visitcoventry.co.uk
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Contents
013 RY IN B LOOM 2 COVENT
A1 Impact A2 Horticultural practice A3 Business areas and premises A4 Green spaces B1 Resource management B2 Local heritage B3 Local environmental quality B4 Pride of place C1 C2
Development and continuity Business community and wider community involvement C3 Year-round involvement C4 Funding and support
A1 Impact As a vibrant and exciting place to live, invest and visit, Coventry city centre continues to develop and improve, providing a safe, colourful and bustling heart to the city. The integral community of city centre business owners, residents and local workers in combination with dedicated time and care from the City Council and Landscape team supports Coventry’s on-going efforts to provide a welcoming, attractive and relaxing city centre. With an impressive multitude of diverse, colourful and innovative displays, Coventry continues to utilise floral space to enhance our otherwise urban environment. Encouraging a long-lasting, positive impression to take away, the on-going hard work from city centre staff goes some way to enrich our offer to tourists, investors and residents. To ensure maximum vibrancy and coverage in floral areas throughout the year, our eye-catching flower beds are tended to on a daily basis, rotated seasonally and infused with a mixture of hardy herbaceous planting including polyanthus, pansies, geraniums, rudbeckia and alchemilla mollis. The soil used is treated with environmentally friendly fertiliser and compost which is recycled locally. Combining urban, hard landscaping with soft, tactile flower beds and additional green space has become even more prevalent throughout the on-going transformation of Coventry city centre and its public realm improvements. Continuing our successful Bloom legacy, following 2012 in Coventry, the hardworking Landscape Group staff have this year put together another impressive themed bed in the busy commuter area, Greyfriars Green. Reflecting Coventry’s historic transport heritage, the team have used the traditional image of the Victorian Penny-Farthing, inpart designed by ‘father of the bicycle industry’, James Starley who both lived and worked in Coventry. Serving as a focal point for the city centre’s involvement in Bloom, the vibrant themed bed includes a selection of vivid summer bedding plants including Begonia Devil Bronze Leaf, French Marigold Durango and Ageratum Champion Blue. Coventry city centre strives to encompass a variety of fresh and sustainable planted areas, designed to add colour and character to pedestrianised zones and the surrounding space. Lady Herbert’s garden, nestled between the city’s ancient gates and city wall provides visitors with a tranquil and unique green area to relax and enjoy the surrounding environment, away from the bustle of city centre life. The spring, cottage-garden nature of Lady Herbert’s sees staff make use of informal, dense and sustainable planting, including a mixture of rhododendrons, lavender and hydrangeas, creating a quaint and charming space for visitors.
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A2 Horticultural practice The Landscape Group and City Council staff are devoted throughout the year to creating an attractive, vibrant and flourishing environment for visitors and residents of Coventry. Creating a welcoming impression of the city centre, plants are regularly monitored, checked for signs of disease, pests or deficiencies and any potential issues are dealt with quickly and efficiently. During the year, plants are watered regularly as required; focal beds are planted using traditional, cost-effective methods as opposed to expensive, inefficient plug carpet planting which needs highly intensive watering. At the start of this year, Coventry City Council, in conjunction with the Business Improvement District, awarded a new contract to local nurserymen, RC Smith who have taken responsibility for supplying bedding plants, barrier planters, hanging baskets, tiered planters and floral statues. RC Smith will take over the role previously undertaken by Baginton Nurseries and prepare plants for The Landscape Group to maintain within the city centre. The plants used are grown to the highest cultural standard, free from pests, diseases, physiological disorders, or nutrient deficiency. Plants are floriferous and have good foliage colour as appropriate for the type. Plants of each species are uniform in size and quality and should be vigorous and well established in their containers with sufficient growth to cover the whole surface area of the container whilst displaying normal growth habit for each particular cultivar but with sufficient space to continue to flourish. The root systems in pots or containers should be full enough to allow the roots and their growing medium to hold together on removal and enable the plant to establish quickly. Within barrier planters, hanging baskets and tiered planters, semi-mature plants will be used, of suitable size and quality and grown in suitable pack sizes. Slow release, granular feed is used in each planter at the time of planting to last the entire season. City-wide, the council uses approximately 115,000 bedding plants per year; all of which are grown within peat free or low peat compost to comply with the needs of Green Flag status that several of its parks have or are working towards. The Landscape Group use systematic and residual granular herbicide, Chikara to control annual and perennial weeds on natural surfaces throughout the city centre. Chikara combines effective weed control with operator safety and low risk to the environment. It has both low application rate and low level of active ingredient, whilst still providing excellent efficiency, Chikara presents negligible risk to birds, mammals and bees.
