Derby’s two Business Improvement Districts have received national recognition for key aspects of their work to improve the city centre.
Cathedral Quarter and St Peters Quarter BIDs were jointly shortlisted in the Partnership of the Year category at the Association of Town and City Management Industry Awards 2018 – in recognition of their pioneering work with key partners in the city to address crime and anti social behaviour.
The Cathedral Quarter BID were also voted Runner Up in the Best Event Award for its CQ Saturdays programme of free street entertainment.
Applications for the prestigious national awards was made by pfbb UK Ltd who are project managers for both the Cathedral Quarter and St Peters Quarter BIDs.
PEEP
The Partnership Engagement and Enforcement Programme (PEEP) was formed last June to target resources towards an increase of anti-social behaviour in the city centre.
Many individuals were using legal highs or mamba – resulting in acute health problems and distressing anti social behaviour and, at the height of the problem in summer 2017, drug-related ambulance call outs to the city centre peaked at 23 in a single day.
PEEP brought together the St Peters Quarter and Cathedral Quarter rangers, city centre police officers, treatment providers, outreach workers, homeless charities, accommodation providers and the probation service who identified people involved in visible, on-street problematic substance misuse and antisocial behaviour in the city and referred them to the scheme.
Individuals were then given the opportunity to engage with drug and alcohol treatment services, receive medical help and support, access food provision, engage with accommodation services (and be housed), comply with probation and stop committing antisocial behaviour and/or begging in the city centre. Those who did not to comply faced enforcement sanctions.
In the past year, 58 individuals have been targeted for some form of intervention of which 29 were confirmed as homeless or rough sleepers with issues of problematic substance misuse. 40 PEEP clients entered drug and alcohol treatment services and 16 have maintained stable accommodation.
Where individuals have refused to engage with PEEP, the BID Rangers have been instrumental in assisting Police in tackling anti-social behaviour. Over 550 dispersal orders have been issued and 170 arrests made by the Police with 28 individuals receiving custodial sentences.
Such has been the success of the PEEP, it is now being held up as an example of good practice and has been praised by magistrate judges for reducing visible anti-social behaviour and tackling substance misuse in the city centre.
CQ Saturdays
The runners-up award presented to the Cathedral Quarter BID in the Best Event category was in recognition of the CQ Saturdays Programme.
CQ Saturdays Street Circus is run in partnership with Déda creative centre for dance, contemporary circus and outdoor performance work based in Chapel Street. Acts from jugglers to escapologists perform every second Saturday of the month during the summer to whet the appetite for the annual Derby Festé in September.
CQ Saturdays Knickerbocker Glorious, in partnership with Furthest from the Sea Music, Comedy & Arts CIC, is then held on the third Saturday in the summer and over the Christmas period with a wide range of music, dance, street theatre and comedy acts from across the region.
All of these events are staged by the waterfall in the Market Place and are family-friendly and free to attend.
