BRADFORD BID is hosting a series of special events to help businesses network while finding out more about the organisation and its plans to help boost the city centre’s recovery and development.

Bradford Business Improvement District (BID), the limited company funded by levy-payers to help promote and develop the city centre, will stage four quarterly “Brews With The BID” – with free tea and coffee at the top of the agenda.

The morning get-togethers will take place at the Midland Hotel, in Forster Square, and will also provide a face-to-face opportunity to talk to the BID team about ideas for improving the district’s core retail, office, hospitality and leisure zone.

Business engagement officer Nikki Chadburn said: “Brews With The BID are exclusive networking meetings which will occur around four times a year.

“There are more than 600 BID member business and organisations – all the key players in the city centre – and these meetings are a great opportunity for any or all of them to come together, share good practice and hear news and updates from Bradford BID.

“Our aim is to create strong partnership working between all our member businesses and members and to help them feel part of a special club all working together in the city’s interests, with access to exclusive benefits, updates and, importantly, a voice.

“The BID belongs to the members who pay into it via the annual levy and it’s vital that their priorities, suggestions and concerns regarding the aspects of the city and it’s day-to-day life that the BID can deliver on are heard and incorporated into our plans.”

The first of the Brews With The BID events will take place next week, on Wednesday, July 21, and will start from 8.30am.

There will be an overview presentation from Bradford BID, including updates about city centre plans, as well two guest speakers from LoyalFree, who operate the BID’s smartphone app for trails and offers, and from the Darley Street Market development.

Each meeting will have a particular topic or theme with a variety of guest speakers.

Bradford BID manager Jonny Noble said: “We’re really pleased to be able to start holding events like this again after the restrictions brought about by the pandemic.

“Creating opportunities for networking is an extremely important part of the BID’s role, bringing people together to talk about the challenges the city centre is facing and listening to their ideas about how we should be tackling them and what our priorities should be is vital.

“The last 18 months have been tough for all businesses and it’s great to be able to meet up with some of those people who make Bradford such a great place in which to live, work, shop and spend your leisure time.

“But it’s also a brilliant chance for business in every sector to talk to each other about how they have been coping and to share their experiences, their hopes and their plans as we work to get Bradford fully back to normal and moving ahead.”

To register to attend the first Brews event, businesses need to fill in the form on the BID website at bradfordbid.co.uk.