A3 Business areas and premises With a continued sense of community which includes business owners, city centre staff and local residents, Coventry is blessed with a central community who are willing to be involved with various initiatives in order to create a greener, more attractive space for themselves and visitors alike to enjoy on a daily basis. Business Improvement District members contribute year-on-year to the Bloom initiative, subsidising approximately £45,000 per annum to the on-going cleaning and greening of Coventry city centre. The support and dedication from business owners, city contractors and Council staff, continues to uphold our exceptional reputation already established. As our key tourist attraction and city focal point, Coventry Cathedral continues to embrace its prime position and support the Bloom campaign by making efforts to brighten the immediate surroundings with well-maintained border planting, herbaceous plants and shrubs along with lush, grass verges and planter containers, supplied by the BID and supported by The Landscape Group enhancing the appearance of this landmark site for the thousands of visitors who pass through its gates each year. At the heart of Coventry, the City Council House is decorated with an energetic array of floral hanging baskets and vibrant beds, complementing the historic and popular building. New Union Street car park and its surrounding offices including the nearby Severn Trent headquarters are interlaced with colourful planter containers which house a selection of marigolds, begonias, geraniums and pansies. Local pubs, clubs and restaurants within the city centre continue to support the Bloom initiative with many going the extra mile to utilise their frontages, displaying colourful baskets and caring for their outside areas, maintaining vivacious planter beds and welcoming outdoor seated spaces. The Landscape Group have worked continuously alongside the city centre Business Improvement District, with particular relation to complementing store frontages, providing decorative 3-tier planters to improve and highlight business entrances. In partnership, staff take responsibility for the on-going care and maintenance of the plants, including dead heading and watering as necessary. Remaining planter containers are used throughout busy pedestrian walkways in the centre of Coventry, brightening and enhancing the visitor experience. Encouraging civic pride and enthusiasm, these additional touches continue to improve the attitudes and opinions of city centre workers, tourists and investors. Coventry University continues to expand and invest in the city centre, encouraging approximately 22,000 students here from across the country and internationally each year. Coventry University is delighted to again be a partner in Coventry’s entry into the Heart of England in Bloom; with the main campus covering over 25% of the City centre, the University is conscious of its role in both creating and supporting a vibrant and exciting quality public realm for the residents and visitors of Coventry. The edible campus grew from a desire to reduce the reliance on annual bedding displays and to provide an exemplar of how private yet public green spaces can support learning and leisure but still be attractive. The area was redesigned to incorporate raised planters with side seating to enable easy access and support practical teaching for the Horticultural Physiotherapy students and included bug hotels to encourage and promote pollinating insects, a paved pathway for people with mobility limitations and a wide range of planting to provide fresh produce. Staff and students were encouraged to “pick your own” which they certainly did in increasing numbers. The project has now been extended to other areas of campus including an outdoor performance space know as ‘Inside/Outside’ which has used red clover as a green manure to really good effect this year. The Hub is our new (2011/12) student building which provides both a social and pastoral centre for our students; a mixed extensive/intensive green roof was designed and is now establishing ,a roof terrace provides a quiet area away from the hustle and bustle of the building . Planting is enhanced by the lawn frontage ,bug hotels and two superb bespoke pieces of blacksmith public art especially commissioned this year.
