suttoncoldfieldtowncentre.co.ukThis is the newsletter of Sutton Coldfield Town Centre BID Ltd, Reg. No. 7846722

Registered address: 1 Trinity Place, Midland Drive, Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands B72 1TX 20.15

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Aug

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In May, we welcomed a new addition to Sutton Coldfield’s varied and vibrant calendar of regular markets and festivals – Sutton Supper Club. Hosted at the Duke Inn, the monthly street food event features a host of local food traders, handmade produce and an extensive range of ales and beers, further expanding the fantastic foodie offering in the town centre. A joint partnership between the Duke Inn and Bert and Gert’s, the team behind the regular craft markets on the Parade, the event also showcases local talent, with live music and entertainment throughout the evening.

Taking place on the last Thursday of the month, we are delighted that Sutton Supper Club has gone from strength to strength since its launch.

Supper Club serves up monthly street food

Sutton comes to life with the sound of music

Showcasing talentIn a new BID initiative, Syer Hair and Beauty teamed up with Sutton College to invite design students to put their creative skills to the test designing the salons latest digital advert. Winner Shamas Mehrban (opposite) impressed the team with his eye-catching artwork and was awarded a £50 voucher to spend at The Gracechurch Centre funded by the BID, as well as having his advert displayed at the Sutton Card VoucherPoint in the centre.

Expo celebrates tenth yearSutton Coldfield’s core community event, Expo, returns to the town centre on Saturday 28 September. The popular one-day exhibition, now in its tenth year, will once again bring the Parade to life with a host of businesses, community groups, charities and clubs. It’s not too late for your business to apply for a stall. To get involved, please email info@suttoncoldfieldtowncentre.co.uk.

Flying the Purple FlagIn May, Sutton Coldfield Town Centre was awarded the prestigious Purple Flag accreditation for the fourth consecutive year. One of only 70 towns or city centres in the UK to achieve this status, Sutton Coldfield was awarded the respected accolade for its vibrant, diverse and safe entertainment and nightlife offering. The application, led on the town centre’s behalf by the BID, involves a comprehensive independent inspection into Sutton Coldfield’s nighttime offering, the standard of which could not be achieved without the continued hard work from all its businesses.

New openings Sutton Coldfield has welcomed two new venues to its already varied food and entertainment offering. The Arts House is an exciting concept combining a ‘speak-easy’ style bar with live music, located at the corner of Holland Street and The Parade. Foodies can also enjoy a taste of the Middle East at new Lebanese takeaway, Pitalicious. The new eatery serves a menu of traditional, homemade streetfood with a modern gourmet twist.

Sutton’s arts offering expands Spring saw two unmissable art events come to the town centre – BookFest at Sutton Coldfield Library (pictured below); and Willard Wigan’s ‘Through the Looking Glass’ exhibition at the Town Hall (see front cover). The BID is delighted to support local events like these, which further enhance the rich and varied arts scene in Sutton Coldfield. Get listedSutton Coldfield Town Centre BID’s What’s On Guide is dedicated to showcasing the latest events and activities taking place in the town centre, from live music and entertainment to markets and seasonal events. The booklet is distributed to addresses throughout the town centre and is available to all visitors for free. To get your events listed in the next What’s On Guide, email info@suttoncoldfieldtowncentre.co.uk.

BookFest – Artist and Illustrator Steve Smallman.

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July saw the return of Sutton Coldfield’s much-loved Month of Music festival, inviting musicians, soloists and bands from the region to take to the stage in venues across the town centre. Now in its third year, the four-week celebration brought a packed line-up of live performances for music lovers to enjoy, as well as providing a valuable platform for

rising stars to kickstart their careers. The festival culminated in the coveted annual competition, Sutton Has Musical Talent, which saw hopeful artists compete for the crown in front of a panel of judges at The Gracechurch Centre. The talented winner, Amiyah Goodall, 18, won the incredible prize of a day at local recording studio, Priory Studios, as well as a host of vouchers to spend at venues and retailers throughout the town centre. We are committed to bringing a wide range of events to the town centre throughout the year, and Month of Music has shown a significant increase in footfall to coffee shops, restaurants and bars. The Month of Music also incorporates acts from Birmingham International Jazz Festival, as well as promoting live music at venues throughout the town centre.

The first Sutton Supper Club at the Duke Inn.

Amiyah Goodall

Mike Bushell (Sutton Coldfield Town Centre BID), Kim Syer (Syer Hair and Beauty) and Angela Henderson

(Gracechurch Centre) with winner, Shamas Mehrban.

MasterplanFood Festival

Month of Music Gin & Ale Trail

UpdatesExpo and more

July 2019

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suttoncoldfieldtowncentre.co.uk

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The Royal Sutton Coldfield Town Centre Regeneration Partnership (TCRP) has secured £150,000 funding, including £10,000 from Sutton Coldfield Town Centre BID, for phase one of a town centre masterplan, marking the dawn of a new future for the town centre.

Thanks to the overwhelming success of the inaugural Sutton Coldfield Food Festival last year, we were delighted to bring two instalments of the popular two-day celebration back, with the addition of an Autumn Food Festival this October.

