This week, I joined the Purley Business Improvement District (BID) for their board meeting.
We are very lucky to have an active BID in Purley chaired by Marlon Johnson and run by CEO Simon Cripps, supported by Business Engagement Manager, Catherine Garrad. The BID has the support of most local businesses and are doing fantastic work at making Purley a better place for businesses to thrive – and make it a destination for residents to visit.
They have great relationships with other local groups, such as the Purley Panel and Safer Neighbourhood Team (SNT), and as a Purley & Woodcote councillor, I very much enjoy working with them and speaking out in support of the work they do.
Recently we have been working together on illegally parked vehicles outside the leisure centre and the multi-storey car park and the various problems within it.
It was great to join this week’s board meeting and find out more about their priorities and what’s in the pipeline. We discussed crime and homelessness, with the BID in close contact with the SNT on this as well as the multi-storey car park (I have promised to raise issues of the lack of work lifts and remediation works again) and support for businesses struggling at the moment.
We also talked about the brilliant things going on in Purley at the moment, including the great work Purley in Bloom are doing to make our community look prettier, the Purley Panel teaming up with CALAT and organising a day of activities in the library and recent litter picks which have been well attended.
I’m looking forward to working more closely with the BID in 2023 to ensure Purley goes from strength to strength – enticing more businesses of different varieties to set up shop in our community.