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A4 Green spaces Coventry has continued to transform the environment of its city centre, supplementing hard landscaping with soft and accessible green space. Maintained throughout the year, our supplementary green spaces both highlight and compliment areas of the city centre with residents and visitors flocking to enjoy the open, usable space. Continually proud of the environment around us, hedgerows are clipped and shaped where necessary, grassed areas are tended to and mown regularly and flower beds are cared for fondly, ensuring that our city centre is presented in the best possible manner not only for visitors but birds, wildlife and insects too. Our numerous and well established green spaces including Hill Street, Bayley Lane and Millennium View have been supplemented this year with a brand new pocket park on Bishop Street alongside the new green space found in recently developed Bull Yard and Broadgate, our city centre event space. Welcomed by residents, visitors and local BID members, these valuable resources are an excellent asset for Coventry city centre. Our larger green areas including busy Greyfriars Green and Lady Herbert’s Garden are continually monitored, maintained and cared for by dedicated staff who make time to ensure these special locations are kept clean, tidy and attractive for the public to enjoy. Serving multiple functions, youngsters who attend nearby Grace Day Nursery will often utilise Greyfriars Green for their outdoor recreation and environmental education. Coventry City Council, in conjunction with West Midlands Police, Coventry Sports Trust and numerous other external partners sourced £200,000 to construct a green space with additional play area to encourage young people who may otherwise loiter in city centre shops and public spaces to utilise the open land adjacent to the Coventry Sports Centre as a social opportunity.
B1 Resource management As an integral element to the Bloom initiative, the education and implementation of recycling and energy saving campaigns continues to develop and progress in Coventry. The city centre Business Improvement District, alongside The Landscape Group and Coventry City Council again hosted the ever-successful, annual spring ‘Plant Giveaway’. This year, city residents were invited to collect a branded, ‘Bloom’ paper bag, packed full with winter perennial bedding plants, carefully removed and given for free, to keen local gardeners. In preparation for spring planting, this effective and resourceful way of reinforcing the city’s dedication to Bloom continues to be a huge success. A major new scheme to save thousands of pounds in heating public buildings and helping those in fuel poverty by harnessing energy from the Waste to Energy plant has now started. The groundbreaking Heatline scheme will see buildings including the Council House, Herbert Art Gallery and Museum and Coventry Cathedral being supplied heat and hot water produced by the Waste to Energy plant in Whitley. The plan is then to extend the scheme to be able to benefit tenants in social housing, large companies in the city that want to invest in the scheme and any private resident that wants to join. By using the surplus energy from the incinerator in Whitley, the City Council will be able to keep fuel costs low which will benefit the taxpayer and also the environment as it will save around 2000 tonnes of carbon per year - the equivalent of fuelling 400 Coventry homes for a year. The project will help grow the city’s low carbon economy and help draw companies here who wish to reduce their carbon footprint and bring investment into the city, as well as benefit those in fuel poverty and other residents who want to have security of energy prices. The project is being carried out by specialist contractor, Cofely who will save the energy produced back to the Council and other partners at a heavily reduced rate to help reduce energy costs and carbon tax bills. Cofely are funding the project along with a £2.2 million grant from the Homes and Community Agency for the installation of the infrastructure. Cofely will install the Heatline pipes from the Waste from Energy plant along London Road to the city centre. Placing key importance on minimising excessive demand on local resources, the BID, City Council and The Landscape Group continue their outstanding recycling efforts, making every effort to re-use waste from local houses and businesses. The Landscape Group have continued their recently adopted initiative to divide street debris and litter into that which is recyclable and that which is not. A separate, clear plastic sack is used by refuse collectors who isolate items, such as plastic bottles and cardboard packaging so it can be sent for recycling. Whilst clearing the city centre and keeping it clean, this creative idea has seen a positive increase in reusable waste collected. The Landscape Group have the aim to divert 50% of general waste into domestic recycling schemes and improve the depth, breadth and site specific understanding relating to environmental management for each site, ensuring that 100% of environmental monitoring and inspection is planned, delivered and recorded.
