TASTE! Bognor Regis Event Review 2022

A TASTE! of the future...
Looking back at Bognor Regis’s
first Street Food Weekend
The weekend of 20th & 21st August saw the first ever “Taste!
Bognor Regis Street Food Weekend” delivered at the newly
developed “Place St Maur”. The event combined innovative
street food with a line up of live music performed on a
professional stage by local groups and solo artists, as well
as headline acts for both days.
BID Co-Ordinator Heather Allen said:
“After months of planning, last minute
logistical workarounds, changes of plans
and worries about the weather it was
utterly brilliant to see everyone having
such a great time over both days of the
weekend event. So many different people
and groups worked together to ensure the
event’s success, and there are so many
people to thank for their input –the events
team at Blue Collar, the performers, street
traders, everyone at the Regis Centre and
all the officers at Arun District Council
involved in both the Place St Maur space
and events approval. But the biggest
thanks has to go to the Bognor Regis
businesses whose commitment and
investment in their town enabled an event
of this size and quality to go ahead.
Enormous Success
Mrs Allen explained that all credit should
go to the Bognor Regis businesses who
prioritise activities and projects they know
will keep the town vibrant and vital, and
pay towards their delivery through the BID.
The “TASTE!” weekend was mostly
funded through businesses’ BID levy
payments, with the BID Team also
securing an external grant from the
Government’s “Covid Recovery Fund”,
managed by Arun District Council.
The Street Food Weekend was an
enormous success in itself, attracting high
numbers of visitors each day. Based on
food sales alone, it’s estimated that around
2,500 people attended the event and
purchased food on each of the two days of
the event. This doesn’t include people
attending that only purchased drinks, or
people that attended the free event to
enjoy the music performances and water
jets on Place St Maur. The event
generated a huge positive response on
social media and through conversations
with the BID Team, with people
commenting on the event’s high quality
and how it had positively changed the way
they thought about Bognor Regis. This
includes Shaun Gunner, Leader of Arun
District Council, who publicly praised the
BID’s event in last week’s Observer for its
“fantastic sense of vibrancy and
community” and positive impact in
challenging the “outdated, cliched view of
what the town looks like”.
The “TASTE!” event also had a really
positive impact for all businesses in the
town. Compared to the previous weekend,
the footfall camera at the southern end of
London Road showed a 5,000 increase on
the Saturday, and a 1,100 increase on the
Sunday. Feedback from businesses in
and around Place St Maur and across the
town centre has been really positive, with
some businesses reporting their “best day
this year”.
Looking to 2023
Asked if the event could become a regular
feature for Bognor Regis, Mrs Allen
replied: “We really hope so…to the extent
that we’ve already pencilled in a date to
start working towards for 2023, and, based
on the support for the first one we’re
already thinking about ways we can
develop it to an even bigger experience –
ideally one that encourages visitors from
all over the country to attend and stay over
in the town, rather than day trips. But we
can’t say it’s definitely going to happen yet,
as there are lots of permissions that have
to be applied for and granted first, and it
will only be possible if the BID gets voted
in for a second five-year term at the ballot
in February 2023. To achieve the long
term goal of overnight stays, we’d also
need to see growth in the town’s
infrastructure for guest accommodation –
a vital element to developing the Bognor
Regis’s appeal as a tourist destination.”
Mrs Allen added that the event was just
one example of the really positive changes
taking place in Bognor Regis, and urged
everyone with a responsibility for
regeneration and town centre revival to
grasp the momentum and make bold
decisions when opportunities presented
themselves.
“We’ve already seen huge progress with
the agencies with a responsibility for the
town sharing information and working
together more effectively through the
“Bognor Regis Town Centre Forum”.
We’re witnessing the transformation of the
Place St Maur site, and this will only be
enhanced by the enormous achievement
of ADC securing funding through the
Levelling Up Fund to deliver the published
Phase 1 plans for the Regis Centre. We
know that one successfully delivered
regeneration project often has a “domino
effect”, catalysing opportunities for even
better outcomes. We also know, from
direct consultation with BID Levy paying
businesses, that their top five strategic
priorities for the town include delivery of
Phase 1 and – at the soonest possible
opportunity- Phase 2 regeneration of the
Regis Centre, and creating better
connections between the seafront and the
town centre.
The BID is keenly aware that times are
tough for everyone right now, which could
lead to decision makers taking a more
cautious approach. But on behalf of the
businesses that need you to lead
decisively to keep the town vital and viable
both now, and for the future, we urge
everyone that has the power to do so to be
decisive, catalysts for positive growth in
any opportunities that present themselves
for the future of Bognor Regis. Please
keep the incredible momentum going.”
Photos by@PeterFlude
brbid.org Tel.01243 826354 info@brbid.org