A BID is an arrangement whereby businesses get together to decide what additional improvements they want to make to their location, how they are going to manage and deliver those improvements and what they are prepared to pay to make it happen.

The Business Improvement Districts Acts & the Regulations (Northern Ireland) came into force in 2014. For the first time this enabled businesses in Northern Ireland to work with their local councils to establish BIDs on a statutory basis, rather than as voluntary partnerships. The Mosaic Partnership was commissioned to run a BID pilot, working with six locations across Northern Ireland which you can learn more about here.

The BIDs Pilot covers six locations in Northern Ireland: Ballymena, Belfast City Centre, Destination CQ (Belfast), Enniskillen, Newry and Strabane. If you are interested in setting up a BID in your location please get in touch with us by clicking here.

Yes. All our support information can be found here.

A BID normally takes between 12 and 18 months to develop and can last for a maximum of 5 years.

A BID can be located in a City, Town Centre, Business Park, Industrial Estate or Tourism Destination and is run by an elected board made up of stakeholders from the BID area.

Yes. There are now over 200 BIDs in the UK and over 2000 worldwide. To see which areas we have worked with, click here.

If the majority of eligible businesses and organisations in a BID area vote yes by number and rateable value, payment of a BID Levy is mandatory for all eligible parties. The Levy that each eligible organisation pays is based on a percentage of the Rateable Value of the property (hereditament). This percentage is usually around 1%-2%. Often businesses below a set rateable value may be exempt from paying the Levy. These business are still able to make a voluntary contribution.

Interest in setting up a BID comes from local businesses and stakeholders, including for example, Local Authorities. NI BIDs will work with local stakeholders to establish if a BID is the right model to use for improving the location. This involves a feasibility study which will develop a robust profile of the area, consult with local businesses on their views and then make an assessment of the viability of a BID. For additional information click here.

Yes. A BID can be located in a City, Town Centre, Business Park, Industrial Estate or Tourism Destination. BIDs set up in tourist locations are commonly referred to as Destination BIDs or DBIDs

A BID can last for a maximum of 5 years and must be able to demonstrate how it has benefited businesses who have funded it. After 5 years, the BID area must go through the re-ballot process before it can continue running.

During the development process the BID is driven and managed by interested volunteers from local businesses and stakeholders called a BID Task Group. Once the Ballot is successful the delivery of the BID Plan will be managed by a BID Company. The Company is usually set up as a not for profit company limited by guarantee. The Company will be made up of a Board of Directors elected from company members and be representative of the business sectors in the BID area. The Company will normally employ staff to deliver the actions in the BID Plan.