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B2 Local heritage Coventry’s traditional and medieval heritage is synonymous with its unique and charming reputation. Internationally recognised, the city boasts landmark monuments of which residents are continually proud. Coventry has over four hundred buildings listed statutorily for their architectural or historic interest. These range from the medieval St. Mary’s Guildhall to Coventry’s 1960s railway station, both found within our city centre. As we continue our exciting period of regeneration to build upon our history and enhance our city, on-going efforts are being made to manage and develop both the older and new sites to sure they are weed free, washed and painted all year round, making for a very pleasant experience for both visitors and residents alike. Techniques such as stone chipping and masonry improving, stained glass cleaning and monument jet washing all add to the city’s sparkling reputation of being both a clean and tidy place to live and work. Coventry Transport Museum has received a grant of £4.6m from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) to transform a number of galleries and visitor facilities at the Museum, and enable the redevelopment of one of Coventry City’s most iconic buildings, a Grade 1 listed, 12th Century Old Grammar School. The developments will re-energise Coventry Transport Museum’s galleries, creating a world class experience that will provide enhanced opportunities for people to learn about, and get involved with Coventry’s rich transport heritage. It will enable people to better understand and appreciate the museum’s collections, and the impact of Coventry’s transport manufacturing heritage on the city and its people. In addition, the funding will allow the Old Grammar School to be sympathetically conserved, revitalised and brought back into public use as an exhibition, event and education space for the Museum, securing the future of this Grade I listed building, which has sat unused for the past 30 years; the project aims to be completed by April 2015. Each September, Coventry hosts the popular and exciting ‘Heritage Open Days’ event. Supported by Coventry City Council and the assistance of volunteers, local sites of historical significance will open their doors across the weekend, giving the public an opportunity to discover Coventry city centre’s ever intriguing past which may not otherwise be accessible throughout the year. Lady Herbert’s Garden continues to support Coventry’s city centre, providing a quaint and serene space removed from the hustle and bustle of heavily pedestrianised areas. Incorporating part of the old city wall, lying behind the towns ancient gateways, The Landscape Group continue to keep the area clear, tidy and well maintained with superb lawns and thriving planted beds. The Cathedral ruins were stabilised this year following potentially damaging structural movement which had caused a vertical crack to develop. The extensive repair work entailed careful dismantling of a section of wall and rebuilding by a specialist contractor, replacing corroded reinforcement, weatherproofing the parapet and repointing where necessary.
B3 Local environmental quality Together with on-going horticultural planting and conservation, the routine maintenance, cleansing and care for the local environment in Coventry city centre forms an integral part of the Bloom initiative. The Landscape Group work tirelessly throughout the year to ensure that our city centre is free from fly posting, dog fouling, litter, overflowing bins, blocked drains and graffiti. Using the latest technology, chewing gum is removed with chemical free and sustainable substances, which are harmless to the environment and pedestrianised areas. Following from our success in 2012, the City Council have continued to action £75 fines to offenders who discard their chewing gum, resulting in an 86% reduction in gum found on city centre streets. Developed in partnership with the multi-million pound investment to regenerate our city centre, it is hoped that this campaign can contribute to improving the local environment for all who live, work and visit the city. Areas of high footfall including Millennium Place, Broadgate, Bull Yard and University Square are regularly cleansed by the Schmidt Hot Jet System, funded by the city centre Business Improvement District. Improving the overall appearance and cleanliness of pavements and pathways is an on-going priority for The Landscape Group, who continue to regularly sanitise these areas using high pressured, hot water, enhancing their appearance while leaving them clean and safe for city centre visitors. In addition, the four ambassadors, appointed to work on behalf of the city centre BID, provide assistance to ensure that the city centre is patrolled seven days a week. The City Council continue to enhance the aesthetic appearance of vacant city centre units by dressing windows with attractive artwork throughout the interim period before the stores are again let to new owners. By the same token, The Landscape Group work alongside the Business Improvement District to cleanse problematic city centre areas, notably supporting new businesses to enhance the appearance of their outside areas. Local solicitors, Ward and Rider utilised this assistance in preparation for their grand opening, in time for the Lord Mayor to pay them a visit. As a whole, Coventry City Council and The Landscape Group team continue to cleanse a mammoth 10,000 miles of streets per year, picking up approximately 5,000 tonnes of litter whilst emptying almost 2,000 litter bins each week - Coventry continues