Purple Flag status for Nottingham City Centre

Nottingham has been officially recognised as one of the best places to go for great night out in Britain.

Nottingham has been successful in its bid to gain Purple Flag Status for its late night offering and is among one of the first places in Britain to be recognised for the strides they have made in becoming safer, cleaner and more pleasant places to be after dark.

Developed by the Association of Town Centre Management (ATCM), the Purple Flag scheme has been set up to establish national standards and raise the image of Britain’s town centres at night. It recognises great entertainment and hospitality areas at night and provides the opportunity for successful centres to present themselves in their true colours and in a positive light to town centre users and operators, residents, tourists and visitors.

The application was a collaborative effort between Nottingham City Council, Nottinghamshire Police, Nottingham Businesses Against Crime, Nottingham Crime and Drugs Partnership and We Are Nottingham, which is the Business Improvement District (BID) for the leisure businesses in the city, as well as other city centre partners.

Nottingham has been working hard to improve its night time experience after recognising problems in the city centre and this is an acknowledgment of the positive steps they have made to work out these issues.

Nottingham city centre was assessed on a range of criteria including attractiveness and appeal, cleanliness, personal safety, arts and cultural offer, how welcoming it is, as well as the strength of partnership working. A team of experts carried out the judging process and explored, examined and experienced the nightlife of the centre.

Cllr Jon Collins, Leader of Nottingham City Council, said: “Nottingham is proud to be one of the first UK locations to have Purple Flag status and thanks go to all the teams for their ongoing commitment to partnership working in the city centre.

“Nottingham has always been a 24-hour city and we have worked hard with our partners to offer a wide programme of night time events complements the regular night life in the city’s theatres, cinemas, restaurants, clubs, and bars.

“We have put in place a holistic approach to managing the city’s night life and we are pleased that the judges were impressed by the way the city centre is managed. All the services are linked together with strong leadership and everyone taking responsibility for the success and safety of the whole evening.”

The benefits of achieving Purple Flag Status include:

1. A raised profile & Improved public image
2. Wider patronage with more families and older people
3. Lower crime and anti-social behaviour
4. Successful mixed-use economy long term

Jon Collins of CGA and Chair of the Purple Flag judging panel said “the panel is delighted to be awarding Nottingham City Centre a purple flag. Nottingham has worked extremely hard over many years to improve their evening economy and change the perception of ten city. Purple Flag will further improve its public image to encourage more and diverse people into the city at night.

“The Assessors and Panel were impressed by particular strengths, including Doorwatch, Street Pastors, good signage, refurbishment of the public realm, BID management of the city centre and the excellent partnership work between businesses and agencies.”

Superintendent Helen Chamberlain, from Nottingham City Police, said: “Our number one priority is to ensure the safety of everyone who comes into Nottingham and we recognise the importance of providing high visibility policing across the city centre to offer people that reassurance when they are out and about.

“Police officers, along with our partners from Community Protection, take a robust approach to antisocial and alcohol-related behaviour and will deliberately intervene early to prevent problems arising.

”The awarding of the Purple Flag is testament to the efforts of everyone involved in making Nottingham city centre a safer place for all.”

Sylvia Manser, Chief Executive of We Are Nottingham, said: “This is a real achievement for the city that recognises how hard all of the different agencies have worked together to deliver a brilliant and varied experience at night.”

Simon Litherland, Managing Director of Diageo GB who are headline sponsors of the Purple Flag scheme, said, “It’s an unavoidable fact that sadly some people are put off from going out in their town centres by the actions of a few who behave antisocially. Tackling this antisocial behaviour and creating a safer, more enjoyable night-time environment for everyone is crucial and we believe the best way to do this is through a variety of local partners working together – exactly the approach encouraged and recognised by Purple Flag. That’s why we’re delighted to be supporting Purple Flag for the next three years. With our support we hope more areas will be motivated to follow in the footsteps of Nottingham, which is a fantastic example of just how much can be achieved by working in this way.”

Nottingham is entitled to fly the Purple Flag for two years from 16th June 2010. During the next two years Nottingham will be expected to continue to broaden the night time offer, with further improvements to the facilities and services available.

The inspection report will be discussed at the Night Time Economy Partnership Group (NTEPG), where all the partnership organisations in the city meet to discuss the strategy for the night time economy, so the recommendations can be used in the next action plan.