Our Ambition
Our Ambition
We are the Eastern City BID, the Business Improvement District working to promote and enhance a unique part of the City of London, known as the Eastern City.
In February 2022, the Eastern City business community voted to establish a formal Business Improvement District (BID) in the area, after the success of its predecessor – the EC Partnership.
Business Partnerships and Business Improvement Districts give a voice to business communities – championing local priorities and ensuring the right people are at the decision table. Businesses understand that together they can be stronger; lobbying on big, strategic issues that impact on their commercial performance and ability to grow. This is not a case of the private sector plugging public sector funding gaps, but genuine collaboration and collective action.
A BID operates in 5-year terms. Through mandatory business levies and voluntary contributions, the BID will raise over £20 million during its first term, which will fund a range of strategic and operational projects anchored by the ESG agenda.
The BID’s programme will focus on:
A Sustainable District
Our commitment to supporting the City of London Corporation’s strategy for achieving net zero by 2040. This covers everything from major public realm enhancements that seek to reduce vehicle congestion, improve air quality and increase the quantum of green space, to exploring area-wide renewable energy networks, lobbying for continued investment in our public transport system and providing businesses with the tools and knowledge they need to initiate their own positive change.
An Evolving District
Working patterns across the City have undoubtedly changed and in order for the commercial ecosystem to thrive we need to reach new audiences and diversify what this part of the capital has to offer. Working with key stakeholders we’ll be delivering a significant programme of cultural events and installations to enliven our public spaces and empty properties.
Our Community
Enhancing the experience of the Eastern City for our businesses, their staff and customers. This involves promoting our diverse retail, leisure and hospitality occupiers, providing additional street cleaning, supporting local charities/community initiatives, organising wellbeing events for staff and delivering a variety of projects around safety, crime reduction and resilience.
Promoting the Eastern City
This part of the Square Mile is home to over 80,000 jobs with economic output in excess of £11 billion per year – it’s recognised globally as a commercial powerhouse. To bolster this reputation, the BID works to position the area as a global pioneer, setting the blueprint for what’s needed in a world-leading central business district.
City Views: Design Competition Enhancing the Eastern City
London Festival of Architecture in collaboration with Eastern City BID and the City of London, has launched ‘City Views‘—a design competition inviting architects, designers, and artists to reimagine the public realm in the Eastern City. With a focus on wayfinding and connectivity, the competition seeks innovative proposals that improve access…
Medics keep the Eastern City safe over the festive period
To ensure that the public’s experience of the Eastern City over the festive period was a safe and positive one, for 11 nights in November and December we funded a team of cycle medics from St John Ambulance to patrol The City and assist the injured or vulnerable. Working directly…
Eastern City Business Survey 2025
The Eastern City Business Improvement District (BID) is a private, not-for-profit organisation funded and governed by local businesses to deliver a range of projects that enhance the area for those who work here and visit. We provide an additional, entirely separate service to the City of London Corporation with a focus on:…
Eastern City Community Fund 25
We’re pleased to announce our new Eastern City Community Fund 2025. £50,000 funding is available for non-profits in the City of London and Tower Hamlets who are working on/ aiming to support the local community. Grants of up to £6,500 are available for community groups and charities of all shapes…
The Observatory Presents – A New Immersive Art and Wellness Space in the Eastern City
The free entry digital art and virtual reality experience will open its doors in Old Broad Street, in the heart of the City of London on 6 January, a unique antidote to the January blues Produced by Creative Giants, the project is sponsored by the Eastern City Business Improvement District…
EASTERN CITY CYCLE MEDICS KEEPING PEOPLE SAFE AND SECURE AT CHRISTMAS
Following the success of last year’s initiative, the Eastern City Business Improvement District (BID), along with the City River Partnership, has sponsored and paid for two cycle response medics who will be deployed in the area to assist any member of the public in difficulty or distress. Over the 2023…
What is a BID?
BIDs are established via a ballot of eligible businesses and if successful a small levy is charged and the money raised is then invested into local projects and programmes developed through collaboration with the business community. There are now more than 60 BIDs across London, and are five in the City: the Cheapside Business Alliance, Aldgate Connect BID, Fleet Street Quarter and Culture Mile BID.
The Eastern City BID is one of the biggest BIDs in the UK, able to have a transformational impact in the area and be a powerful force for good in the Square Mile.
Our BID footprint
You can download our BID map here.