its zero tolerance toward those who discard their litter. Using the latest technology such as the innovative Schmidt machine which is used to cleanse the city centre’s pavements to the creative gum boards, jet washers and road sweepers, the city is preserved around the clock, all year round. Of equal importance, state-of-the-art CCTV services which are used to survey the city centre along with regular foot patrols, ensures all activity is controlled. More than 200 fixed penalty notices for dog fouling have been issued as part of a City Council initiative to improve the cleanliness of Coventry’s streets, parks and open spaces. Councillor Phil Townshend, Coventry City Council’s Cabinet Member for Community Safety, said “Quite rightly Coventry residents want to have clean streets and parks which are free from dog fouling. I hope that by using both enforcement and education we will encourage people to keep our city clean.” Incidents of fly-tipping across Coventry have reduced by more than 10 per cent over the last 12 months. The problem costs Coventry City Council about £300,000 each year to clean up and has led to a concerted effort to educate and crackdown on the problem. This approach has seen the number of reported fly-tipping incidents to reduce by 10.7 per cent over the last year. The success has been particularly impressive in the St Michael’s ward, which includes Hillfields, near to Coventry city centre, where fly-tipping has been a particular problem. There are two bus-based ‘Park & Ride’ sites serving the North and South of Coventry; each site is located for drivers to park and complete their journey into the city centre by bus. At capacity, this service removes almost 600 cars from the roads, not only enhancing the experience for pedestrians with quieter highways but similarly improving the surrounding air quality and environment for all who visit the city centre. Imagineer Productions have teamed up with Coventry City Council and Cycle Coventry to complete a three year project which aims to improve facilities for cyclists and pedestrians. The scheme will refine and create new, safer routes and provide additional crossing facilities, connecting key parts of the city. Providing practical information and support, the development will encourage more people, of all ages, to enjoy the health and recreational benefits of cycling.
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C1 Development and continuity As always, an integral part of Coventry’s Bloom campaign is the involvement of the local, city centre community including local residents, business owners and their staff alongside nearby office workers. With the long term intention to keep the city centre safe, clean and environmentally friendly, the Business Improvement District, City Council and The Landscape Group continually strive to reinforce prevailing issue by providing important resources and aid to local communities with the intention to improve the living conditions of those residents who depend upon the sustainable and resourceful nature of their work.
B4 Pride of place To complement vivid beds, city centre green space and highways, The Landscape Group work alongside the Business Improvement District to ensure that there is sufficient, well maintained and informative signage in key locations. In conjunction with these efforts, street furniture is kept clean and safe whilst artistic statues and freshly laid pavements are encouraged as part of sustainable street development for the public to use. Following from Coventry’s preparations to host Olympic Football in 2012, brand new street furniture has replaced worn out equipment within the city centre. Stainless steel bins have substituted those found in the busy precinct to match those currently positioned in the recently developed event space, Broadgate. In addition, to suit the surrounding location, wooden benches have replaced older furniture in Greyfriars Green. Enhancing the uniform approach to street furniture throughout the city centre and improving the aesthetic impression of Coventry, the on-going efforts to transform the local environment is noticeable.
The city centre based residential communities located within Starley Road and Vicroft Court have further developed their exceptional effort to bring together residents with the common goal to enhance the immediate surroundings and encourage local people to work closely with one another. Keeping the Bloom initiative in mind, their on-going dedication is building relationships, discouraging anti-social behaviour and improving the overall sense of community spirit. This year, residents are working towards constructing a children’s play area within the nearby communal garden, giving local youngsters the opportunity to enjoy and fully utilise their somewhat limited outside space. The Landscape Group has assisted in supplying bedding plants, funded by the city centre BID to brighten car parking facilities, adding colour and vitality to the surrounding area. Work has continued at Coventry Train Station, which is for many, the gateway to the city. The Landscape Group work alongside the Business Improvement District and station staff to improve and create a shining representation of Coventry in order to leave a long lasting, positive impression upon the thousands of visitors who arrive in the city each day. This year has seen collaborative work develop with city centre based Grace Day Nursery. The Landscape Group has provided both equipment and staff time to utilise nearby Greyfriars Green and the property grounds to educate youngsters in the benefits of eating home-grown vegetables and enjoying the great outdoors.
