<h1>Croydon_Bnews_Ap/May</h1><br/>APRIL / May 2009 w w w . c r o y d o n b u s i n e s s . c o m BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT BUSINESS NEWS CROYDON Ambassadors launch Reception p5 Events calendar p22 BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT BIDUPDATE Royal Welcome HRH Prince Edward was in Croydon last month to celebrate the London Mozart Players 60th Anniversary (see page 5 for a report on the Gala evening at Fairfield Halls) Responding to the growing popularity of Business News Croydon, and the expansion of the publication which is now available to all key Town Centre audiences, Croydon Business Improvement District (BID) has made the decision to move its regular BID Updates to Business News Croydon. “We’ve decided to move our regular reports to a featured supplement inside the pages of Croydon’s only specialist business publication,” confirmed Ros Morgan, BID Manager. “The decision was taken owing to the fact that Business New Croydon has recently doubled its distribution to 3,000 copies per issue and is now circulated, crucially, to all Town Centre businesses in our area of responsibility.” Turn to page 15 to keep your business updated on the activities of the BID in the months ahead. CROY DON confronting the credit crunch The fact that Britain is engulfed in a serious recession will hardly have escaped your attention in recent months. However, Croydon is reacting to the situation with a range of key measures which are likely to leave our community in a better position when the recession ends than many other areas of the UK. Croydon’s Economic Recovery Plan is now fully underway, with a number of measures being taken to improve the economic situation for all businesses in the borough. Croydon Council, Croydon Enterprise and Croydon Business have already been promoting the free advice and assistance which is available in the borough, with a series of road shows, seminars and workshops being promoted and delivered around the area. The recently launched Economic Recovery Plan also has a new website, ‘www.croydoncrunch.org’, which has been put in place to help support individuals and businesses that are being affected by the economic downturn (see page 3 for more details on some of these initiatives). There have also been some good signs that Croydon is coping with the perils of recession better than other areas. Indicators like footfall figures show that although the number of shoppers in Central Croydon is clearly down on the same time last year, but the figures suggest that the borough has seen less decline than many other similar shopping areas across London and the UK. Also encouraging is the news that Jobcentre Plus in Croydon has been acknowledged as one of the best performing Jobcentre Plus offices in the UK according to the latest statistics released by the organisation. So people who find themselves facing redundancy will have the best possible help, it seems, in finding new employment. The outlook for the future has also been boosted by the fact that the borough’s ability to improve its local economy was also recognised with a prestigious Beacon Award last month. Croydon has seen consistent improvements in its economic performance and the award acknowledged the improvements Croydon has made since it initiated its Economic Development Partnership two years ago. “The Beacon Award is fantastic recognition for the effort that has taken place in recent years to improve the economic fortunes of Croydon,” said Brian Stapleton, Croydon Business. “The business community has a real input to make to Croydon’s economic development and it is important that it plays its part alongside the public sector and voluntary sector agencies,” added John Strutt, who is the private sector co-Chair of the Partnership. Another development provided a welcome boost for the borough at the end of March, when it was announced that The Outer London Commission, chaired by Will McKee, will unveil its plans for the regeneration of London’s outer boroughs at Property Week’s Outer London Summit on 11th June here in Croydon. Clearly, the borough is seen as one of the most promising outer regions of London. And, at this time of fiscal crisis, it is especially rewarding for Croydon to be identified in this way. For further information on how your business can receive help to cope with the recession visit the website www.croydoncrunch.org Free business workshops p20 Four page feature p15 -18 Partners News p25