City residents will soon have an opportunity to contribute their ideas on the Corporation’s plans for promoting the Square Mile.
By David Wilcox

City residents will soon have an opportunity to contribute their ideas on the Corporation’s plans to attract visitors whose spending could help support the Square Mile economy hit by working from home.
On November 7 the Destination City team will hold their first public meeting with residents to explain how the programme “aims to transform the Square Mile’s leisure offer, creating a leading destination for UK and international visitors, workers, and residents to enjoy”.
The flyer for the meeting adds: “We invite you to hear from the Programme Director and her team about the aims and progress of Destination City and how you can contribute/get involved”.
Councillor Brendan Barns, who is the Resident Representative on the City Envoy Network “will be building a residents panel to input into the Destination City programme.”
The meeting on November 7 is at St Giles Church from 6.30 – 8.30pm, organised as a Cripplegate Ward meeting. However, all local residents are welcome, and no booking is necessary.

The highlight of the Destination City programme so far has been the £1.8 million Bartholomew Fair spectacular, which staged over 250 events across the City during three weeks in September. It was launched with a vertical dance performance on St Paul’s Cathedral.
A group of residents and councillors also staged a complementary Cloth Fair programme to celebrate the origins of the Fair in Smithfield in 1133. You can read about the programmes and history of the Fair on a website created in collaboration with The City Courant magazine and the group.
As well as staging Bartholomew Fair, the Destination City team has launched a new website for visitors.
The future Destination City programme includes a commitment to “Improve wayfinding by increasing awareness that the City is not individual buildings, but a collective of fascinating places to see, spend in and work at”. This could be one way for residents to contribute ideas.
More about the meeting, and Destination City, in this blog post.