This year saw brand new way-finding totems erected in key locations, designed to ease navigation for visitors. Both vibrant and contemporary, the supplementary signage is a welcome addition to support the Business Improvement District, assisting local tourists in their visit to the city centre. Improvement works have been carried out on one of the city centre’s main junctions to make it safer, more efficient and more attractive. The junction of Little Park Street and New Union Street has been transformed, with roads narrowed, the traffic lights removed and two new zebra crossings installed. Work is also underway on the busy city centre High Street which acts as the main connection between Coventry’s Council House and the University and Cathedral Quarter, leading to Broadgate. Upcoming improvement work will include replacing the existing paving with new high quality sandstone slabs, widening the footways - making it safer for pedestrians and resurfacing the road. Following the drainage repairs and new street lighting works, work to improve Medieval Spon Street began in June. Medieval Spon Street is the home of many historic renovated medieval buildings; the scheme aims to tie into the work completed last year which included transformation of Broadgate and Gosford Street. The work on Medieval Spon Street is scheduled to last 22 weeks and will include lifting and relaying all sandstone paving and replacing the road surface with a more durable surface, incorporating decorative chippings.
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C2 Business community and wider community involvement The continued support of both the business and wider community in Coventry city centre is an integral component to our on-going, successful Bloom initiative. 2013 marks the beginning of another five year term for the Business Improvement District, with an overwhelming 83% of business owners displaying their support, voting in agreement to support the BID for a third term. In doing so, the levy payers have committed upwards of £40,000 pa towards the cleaning, greening and maintenance of Coventry city centre. Clear objectives have been laid out ahead of the BID renewal with the key intention to maintain a comprehensive and attractive level of flora within the city centre while increasing the level of hanging baskets and planters in shopping areas. The BID will continue to consult regularly with business owners in regards to their opinions of which areas require development while proceeding to re-procure an alternative floral provider, identifying improved value for money while upholding the current high quality. The previous five years bought about considerable change in Coventry city centre. The BID has adapted and reacted to transformation in support of changing business priorities. Headlining achievements include a 27% drop in overall crime levels, 130,000 metres of paving has been deep cleansed, on-going improvements to cleansing levels and nine ‘Heart of England in Bloom’ Gold Awards. The BID own and operate two deep-cleansing machines; the machines have contributed towards an increasing perception that the city centre is looking cleaner and brighter and have ensured that cleansing levels remain at a consistently high level of over 86% (Encams). The introduction of gum targets has resulted in over 18,000 pieces of gum being removed more speedily by the maintenance team each year. The team has also removed an estimated 135,000 pieces of gum per year with the use of the deep cleansing machines. In addition, the maintenance team also respond to requests from BID members - this can range from the removal of graffiti to cleansing of store signage and minor repair work. Coventry University’s enthusiastic students continue to act as ambassadors for the institution, supporting the city centre with its development to improve. Working with multiple voluntary charities including the Parks Service Rangers and Sustainable Communities, local undergraduates continue to show their passion and interest for the city centre within which they study. The teams have undertaken roles to educate communities in how to improve their carbon footprint, assisting in local events, guided walks, craft activities and planting opportunities. Green-fingered Coventry residents were again invited to take advantage of the annual ‘Plant Giveaway’ this year, funded by the Business Improvement District and supported by The Landscape Group. Members of the public came in huge numbers to receive a selection of winter plants, removed from city centre flower beds in preparation for the spring. Promoted using local media, Council websites and relevant social networks, the event was again, a huge success. Rather than discard unwanted plants, the team take great pride in knowing that the vivacious bedding will bloom again next year in the gardens of Bloom supporters.
