Welcome to your fortnightly update from the Newbury BID team, including the latest news from the business community, Newbury Town Council, West Berkshire Council, Thames Valley Police, and the Government. Look out for actions highlighted below!
Contents
CEO Update from Melissa
Melissa is currently on a well-earned break and will be returning to work on Monday 4th October.
Operations Update from Alison
Christmas Light Switch On: Saturday 20 November
- This year we have turned the switch-on into a Festival! There will be an exciting programme of FREE activities and workshops all day to encourage footfall into town ahead of the light switch on moment. The staged evening event will then take place in the Market Place after the Saturday Charter Market has finished with some great local entertainment.
- I’m still looking for venues to host a Baby Boogie workshop and a try out tap/ballet class. This is a great way of getting a new audience into your business so please contact me asap to discuss!
- If you are one of our hospitality members and interested in having a bar or food pitch, please do let me know asap
Victorian Christmas Fayre: Friday 3 – Sunday 5 December
- We expect this to be truly special and really hope the town gets behind this exciting new event for Newbury that we hope will bring in footfall from further afield and will form part of our wider Christmas in Newbury national marketing campaign!
- There are 2 free stall pitches available per day and these will be offered on a first come first served basis so please get in touch with me asap to register your interest!
- We would love for all the town centre to support this and encourage all public facing staff to dress in Victorian attire for the 3 days to create a truly immersive and special event for visitors.
- We also encourage all public facing shopfront windows to dress up their window with a Victorian themed display for this duration
- If you are interested in having a bar opportunity at this event please contact me asap to discuss!
Monthly Artisan Market
- The last dates of 2021 are Sunday 31 October and Sunday 28 November
- I have 2 free stall pitches available per market so please get in touch with me to request your space – the actual stall hire is also included so you only have to rock up with your goods, set the stall up and tap into this footfall!
Vegan Market – Sunday 21 November
- After its successful return in August the Vegan Market will also be back again (the day after Christmas switch on) and I have 2 free pitches for this so please get in touch!
Christmas Tree
- The tree is sourced and booked for delivery on 15 November!
- We invite ALL Bid Members to provide their own Christmas tree decoration (maybe a bauble?!) to go on display on the tree to promote your business.
- Please get in touch if you have any queries
Cardboard Collection
- Shaun our Ranger will collect this next Tuesday 5 October between 9am – 3pm so please leave out before 9am if you are on our cardboard collection database
CCTV
- The revised quotes have now been received from the 3 suppliers for a brand new Wi-Fi-based all singing and all dancing system and we are working with TVP to finalise so watch this space for the next announcement!
BusinessWatch Crime Reduction Scheme
- The next Shopsafe meeting will be online on Tuesday 12 October at 10am via MS Teams
- The next Pubwatch meeting will be on Tuesday 2 November at 10am at The Catherine Wheel
Marketing Update from Kirsty
Throughout September, the Visit Newbury website achieved 21,540 pageviews, a 230.06% increase compared to the same period last year (6,526 pageviews). The average time spent on a page also increased by 22.64%, from 1 minute 8 seconds this time last year to 1 minute 23 seconds per page this September.
Yet again, our most popular webpage for September was our Events page, receiving nearly 16% of all pageviews. Attractions (4th), Shopping (5th), Parking (6th) and Pubs and Bars in Newbury (10th), also came in the top ten most viewed pages this month, alongside our Food and Drink Festival press release (ranking 3rd) and September’s Artisan Market event page (9th). The Accommodation page received over 11 minutes of read time this month, falling slightly behind our Re-visit Newbury page which received a read time of 13 minutes and 30 seconds this month.
This month we pushed to increase our following across Facebook by scheduling and A/B testing a number of relevant adverts. As a result, our page likes increased by 904% this month, achieving 572 new Visit Newbury page likes, and a 493% increase in page followers, achieving another 601 new followers in September on Facebook alone. With an increase in Instagram and Twitter followers as usual this month, we now have a total of 20,646 followers across social media.
In total so far for our Digital Display Adverts, we have delivered 273,174 impressions, receiving 18,417 clicks through to the Visit Newbury website. This is a CTR of 6.74% which is a great response. 111,962 of these impressions have been delivered on web, 113,382 on mobile, 25,124 video and 22,706 native. A breakdown of this month’s impressions can be found below:
We have delivered 113,018 impressions as part of our DAX campaign. On average, our advert has been listened to 95.72% of the way through and 107,604 adverts were listened to 100% of the way through.
We have reached 18,384 unique listeners and the opportunity to hear is 6.15, with 63.5% listening on a smart speaker.
Our third Visit Newbury Loves Local newsletter went out to our email marketing subscribers this month. This month’s e-letter received a 53.3% open rate- a phenomenal stat compared to the national average which varies from 19%- 26% (sector dependent). The email also received a 14.5% click-through rate compared to the 2.5% national average. We’ve also achieved 22 new subscribers this month.
Remember, you can read the email here and please hit subscribe to receive our monthly newsletter.
These past two weeks I have been heavily planning and prepping for Christmas! I’ve been in and out of meeting with various outsource partners, making amends and recommendations for our first ever TV advert, upcoming radio adverts and ordering town centre banners. I’m currently creating the design work and writing the editorial copy for a variety of content across our two campaigns, an example of which I have provided above.
