LEEDSBID
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Established in 2015, LeedsBID is a not-for-profit, non-political organisation set up to improve Leeds city centre for all. BID stands for ‘Business Improvement District’.
We are democratically elected by 684 businesses* situated within our operational boundary. These businesses pay a levy to fund the BID and its many projects, which include street cleaning, animating public spaces, boosting skills and training, and welcoming visitors to the city.
Our levy payers cover a diverse range of businesses from the professional, retail, cultural, and educational sectors. Through LeedsBID, they have collectively invested £12.5M (£2.5m annually) into improving Leeds City Centre for everyone. In 2020, businesses in the city once again came together to pledge another £14M of investment for Leeds up to 2025 by backing the work of the BID for another five years.
We are the largest BID outside of London. Yet, we are also a small and agile organisation, able to respond quickly to the changing needs of an expanding city in motion. We employ 17 staff, of which 12 are operational, and 5 are Street Rangers.
Although we collaborate and work closely with Leeds City Council, we are not a government or council body. We are an independent, business-led organisation working on behalf of our levy payers.
We owe much of our success to collaboration; since launching in 2015 we have worked in partnership with hundreds of creators, businesses, and organisations across the city—proof of Leeds’ creative and enterprising community spirit. We’re pleased to say that for every £1 invested in Leeds city centre, we’ve been able to bring in a further 20p of cash or in-kind support.
Our successful first term (2015–2020) has now ended, and a new chapter has just begun. With the ongoing support of our levy payers, we continue to collaborate with Leeds’ brightest and best to improve the city centre for everyone.
“With the support of our levy payers, we have been able to support all businesses in the city centre, regardless of their sector or size.”— Martin Dickson
Levy paying businesses
648
Investment over the next 5 years up to 2025
£14M
Yes vote (with a 61% turnout)
93%
Rateable value paid as a levy, with 99% average collection rate
1.25%
BID spend invested back into the BID area
90%
We are the 200th BID in the country, with 320 BIDs in total
200th
The LeedsBID area is the whole of LS1 and a proportion of LS2, stretching from the ring road in the north to the river in the south, from Wellington Street in the west to Quarry Hill in the east.
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