press story – good for local economy Use a redundant building in BIZ – develop visitor economy Opportunities for sponsorship – local bicycle shop, car dealership Press Release / PR / Newspapers and TV Delivery

Know Their Concerns To make real progress in reducing emissions everyone will need to be involved and collective action will need to be seen as both desirable and normal People are more likely to believe and respond to others who seem like themselves and who share their concerns and interests Businesses are aware of the cost of running a car Businesses are motivated by money – we can save them money, save their staff money and improve the appearance of the BIZ Staff punctuality improved Ease the pressure on parking Delivery

Our Plan Climate change is one of many priorities The content of every community led plan reflects the needs, interests and priorities of the individuals and groups who contribute to it. The focus is always on local issues. Typical topics that arise within community consultation about local needs include: Crime and security Grounds Maintenance Signage Public transport Road safety Business support On site eating facilities Training Waste and recycling Delivery

The Approach Most people do not think of climate change on this scale but rather as a global, long-term challenge However, there is enormous scope for action on climate change to be included within community-led plans. The benefits of doing this are considerable Climate change action becomes a shared concern of a whole community New opportunities open up to inform and educate local people about climate change Our aim is for the MoMa.BIZ Project to be a springboard for more intensive local action on climate change The links between climate change and local needs Delivery

Building Support for Climate Change Look for common ground and use this to build a foundation for shared action Public attitudes to climate change are complex and it will always be difficult to find common ground if basic knowledge and awareness of the issues is lacking Many green groups have also found that their messages are more powerful if climate change actions are presented as ‘win-wins’ for local people. Insulation programmes, for example, are easy to present as money-saving as well as ‘planet-saving’ actions. This ‘win-win’ approach is an effective way of identifying and exploiting common ground. It not only incentivises climate change actions, it also promotes a more positive attitude and increases the public acceptability of pursuing climate change action in general Delivery

Language It is important to use appropriate and relevant language when discussing ‘environmental issues’ People are likely to support concerns over heating and insulation for elderly people and young families, or air quality at the local school, but labelling these things as ‘environmental issues’ may alienate some people For climate change action to be fully integrated into community-led planning, the ‘win-win’ approach needs to be tackled from the other direction Our Route to Involvement Rather than starting with a list of climate change actions and trying to work out the best way to ‘sell’ these, you need to start with an honest appreciation of the needs and priorities of local people and work out how these can be ‘reframed’ to a climate change agenda Delivery

Benefits for Business When launching a Mobility Management project it is important to show direct financial benefits for the companies involved Savings related to car parking and improved health of employees Personal health is usually the main motivating factor for employees Clear support from management is vital to ensure continuity of the work The national authorities can support companies by developing the policy instruments, financing practical pilot projects and informing of best practices Delivery

Participation Those who have plans to change location and need more information on the impact of relocating for employees including travel costs Service sector where employees can be reached by and information widely disseminated via intranet Companies that have huge costs and lack of parking places can solve or relieve these problems by Mobility Management Mobility Management in commuting can be approached from two directions: 1.Behavioural change can be reached by affecting employers that, in turn, provide and market sustainable transport services to their employees 2.Employers should then be aware of the other social factors other than commuting which affect single person travel habits Delivery

Contact employees directly - the psychology behind individual travel behaviour can be understood more easily ‘Bike Busters’ is an example of an employee oriented approach. It is not a pure example of Mobility Management because it does not directly activate the employer, the generator of the traffic Successful Mobility Management projects use both Visible improvements during the project are crucial Delivery

Stages The first phase of the project is a travel questionnaire Have very visible improvements right from the start The management should be involved well before launching the project to employees – they will be our local leaders Encouraging companies to work with Mobility Management can be accomplished primarily in three ways: 1.A sustainable mobility plan is required by law or municipal regulation 2.A sustainable mobility plan is required in quality and environment systems 3.Mobility planning and projects are activated and subsidised by the public sector Delivery

Action Activating and supporting companies in Mobility Management initiatives can in principle be done in two ways: by giving information by granting finances in order to allow the purchase of mobility expertise as an outsourcing service Information is important but it is even more important is to have some kind of local focal point which can provide specifics i.e. improvements for BIZ as a whole We will provide training for all business owners and address other issues Phone call last week asking if we could source training Delivery

Companies need very practical tools and also marketing material: What kind of benefits employers can gain from Mobility Management How to map current travel habits, problems and expectations What kind of actions could be carried out – which are the most effective and what are the costs and benefits How should the selected actions be activated in practice Where to get material for information campaigns How to inform and market about the actions What kind of local rules and national legislation should be taken into account when providing different services Delivery

UK SSCCI Conclusion Every company is different and there are no universal solutions. Key success factors seem to be: Anchoring the project at business owners Sufficient time for the project to develop and bring about results Adequate resources for practical work with companies Well-defined and segmented target groups Personal skills and motivation of the people in charge Carefully planned before/after-surveys with sufficient time in between Well-defined and well-known goals and targets Sufficient marketing, resources and patience Actual results – what the project can do for individuals is what it comes down to

Any questions Discussion of problems that Partners anticipate