Pictured: Tim Manson
Marketing Birmingham will work closely with VisitEngland on a
new tourism campaign, 'Growing Tourism Locally', which will
stimulate economic growth and jobs at a local level.
VisitEngland's bid for £20m of additional funding from the
Regional Growth Fund (RGF) for the project was successful, it was
announced today by the Department for Business, Innovation and
Skills.
Marketing Birmingham will be a key partner on the three-year
project, which will be a national campaign aimed at inspiring
Britons to take more short breaks and holidays at home and in doing
so, grow jobs in the tourism sector.
Tim Manson, Operations & Policy Director for Marketing
Birmingham, said:
"We are delighted to be a key destination partner for this
project, which will provide an important lift for the tourism
sector in this country.
"Through our marketing strategy, Visit Birmingham, the 'Growing
Tourism Locally' campaign will help us to position the city and
surrounding area as a key destination for visitors looking to
holiday in England.
"In addition, it will also help us to create more jobs within
the region, which is vital for our economic growth. We will be
working closely with VisitEngland not only on our local marketing
campaigns, but also on how we can capitalise on key national events
to the benefit of Birmingham and surrounding area."
James Berresford, VisitEngland's Chief Executive commented:
"This is a huge boost for VisitEngland as the country's national
tourist board, working in partnership to facilitate growth at a
local level, and an acknowledgement of the value of our industry to
England's economy. With this additional money we can mount a
serious campaign to stimulate domestic tourism that has the
potential to create the equivalent of 9,500 full time jobs in areas
across the country suffering economic challenges."
Mr Berresford goes onto say:
"Our strategy is to work with tourism partners and the private
sector at a national and local level. Our partners will manage
elements of the campaign pertaining directly to their local
destination, whilst VisitEngland will manage the national strategy
which will support this local activity. We will work closely with
Government on the next stage of the process which determines the
terms and conditions of the funding."
The national marketing campaign will see VisitEngland working
closely with private sector partners to match fund the grant
received from the RGF.
The campaign will capitalise on next year's once-in-a-generation
events like London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, The Diamond
Jubilee, the Cultural Olympiad, and the Torch Relay that will act
as a catalyst to showcase the whole of the country.
The funding applied for will be allocated to a number of
destination partners in England that will work closely with
VisitEngland to design and implement local campaigns. In addition
to Marketing Birmingham, these include Marketing Manchester, Bath
Tourism Plus, Visit Peak District and Derbyshire, Cumbria Tourism
and Visit York. As well as targeted activity in these areas there
will be a series of thematic campaigns focusing on countryside,
heritage, coastal and business tourism.
For more information about Marketing Birmingham, please visit
their website here: www.marketingbirmingham.com