Minutes:
Members of the Partnership had undertaken a range of activities since the last meeting.
Ms Kate Miller (intu Bromley) was not present at the meeting but provided a written update to the Partnership as follows:
• The 5 new restaurants on the terrace adjacent to the Queen’s Gardens were continuing to perform exceptionally well.
• Other new tenants, Lovisa (accessories) and Joules (fashion) had both opened their units. More new openings would follow before Christmas. Bering (jewellery) had opened on the mall and would soon be joined by Lola’s Cupcakes.
• Footfall in the centre for September 2016 was +7% compared to September 2015. Year to date footfall was -1.5% on 2015.
Mr David Warnes, London South East Colleges, informed the group that the BR6 restaurant development Phase 2 was now underway. The restaurant would be extended to provide a bistro, coffee shop and patisserie. He was also pleased to announce that the BR6 restaurant was currently ranked as the number one restaurant in Orpington on the TripAdvisor website. The co-working and shared office space at the Innovation Centre – Orpington Campus was being redesigned and would be completely relaunched under the London South East Colleges brand.
Since the last meeting, workshops on the new apprenticeships levy had been held in Orpington and Greenwich with 30 employers attending. It was felt that interest had started, and further workshops were planned in the region during November and December 2016.
Mr Michael Humphries, Handelsbanken, reported that business was extremely busy. They had seen no downturn since the Brexit Referendum and it was ‘business as usual’. A large commercial property auction with 240 lots had taken place on 10th October 2016, and it was felt that there was a lot of positivity in the auction room. As a bank they were also very active in the lending market.
Mr Chandra Sharma attended the meeting representing the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), and introduced Mr Steve Wheeler who was a newly elected Facilitator for the FSB in Bromley. Mr Sharma informed the Partnership that the FSB AGM would be held at the Churchill Theatre in Bromley on the evening of the 24th November 2016, with speakers from the sales and marketing sector. FSB would also be sponsoring the Bromley Business Awards 2016.
Ms Sharon Baldwin, Orpington 1st BID Company, was pleased to report that vacancy rates in the town centre were the lowest for 10 years at 7.4%. The unit by the Odeon cinema that would house Nando’s restaurant was currently undergoing a £1.5m fit out and was scheduled to open on 7th December 2016. Christmas events were planned in Orpington town centre on Thursday 17th November 2016, and would see the high street pedestrianised with Christmas stalls, Santa and his reindeer and fireworks from 7.00pm.
The Partnership were also informed that there was currently a consultation underway until 2nd November 2016 with regards to the Post Office moving from its current location to be situated in WH Smiths.
Ms Katy Woolcott, London Biggin Hill Airport, reported that year to date they were currently ahead of budget. They were now fully occupied with quality companies such as Bombardier and Signature, and Zenith Aviation had recently moved into the old Heritage Hangar. Proposals for the development on a new hangar had been submitted, as there was continuing demand for space.
Mr Alex Henderson, MSE UK, informed the group that he was continuing with his work to encourage the NHS to buy British goods. He was now working in collaboration with James Bradshaw, who previously had media exposure when he completed a project to buy only British produce for a year. They had established the British Manufacturers Lobbying Group that would be meeting between 5.00pm – 7.00pm on 22nd November near Regents Park, to get people involved and lobby Government.
Mr Henderson expressed concerns over anti-social behaviour and fly-tipping on the vacant land opposite their premises on Kangley Bridge Road.
Lee Thomas, Fairlight Group, reported that he had improved his client profile, and the serviced offices were currently full all the time. More space was needed as demand was strong.
Ms Tina Nye, Jobcentre Plus, reported the latest figures to the end of July 2016. The number of people claiming Job Seekers Allowance (JSA) remained stable at 1,900. Claimants in the 18-24 year old category had dropped dramatically, but the number of claimants in the 50+ category remained high due to the increase in redundancies. It was noted that currently 59% of JSA claimants were back in work within 13 weeks, and 94% within a year.
RESOLVED that the updates be noted.