C3 Year-round involvement Our city centre Business Improvement District, The Landscape Group and City Council have continued to provide an all year-round service for residents, businesses and city centre venues with greening, cleaning and CCTV operation. Collaboratively, city centre services continue to work tirelessly, enhancing and developing neighbourhoods and city centre locations to shape a more welcoming, environmentally friendly and brighter place to visit.
AUGUST
Big screen in Millennium Place offic ially opens as a ‘live site’ and shows Cov entry in Bloom artwork as a backdrop screens aver.
SEPTEMBER
FEBRUARY
Grounds clearance work began on Bishop Street pocket park. Starley Road resi dents street clean up day.
MARCH
Sites in Greyfriars Green, Civic Cen tre lawns and Millennium View pocket park identified for bulb planting.
City centre business owners vote to support the Business Improvement District for another five year term.
OCTOBER
Residents of Starley Road joined tog ether to remove weed and trim back ove rgrown shrubs from communal garden in preparation for children’s’ play area.
NOVEMBER
Local businesses assisted in the clea rance and removal of rubbish and fly tipp ed waste from an overgrown footpath in Gosford Street.
APRIL
Public Realm work begins to remove traffic light signals and excessive street sign age at the Little Park Street and New Union Street junction.
MAY
Coventry’s annual ‘Plant Giveaway’ takes place in Broadgate. Deep cleansin g of City Cente pedestrian areas begins.
JUNE
DECEMBER
Pearl Hyde School beds prepared and planted by school children who wer e winners of local school Bloom com petition
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Public Realm work begins to improve the city centre High Street. Bishop Street pocket park opens to the general public.
JANUARY
Work began to lay the Heatline stru cture, providing cost-effective and energy efficient heating to Coventry city centre.
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C4 Funding and support Committed support of key businesses and partners forms an integral part of Coventry’s entry to the Heart of England in Bloom campaign. Coventry’s Business Improvement District (BID) continues to work alongside Coventry City Council to support local business owners within the city centre to provide assistance with crime reduction, CCTV monitoring, marketing and street cleansing. Business owners within the city centre continue to pay a regular fee of which the funds are used to maintain and improve the environment where necessary. The Business Improvement District, alongside local business premises, Coventry City Council and The Landscape Group, see to it that the streets are patrolled seven days a week whilst kept clean and tidy all year round. The membership fee goes a long way to help fund green initiatives such as the street cleansing Schmidt machine, cigarette bins and hanging baskets to make Coventry a more attractive and save place to live, work and visit. RC Smith, bedding plant suppliers for the city have offered outstanding service and support by providing the Business Improvement District with flowers and plants used in the beds, planters and baskets throughout the year. Recognising that certain procedures for the protection of the environment are now a fundamental factor of any long-term business development plan, together with the BID and Coventry City Council, RC Smith actively seeks to reduce any negative impacts on the environment in the production and distribution of plant products. To enhance the awareness of Coventry in Bloom, members of the Business Relationship and Tourism Team alongside the Communications Team at Coventry City Council have worked to liaise with local press, ensuring that the campaign message is broadcast to a wider audience. This year, city centre business KRCS supported Bloom by donating a brand new iPad Mini as prize to participating members of the public who entered the campaign competition. Supported by the Coventry Telegraph and city centre retailers, the competition was promoted city-wide, aiming to not only increase and enhance public perception of Coventry but increase footfall levels in the process as entrants delivered their entry forms directly here to the city centre. To increase impact and maximise the audience awareness of Coventry in Bloom, numerous branding and marketing promotional tools have been produced including branded flags which fly high in Broadgate throughout the summer months. Planter box signs are found in high footfall areas of Coventry city centre, these particular signs are doubly effective as the boxes include eye catching, bright floral displays enhancing the appearance of Coventry’s busiest areas. Car park posters have been in abundance throughout the city centre providing low cost, high impact brand awareness.
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