The British Retail Consortium (BRC) is bringing together major retailers in a joint membership of British Bids, the new national body for Business Improvement Districts (BIDs).

A BID is a defined area of a town, city or commercial district where business ratepayers have voted to fund improvements beyond those delivered by local Government. A BID means that local businesses will agree to pay a levy on top of their rates bill to provide extra services and facilities to improve the trading environment. If the BID is approved by a majority vote, all businesses in the BID area must contribute, whether they voted for it or not.

So far, five major retailers including Boots, the John Lewis Partnership, Marks and Spencer, Next and Sainsbury’s are directly supporting the initiative. The BRC believes more are likely to follow.

Dr Kevin Hawkins, BRC director general, said: “If BIDs are done well, they can be an effective way for retailers to work together to improve the places where they trade. That’s good for business and local people. On the other hand, a poor BID is just another tax on business. This move shows retailers increasingly accept they need to be more involved influencing results and making sure BIDs are not just an excuse to increase business rates bills.”

BID services, for example, can be aimed at improving cleanliness and safety which are essential to the vitality of any retail centre. BIDs may pay for increased street cleaning or wardens to deter crime and reassure shoppers. They could fund capital expenditure to improve the appearance of streets and accessibility. They may promote the area to would-be visitors by branding, advertising or events.