Please see our latest press release online here: Town Centre Collaboration Deliver Halloween in Newbury. This was also published by Newbury Weekly News, which you can read online here. Please help us to promote this by sharing the articles across your networks.
Rangers Update from Shaun
This week I have been undertaking the annual Radio Audit for members of our BusinessWatch crime reduction scheme and this will carry over to next week on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday.
Business Community Updates & Shout Outs
You’re cordially invited to the grand opening of authentic American smokehouse, Blue’s Smokehouse! Bringing brisket, craft beer, bourbon and burgers galore to Newbury, get ready to enjoy delicious authentic American BBQ, and southern specials. Plus, because you can’t say ‘bar-b-que’ without ‘bar’, attendees will receive a free drink from a handpicked selection of craft beers and cocktails. Join Blues Smokehouse TONIGHT, Friday 1st October to celebrate with an evening of free food, drinks and music from 6:30pm to 9pm. Click here for directions.
A message from Mandy, the owner of Pageant Party in Cheap Street: We all know what a tough year it has been for hospitality and events based businesses, us included! I would love to reach out to all pubs, cafes, hotels, or any business really, who will be hosting a Christmas party or event. I understand with everything, that budget limitations may apply for many of you, which we are more than happy to work around, to see what we can offer to make you stand out. I love being able to help my customers celebrate better, and I just feel that I can also help my fellow businesses as well! If you are interested, please send us an email to info@pageantparty.co.uk, call 01635 552244 or even send a social media message. If you are able to include your ideas on colour schemes, budget and any location preferences in your message, that would be appreciated.
I look forward to hearing from you!
Newbury Town Council Update
Newbury's Neighbourhood Development Plan - Volunteers Needed!
On the 12th of July, Newbury Town Council voted to undertake a Neighbourhood Development Plan (NDP) for the Parish of Newbury. A NDP is a statutory document that holds real weight in determining planning applications. However, unlike other planning documents, NDPs are community driven. Through creating an NDP, the people of Newbury will have the power to formulate and shape the future of their town for years to come. Click here to learn more and to put yourself forward as a volunteer.
Town Council Leader Completes 500 Mile Challenge!
The Leader of Newbury Town Council embarked on a trip to Scotland to cycle the ‘North Coast 500’ route with an aim to raise £500 for the Mayor of Newbury’s chosen charity Speakability. Not only did he reach his target, but he managed to triple his target amount raising more than £1,500 for the charity. You can read the full press release here.
West Berkshire Council Update
Domestic Abuse Public Consultation live NOW
West Berkshire Council is investing an additional £250,000 to further the support offered to victims of domestic abuse, including children.
The funding, provided by the Government, follows the passing of the Domestic Abuse Act 2021, which has resulted in new duties being placed on local authorities across the country to provide support to victims of domestic abuse and their children in refuges and other safe accommodation. WBC is running a public consultation to explore what support and safe accommodation you feel needs to be in place, or expanded further, to make sure the needs of all victims (including those with protected characteristics and/or complex needs) are met.
To comment on the draft strategy please go to: https://info.westberks.gov.uk/draftDASAS.
The survey will be live from Wednesday 29 September for six weeks until Wednesday 10 November and will take approximately 10 minutes.
Pringles tubes and other paper food containers with metal ends now accepted at West Berkshire Recycling Centres
West Berkshire Council, in partnership with Veolia UK and the Alliance for Beverage Cartons & the Environment (ACE UK), is launching a new recycling service for paper containers with metal ends, such as Pringles tubes, packaging used for hot chocolate, nuts and other products.
For more information on recycling in West Berkshire, please visit: https://info.westberks.gov.uk/RecyclingandWasteReduction.
Business Newsletter
Residents Newsletter
You can read WBC’s latest Resident’s Newsletter here.
Coronavirus Weeknotes
Mental Health Support
Government Update
Coronavirus Lateral Flow Testing for Businesses
The government are encouraging businesses to take regular lateral flow tests in the workplace. It’s easy to get a lateral flow test. Your staff can simply order kits online here, or find their nearest collect site using this link. Tests are free, and the whole process only takes a few minutes. Let’s work together to act responsibly and stop the spread!
Here are links to the latest updates from the Government:
- COVID-19 variants identified in the UK – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
- Top-up training introduced for door supervisors and security guards – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
- Changes to the training you need for an SIA licence – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
- Weekly national flu and COVID-19 surveillance reports published – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
- Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s address at the Youth4Climate conference: 30 September 2021 – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
- New Hospitality Council to guide the sector’s recovery – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
- New measures to further ease fuel supply chain pressures – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
- Your top 5 questions on energy prices answered – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Events, Resources & Industry News
Business support during the COVID-19 crisis is available from the following organisations:
- West Berkshire Council – COVID-19 information for businesses – https://info.westberks.gov.uk/coronavirus-business
- Public Protection Partnership – advice and support on COVID guidelines and regulations – https://publicprotectionpartnership.org.uk/covid-19/
- Business Growth Hub – free COVID advice and support for businesses in Berkshire – https://www.berkshirebusinesshub.co.uk/
- Government – summary of COVID support available for businesses – https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus/business-support