The streets/part streets covered by the Eastern City BID footprint:
| Abchurch Lane | Adams Court | Aldermans Walk |
| Arthur Street | Barbon Alley | Beehive Passage |
| Bell Inn Yard | Bengal Court | Bevis Mark (part) |
| Billiter Street | Birchin Lane | Bishopsgate (part) |
| Bishopgate Churchyard | Browns Building | Bulls Head Passage |
| Bury Street | Byward Street | Cannon Street (part) |
| Camomile Street | Cavendish Court | Change Alley |
| Clements Lane | Clerks Place | Copper’s Row |
| Corbet Court | Creechurch Lane | Crutched Friars |
| Cullum Street | Cutler Street | Devonshire Row |
| Devonshire Square | Dunster Court | Eastcheap |
| Fenchurch Avenue | Fenchurch Buildings | Fenchurch Place |
| Fenchurch Street (part) | Fen Court | Finch Lane |
| Fish Street Hill | French Ordinary Court | George Yard |
| Goring Street | Gracechurch Street | Great St. Helen’s |
| Great Tower Street | Hart Street | Hogarth Court |
| Houndsditch | King William Street (part) | Leadenhall Place |
| Leadenhall Street | Lime Street | Lime Street Passage |
| Liverpool Street | Lloyds Avenue (Part) | Lombard Court |
| Lombard Street (part) | London Street | Lower Thames Street |
| Mark Lane | Martin Lane | Mincing Lane (part) |
| Monument Street | Muscovy Street | New London Street |
| Newmans Court | Nicholas Lane | Nicholas Passage |
| Old Broad Street | Outwich Street | Pepys Street |
| Rood Lane | Royal Exchange Avenue | Savage Gardens (part) |
| Seething Lane (part) | Sherborne Lane | Ship Tavern Passage |
| Star Alley | St Benet’s Place | St Helen’s Place |
| St Mary Axe | St Michael’s Alley | St Swithins Lane (part) |
| Swan Lane | Talbot Court | Threadneedle Street |
| Trinity Square | Undershaft | Upper Thames Street |
| Whittington Avenue | Wormwood Street (part) |
OUR BOARD
Nick Carty, Chair, AIG
Peter Woods, Vice Chair, DAIWA Capital Markets Europe Limited
Paul Sewell, Metro Bank PLC
Peter Alford, St James Place
David Cooper, Wells Fargo
Fiona Beale, Aviva
Dominic Christian, AON Insurance
Florine Le Guilloux, Axa
Jo Scott, Aspen Insurance
Mark Higgs, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP
Dan Scanlon, Brookfield Properties
Stewart Dawson, Vattenfall
Ruth Duston, Primera Corporation
Ruby Raw (Observer), City of London Corporation
Judith Pleasance CC (Observer), City of London Corporation
Kate Hart, Chief Executive Officer
Henry Johnstone, Chief Operating Officer
Ailsa Anderson, Director of Marketing & Communications
Claire Dumontier-Marriage, BID Director
Will Dyson, Placemaking Director
William Austin, Cultural Partnerships Manager (Consultant)
Lucy Bowles, Executive Assistant and Office Manager
Bryn Little, Project Assistant
Tarisai Ejeta, Events Manager
Helena Forrest, Senior Marketing Manager
Publications
22/23 Annual Report
Find out more about our approach and performance in 2022 – 2023 in our annual report
Download23/24 Billing Leaflet
Our billing leaflet outlines our delivery plan and budgets for the year
Download24/25 Delivery Plan
Read more about how we intend to deliver our services and strategy in 2024 – 2025
Download23/24 Annual Report
Find out more about our approach and performance in 2023 – 2024 in our annual report
DownloadFreight, Servicing and Deliveries (FSD) Consolidation Mapping
Find out more about the Eastern City BIDs Freight, Servicing and Deliveries Consolidation Mapping by Polaris
DownloadBusiness Plan 2022-2027
Read our Business Plan 2022-2027 and find out more about the Eastern City BID’s work over the 5-year term.
Download
Sculpture in the City 13th Edition
Sculpture in the City is an annual sculpture park that uses the urban realm as a rotating gallery space. The 13th Edition of Sculpture in the City is on display from 24 July 2024 – Spring 2025, and includes 17 artworks by 15 artists: Arturo Herrera, Clare Burnett, Daniel Silver,…
Friday Sessions Sushi Samba
SAMBAROOM invites guests to experience the all-new Friday Sessions, taking place from 10:30 PM to 3 AM. This vibrant event is set to kickstart the weekend with an electrifying atmosphere where music and entertainment take center stage. Attendees can look forward to a night filled with dynamic DJ sets, live…
The City of London Guides Walking Tours
The City of London Guides – or, to give us our full title, the City of London Guide Lecturers Association – are the official guides to the Square Mile. Whether you’re visiting London for the first time, looking to book a corporate activity for your team or simply curious about…
Embodiment in Nature by Otherlandz
Embodiment in Nature explores the profound connections between humanity and the natural world, bringing us closer to the environments we inhabit. Through this exhibition, we invite you to consider how the rhythms of nature are mirrored in womanhood — our bodies, emotions, and societies—and how we, in turn, leave our…
The Power of Different Forum – Supporting neuro-divergent Individuals in the workplace
The Power of Different Forum 1 – Supporting Neuro-divergent Individuals: Creating Inclusive Cultures 📅 Date & Time: Tuesday, 18 March 2025 | 1:30 PM – 3:30 PM GMT (Doors open at 1:00 PM) 📍 Location: etc.venues Monument, 8 Eastcheap, London, EC3M 1AE Join us for an engaging and insightful…
The Big Egg Hunt 2025
London will soon be transformed into an open-air art gallery as over 100 large-scale egg sculptures take over the city for The Big Egg Hunt 2025. Organised by wildlife charity Elephant Family in partnership with Clarence Court, this extraordinary event will unite leading artists and designers to create unique pieces…
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