The Bath Business Improvement District (BID) achieved Gold at the South West in Bloom Awards. In addition they took Best in Category in the Royal Horticultural Society’s annual awards.
This makes two years in a row that the BID has achieve Gold. The 2017 BID entry for Bath was submitted by the Bath in Bloom committee and also resulting in a Gold. To build on this and give a greater detail as to what the BID does for Bath, Bath BID took ownership for the Bath entry in the BID category this year. The judges were very complimentary about the contribution of the Bath BID above and beyond other organisations to keep the city blooming.
The South West in Bloom judges toured the city in July, at the height of the heatwave and were impressed by the watering initiatives; the deep reservoir troughs and planters of our city centre displays. There were a variety of new initiatives in 2018, including wildflower planting, community initiatives such as Wild Walcot, the use of herbs & vegetables in amongst the flowers and the new devices to combat vandalism. The Bath BID were also able to assist with city centre watering and maintenance, overcoming financial obstacles faced by the Council.
The BID category is relatively new. As an independent, not-for-profit, business-led initiative the Bath BID works as a mechanism for businesses in Bath to pool their resources and invest in agreed products and services. Keeping the city looking bright, welcoming and fresh is very important to our members. The BID leads on some horticultural projects and supports many others to see them to fruition, cooperating with many groups, businesses and the Parks Department to help make things happen – and flourish. This leadership, cooperation and facilitation was at the heart of their South West in Bloom competition application.
Allison Herbert, Chief Executive is delighted that the hard work has been recognised;
“I’m really pleased that the work that the Bath BID does has been recognised with the Business Improvement District South West in Bloom Award for keeping the cities clean, for its watering and for its planting schemes. We chose to be innovative adding herbs and vegetables to planters to celebrate the foodie scene of the city and selecting purple and white flowers to commemorate the suffragette movement.”
