We’ll keep the Purple Flag flying here!

Bury is celebrating after once more being awarded the prestigious Purple Flag accreditation for its evening and night-time economy.

Similar to the Blue Flag for beaches, it aims to raise the standard and broaden the appeal of town and city centres between the hours of 5pm to 5am.

Areas awarded the Purple Flag are recognised for providing a vibrant and diverse mix of dining, entertainment and culture while promoting the safety and wellbeing of visitors and local residents.

Highlights from Bury’s submission include the enthusiasm for short and medium-term future plans under its town centre masterplan and levelling-up funding projects, the commendable level of police presence, and the dedication and local knowledge of the Street Pastor team.

Councillor Charlotte Morris, cabinet member for culture, the economy and skills, said: “We are delighted to receive this prestigious award again in recognition of the ongoing excellence of Bury town centre.

“A huge number of organisations have worked together to make our town centre a welcoming and successful destination: from the council and the police to pubs, restaurants and entertainment venues, retail and transport operators, to our dedicated street pastors.”

Victoria Robinson, Chair of Bury Business Improvement District (Bury BID Company), said “Achieving Purple Flag status is fantastic for the town centre, particularly as it highlights how closely the Night Time Economy businesses work together and how lucky we are in Bury to have the wonderful voluntary street pastors that provide incredible support week after week. The BID looks forward to maintaining Purple Flag status going forward.”

ENDS

Notes to editors

The ‘after dark’ economy is worth over £66bn^[1]annually to the UK, supporting thousands of businesses, employing 4.5% of the UK workforce^[2], and significantly contributing to local economies. This series of events intends to capture people’s imaginations, change perceptions and encourage people to do something different with their evening in a variety of locations.

About Purple Flag

The Purple Flag programme was developed following the Civic Trust’s “Night Vision” report in 2006 and is now managed by the Association of Town & City Management.

Purple Flag is:

• An accreditation process similar to Green Flag Award for parks and Blue Flag for beaches. It leads to Purple Flag status for town centres that meet or surpass the standards of excellence in managing the evening and night-time economy.
• A comprehensive set of standards, management processes and good practice examples designed to help transform town and city centres at night.
• A research, training and development programme, to help towns and cities improve their evening and night-time economy.
• A positive initiative that indicates an entertaining, diverse, safe and enjoyable night out.