On Wednesday 15th May a public meeting took place at the Soper Hall in Caterham Valley to discuss the possibility of Caterham becoming a Business Improvement District ('BID').

Since September 2004 the BIDs legislation has enabled businesses in England and Wales to develop their own area improvement plans. If Caterham businesses decide to go ahead with a BID it would be funded by a levy paid by local businesses, based on their rateable value. The Chief Executive of Tandridge District Council, Louise Round, was in attendance to hear about how a BID could potentially help with the economic development of the district. Keith Hoskins the Town Centre Manager for Hitchin and Matthew Sims, the Chief Executive of the Croydon BID also attended to talk about how the BID works in their two very different towns. Andrew Browne, the owner of JJ Browne Jewellers, chaired the meeting and before introducing the speakers he said: "If Caterham becomes a BID town it could help to expand schemes such as the Shop Local and Shop Watch schemes and other initiatives to improve both the Valley and the Hill."

During his presentation, Keith Hoskins explained how the Hitchin BID enabled the town to get a market, build a car park in an undeveloped site and take over their town hall. He said: "It is a bit like travelling economy class or premium. If you just want the basic amenities in your town then fine but a BID can give a town an uplift."

Speaking about the Croydon BID, Matthew Sims told the audience that Croydon's BID levy raises over £1m because it is such a large town so they have addressed a number of issues such as 'Perception and Image', 'Crime and Security' and 'Festivals and Events'.

The next stage in the process will be to conduct a survey to see if there is enough local support for the creation of a BID proposal for Caterham. Anyone interested in joining a committee to help with the survey should contact Andrew Browne on 01883 340945.