Agenda item

The Executive RESOLVED that a supplementary estimate for a base budget uplift of £15,000 to fund grant contributions to the Collectively Camberley Limited BID, outside of the ringfenced BID levy collected by the Council on behalf of the BID, be approved.

The Executive considered a request to make provision in the revenue budget for payments to Collectively Camberley Limited (CC), the administering body for the Camberley Business Improvement District (BID), outside of the statutorily set BID Levy. The additional payments would contribute towards Christmas lights and additional events organised by CC across the year.

It was advised that historically the Council had made grants to CC on an ad hoc basis, in addition to the statutory levy it paid the BID in relation to its liabilities for properties within the BID area. These additional grants had often been made from previous budgets for business support and not from a single agreed budget; approval was therefore sought to put these contributions on a firmer footing to allow better budget planning by both the Council and CC. It was suggested by some Members that, in future, any additional contributions should be discussed at the time the Council was considering its vote on whether to re-elect the BID for a further term.

Members discussed exploring opportunities for further partnership working with CC, including the provision of ‘pump priming’ and other financial support where this delivered real benefits for local residents and the economy. It was agreed to further investigate opportunities, which would be reported back to the Executive for decision.

RESOLVED that a supplementary estimate for a base budget uplift of £15,000 to fund grant contributions to the Collectively Camberley Limited BID, outside of the ringfenced BID levy collected by the Council on behalf of the BID, be approved.