In the first year of Liverpool’s £2 levy, over £2m has been raised and invested, driving overnight stays and making Liverpool a more competitive UK and international destination. Between 1st June 2025 and 31st May 2026, £2,069,864 has been invested from the BID levy into the visitor economy. Overall from the start of the Accommodation BID in 2023, £4.5m has been invested in Liverpool’s visitor economy.
For every £2 raised through the BID Levy, Liverpool sees around £82 returned to the local economy. This includes hospitality, travel and parking, and culture.
The levy is used to support major events across sports, culture and conferencing. Events supported by the Accommodation BID have generated more than £86 million for Liverpool’s economy (based on footfall and spend data from Beauclair and Visit Britain economic impact modelling).
Future events already secured through Accommodation BID support are expected to bring a further £132 million to the city. Liverpool hotels are on average 82% full during BID-supported events, nearly 8% higher than the city’s annual occupancy rate.
On 1st June 2025, Liverpool’s overnight £2 visitor levy was introduced, voted for by the city Accommodation BID, hoteliers and serviced accommodation businesses. Nationally, the Government is developing the legislation to introduce an Overnight Visitor Levy, detailing the timing, charging, governance and implementation. This is a different structure than The Liverpool Model, the Mayoral model uses a percentage of the room rate, which is not fixed, in contrast to the fixed £2 per room per night fee Liverpool has innovated, led by the private sector and the business improvement district structure.
Already, 20 projects and initiatives worth more than £1 million have been approved for delivery across 2026 and 2027, with some extending into 2028. A further £1.7 million pipeline is now being developed with partners, with many projects expected to progress for approval during autumn 2026. The ambition is not simply to secure individual events, but to develop successful activity into recurring programmes that strengthen off-peak and midweek demand, smooth and grow occupancy across the year and extend the reach of event marketing into priority staying visitor markets.
Sport investment, from major events and festivals, has been a major focus of the ABID. From The Open Championship to 2027 World Majorettes, Nations Cup and World Championships, Inclusive Sport & Culture Festival, 2030 World Gymnastics Championships, the BID Levy is bringing thousands of athletes and spectators to Liverpool.
The Accommodation BID is also delighted to support a new Super League Basketball franchise, returning top-flight men’s professional basketball Liverpool. The new club will begin competing in the upcoming 2026-27 season, with M&S Bank Arena serving as its home venue.
36 conferences have been supported by the ABID, bringing thousands of delegates into Liverpool.
Cultural support has been extended to the Liverpool Film Office, the city’s River of Light festival, and LCR Culture Network, ensuring that the city’s arts and cultural activity is maximised for its visitor economy and hospitality sector.
Destination Marketing brings together seasonal campaigns, working with partners including the Liverpool Visitor Economy Network to maximise Liverpool as a place both for business and leisure.
Bill Addy is CEO of Liverpool Business Improvement District, which oversees the Liverpool ABID
“The Liverpool Model is one that works, driven by and shaped by the private sector. Over the past twelve months, Liverpool’s operating ABID has been able to illustrate what a robust and working model can successfully implement and achieve. Work is being done locally and regionally to define a sustainable devolved model that is as equally impactful and economically sound.
The ABID has developed an established, industry-led mechanism for investing the levy income against the priorities, goals and objectives laid out in its Business Plan. In short, it is about converting visits into overnight stays, because people who stay overnight spend more money in the visitor economy. An industry led operating committee and three hotelier led sub groups oversee the working of the ABID and its investment priorities.”
