Chester Racecourse and Chester BID launch campaign to discourage unwanted behaviour on race days

Chester Racecourse and Chester BID launch campaign to discourage unwanted behaviour on race days

Chester Racecourse and Chester BID launch campaign to discourage unwanted behaviour on race days and highlight positive effects of racegoers on the city centre

Chester Racecourse together with Chester BID will focus on strengthening the positive outcomes of the city’s popular race festivals – both for businesses and residents of the city centre.

The new campaign will cultivate the relationship between racegoers and businesses within the city by promoting positive behaviour and by managing the racegoer journey through the city to minimise potential negative impacts to the high street.

Carl Critchlow, BID Manager explains: ‘Chester Races is a fundamental part of our city’s identity with a heritage we are rightly proud of. It brings in thousands of visitors to Chester each year which is vital for our visitor economy.

‘Working with the racecourse we aim to make sure our city businesses and residents have a positive race day experience.

‘As ever with large gatherings, some of the less positive behaviours are often remembered more, so we will reinforce messages to encourage responsible behaviour, and seek to strengthen the relationships between city and racecourse.’

The new ‘Chester loves racegoers’ media campaign launched by Chester Racecourse and Chester BID seeks to remind racegoers of the positive impacts they can have on the city centre. This messaging will include behaviour expectations, and the campaign will feature across social media, pre-race day communications and on outdoor advertising sites, including a billboard at Chester Railway Station.

In addition, Chester Racecourse are increasing the number of welcome ushers on the streets of the city on race days from the racecourse up to Watergate Street, placed to guide pedestrian traffic and assist with queries from businesses and

residents. Cleaning will also be conducted on the city streets post-races, including jet washing outside the racecourse including Nuns Road and Watergate Street.

To add some of the May Festival flavour to the city centre, there will be pink floral displays and window vinyls dotted across empty shop units, for Instagram selfie moments as well as photo frames situated on city centre benches.

Louise Stewart, Chief Executive Officer, Chester Racecourse said: ‘As racing returns to Chester in the coming weeks, we will see the return of thousands of racegoers and visitors to the city. This brings with it numerous benefits, boosting the visitor economy and showcasing the city to a worldwide audience. However, we do acknowledge that large gatherings can result in less positive behaviour.

‘We are working closely with Chester BID to encourage racegoers to respect the city, residents and businesses.

‘This is not just about a media campaign but tangible action that city partners will benefit from on race days; increased stewarding, more street cleaning and additional CCTV throughout the city. We are confident that the campaign and additional clean up activity will help to achieve the positive benefits for Chester and minimise the negative.’

About Chester BID Company
A Business Improvement District (BID) is a business-led, business-funded body created to improve a defined commercial area. Chester BID is funded solely by the businesses within the city.

There are over 460 businesses in Chester’s BID area with a rateable value of more than £18,000. Each of these contribute a levy equal to 1% of their business rates every year to fund a wide range of improvements identified by the businesses themselves. It is expected

that approximately £2.5m of private sector funds will be generated over the five-year BID term and this money will be reinvested back into the city centre.

In June 2019, hundreds of businesses voted in favour of the plans to renew the BID’s term in Chester and on September 1st, 2019, Chester BID Company started a second five year-term with the intention of continuing to deliver a more vibrant and successful trading environment for Chester city centre.

For more information, visit www.ChesterBID.co.uk

About Chester Racecourse
Established in 1539, Chester Racecourse last year celebrated 480 years of racing on the Roodee. The racecourse is now officially recognised by the Guinness Book of World Records as the Oldest Racecourse in the world, still in operation.

Chester is in fact a 365 days’ a year operation, attracting over 330,000 visitors annually at race day fixtures and non-race day events. Recognised as a leader in its field, Chester Racecourse consistently pushes boundaries to ensure the racecourse product delivers the optimum experience and opportunities for visiting horsemen and the general public. The racecourse has consistently been awarded the Gold Standard Award by the Racehorse Owners Association (ROA), since the award’s inception in 2008 and was awarded the prestigious title of Large Racecourse of the Year, when the award was launched in 2015 and again in 2018 and 2019.

For more information, please visit www.chester-races.com

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