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The first of this year’s festivals took place in June, and despite the weather being against us, the event proved to be another huge hit. The community didn’t let the poor weather dampen spirits, and once again turned out in force to sample the delights of over 70 pop-up restaurants, street food vendors, local producers and breweries. We were also joined by special guests and celebrity chefs, including Julie Chernogorova and Karen Wright from the Great British Bake Off, who delivered some unmissable demonstrations and workshops across the weekend. The popularity of the Sutton Coldfield Food Festival proves there is a huge

appetite for these types of events in the town centre, providing the perfect opportunity for residents and visitors to discover what Sutton has to offer. The next Sutton Coldfield Food Festival will take place on Saturday 26 and Sunday 27 October and is expected to be another unmissable weekend showcasing the many independent eateries, pubs, and well-loved restaurants that call Sutton Coldfield home. If you would like to take part, please email Jon Arrowsmith, event manager at Cockerhoop Creative: jon@cockerhoop creative.com

Yet, we know through social media that those who visit Sutton Coldfield have glowing reviews of the hardworking people in our town centre, which inspired us to grow a new initiative - Sutton Smiles Better. The concept is intended to encourage a high standard of customer service throughout the town centre, and get everyone who works in Sutton Coldfield to sign up and be recognised for their hard work. Launching in September, it is a way to celebrate and shout about how great customer service is in our town, with a

host of rewards and incentives for staff members who show how much they care about their customers. Businesses will be recognised for their consistent great service and customers will be engaged and rewarded for keeping us up-to-date with who does it best in Sutton Coldfield. Every month, a Sutton Smiles Better winner will be selected from nominations by you, their colleagues, managers, associates or members of the public, who have been impressed by the extra mile that person has

travelled upon the road to customer service. We are extremely excited to launch Sutton Smiles Better, and are very much looking forward to seeing businesses sign up to the new initiative so that we can reward your brilliant staff and shout about what a fantastic place Sutton Coldfield town centre is. Nominations, along with a short explanation as to the reason why they are being nominated, can be submitted via the Sutton Coldfield Town Centre BID Facebook page using #SuttonSmilesBetter.

Masterplan confirmed Foodie feast

returns for second helping

Once complete, the exciting plans will provide an inspirational vision for a sustainable and resilient town centre over the next 15 years, as well as presenting place-making projects for the public and private sectors to deliver. Phase two of the masterplan will provide further detail on how to get the identified place-making projects shovel-ready and crucially drive investment into Sutton Coldfield. The masterplan is part of the wider town centre support agenda being undertaken by the TCRP. Other schemes include a proposed £1.5million

Heritage Action Zone project for Vesey Gardens, High Street and Mill Street that celebrates and enhances the conservation area, and shorter-term projects aimed at using vacant and underused units across the town centre for community and pop-up purposes. Funding has been provided in part by Greater Birmingham and Solihull LEP (GBSLEP) as part of their Strategic Economic Plan Enabling Fund, as well as Royal Sutton Coldfield Town Council. Public consultation on the vision and future opportunities for Sutton Coldfield town centre will begin in early

2020, following the appointment of specialist consultants who will help guide and deliver the reinvention of the town centre for the next 50 years. The BID knows how important a great town centre experience is to our members, which is why we continue to represent businesses as we look to what the future of Sutton Coldfield town centre may be. The challenges faced by retailers are well documented – we must reshape our town centre, and the masterplan will kickstart much-needed conversations to produce a positive, deliverable vision for the town centre that will benefit everyone. We are very much looking forward to working with key stakeholders and businesses throughout the Royal Town to deliver an ambitious, achievable masterplan.

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‘Sutton Coldfield Town Centre Regeneration Partnership’. From left to right: Mike Bushell, Sutton Coldfield Town Centre BID; Steve McAleavy, Transport for West Midlands; Zoe Toft, Folio; Rt Hon Andrew Mitchell MP; Cllr Simon Ward, Royal Sutton Coldfield Town Council; Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands; Stephen Roberts, Sutton Coldfield BID; Katie Hale, Sutton Coldfield Chamber of Commerce; Richard Cowell, Birmingham City Council; Shanaaz Carroll, Greater Birmingham and Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership.

Left to right: Anne-Marie Simpson, Emma Yufera, Bradley Simpson, Keith Ward, Karen Wright, Angela

Henderson and Mike Bushell.

Retail as we know it has changed drastically over the last ten years thanks to the likes of online shopping and uncertain economic times, and this ever-changing landscape means High Streets up and down the country face many challenges.

Sutton Smiles Better

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Visitors enjoy a drink on the British Bus Bar.

In another exciting addition to the Royal Town’s annual calendar of events, we were delighted to introduce the inaugural Gin and Ale Trail in May and August. Organised by the BID, the week-long celebrations took gin and ale enthusiasts on a unique journey through the town centre’s pubs, bars and restaurants. Over fifteen venues took part in the event, which saw visitors sample a selection of artisan gins and craft beers along the way. Guests who visited six venues and collected stamps at each stop-off received an exclusive souvenir t-shirt. The BID also teamed up with Purity brewery to offer gin and ale drinkers the chance to win a tour for four people, simply by uploading a photograph of themselves using the hashtag #SCTCGinandAleTrail. The BID is dedicated to working closely with business owners to improve and expand the

entertainment and nightlife offering in Sutton Coldfield, and the addition of the Gin and Ale Trail provides another fantastic reason for residents to explore the town centre’s wide range of night time venues.

Cheers to new Gin and Ale Trail

L-R: Mike Bushell, Sutton Coldfield BID; Paul Letson, Chair of PubWatch; Alex Smith, Purity Brewing Company, and Karen, McAlindon, Simpsons Gin Bar.