March 2025

Maidstone is proving a role model for its management of the Business Improvement District (BID), so much so that representatives from other UK towns are beating a path to their door to find out how One Maidstone does it.

 Michelle Woodland, Chief Executive Officer One Maidstone BID, and Steven Pankhurst, BID’s Business Crime Manager, told an audience of more than 20 in the Museum Friends’ Shop, Fremlin Walk, on March 13, 2025, about their team’s efforts to make Maidstone a safer and better place.

BIDs can only be introduced when a majority of businesses vote for the scheme. It involves each paying a levy based on a small percentage of business rates and is worth a total of around £500,000 a year. Smaller businesses with a rateable value of less than £15,000 are exempt. The income funds security patrols, Christmas lights, deterrence of pickpockets, anti-social behaviour and e-scooters, apprehending offenders. 24/7 CCTV monitoring, two-way radio. events and other benefits.

Maidstone-born Steven, a winner of a high street hero award, exudes passion for his home town and his role. “I want to make Maidstone as safe as it can be,” he says. He carries a defibrillator and full first aid kit, using them to treat injuries and in extreme cases helping to save the life of anyone suffering a heart attack in the town centre.  He and his small team walk millions of steps a year inside the BID area. They also work with young offenders to help turn their lives around. As shoppers go about their daily business in the town centre, few may realise how much they owe to these unsung heroes making a big difference to the County Town.