Download Local Authority Tourism Service Functions

CIPFA Technical Information Service 2009
Leisure and Cultural Services – Tourism Chapter
Overview
Economic Significance
Tourism represents one of the UK’s most important economic activities, yet partly
because of its diverse nature its significance is consistently overlooked and it has a
comparatively low profile both economically and politically.
In reality, according to a recent report by Deloittes, tourism has a direct and indirect
impact of £114bn per annum (8.2 per cent of GDP) and provides 2.65m jobs (8.4 per
cent of the total UK workforce). It is also the UK’s third largest source of export
earnings (£19bn per annum) and it is forecast that the sector will grow by 65 per cent
(to £188bn) over the next 10 years provided that it is properly managed.
In London the visitor economy is estimated to be worth c. £17bn per annum and the
sector supports up to 280,00 full-time jobs. The capital out-performs New York,
Tokyo and Paris in terms of the value of visitor expenditure, visitor numbers and
visitor satisfaction. Tourism also accounts for 243,000 jobs in Yorkshire and Humber
and represents 12 per cent of GDP in the South West of England.
Structure
Over 200,000 businesses are active in tourism in the UK, of which some 80 per cent
are SMEs, and the sector traditionally attracts entrepreneurial activity: over 11 per
cent of registrations for new businesses in the UK relate to the visitor economy,
considerably in excess of its percentage share of GDP.
In a public sector context the picture in England is quite complex. The Government
Department for tourism is the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and
the sector falls within the brief of the Minister for Culture, Creative Industries and
Tourism. DCMS sponsors the national tourist office VisitBritain and through VB the
England marketing arm, VisitEngland. VB works with DCMS to agree policy and
strategy for tourism as well as promoting the UK overseas
In a regional context, in London the Mayor has a statutory responsibility for
promoting and developing tourism defined under the Greater London Authority Act
(1999). The Mayor delegates part of this role to the London Development Agency
(LDA) which in turn, contracts Visit London to deliver tourism marketing.
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The Greater London Authority (GLA) takes responsibility for: setting tourism policy;
incorporating tourism into other GLA strategies; responding to national or
Government issues and consultations; responding to developing situations and
emergency planning.
The LDA takes responsibility for: delivering tourism development projects (setting
quality standards; visitor information; sub-regional partnerships); tourism research
and statistics; project management and funding. Visit London takes responsibility for:
marketing and promotion; representing the tourism industry in London; convention
bureau and business tourism. Responsibility for events is shared between the three
organisations.
Elsewhere in England the DCMS gives some funding to the Regional Development
Agencies in England for tourism purposes, although the RDAs main funding and
sponsoring body is the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform
(DBRR). RDAs have responsibility for funding on their own respective areas but the
amount of support they give depends on the strategic significance they attribute to
tourism. Sub-regional structures below RDA level vary considerably: depending on
the region in question these can comprise regional tourist boards, area tourism
partnerships, destination management partnerships (DMPs) and destination
management organisations (DMOs). However, not all DMPs and DMOs fulfil similar
functions across the regions.
Beneath the RDAs and regional partnerships in the public sector tourism firmament
lie the local authorities, many of which have been involved in tourism for a
considerable time. These cover coastal, urban and rural destinations. LAs have a
critical role in sustaining the tourism infrastructure, not only through their
development and marketing activities but also through their public realm investment
which form a key element of place shaping and maintaining the destination’s
ambience.
Management and Processes
Tourism is a diverse activity covering not only holidays and leisure but also business
travel. Long holidays, short breaks, day trips, visiting friends and relatives,
conferences, events and exhibitions all come within its ambit.
From the perspective of public sector tourism management and delivery national,
regional and local organisations are involved in a variety of activities, notably:
research, strategy and policy formulation, development, information provision and
marketing.
The Role of Local Authorities in Tourism Management and Delivery
Tourism is not a statutory duty for local authorities and they do not therefore have to
fund a tourism service. Even where services do exist, at times of financial pressure
they are vulnerable to cuts and in extremis closure, not least as ratepayers may not
appreciate the benefits of tourism.
To safeguard the tourism service and ensure its effectiveness most local authorities
form partnerships or become membership organisations as a means of engaging with
their local tourism businesses - this can provide a stronger financial base and enable
the service to be run on more commercial lines, with partners having more of a say as
to how it operates.
The provision of a tourism service by a local authority engenders a number of clearly
defined benefits:
The Economy
 Tourism can contribute substantially to the economic health of the destination
and surrounding area and raises its profile
 It contributes to the local economy via business rates from tourism properties
 It encourages new businesses to move to the destination
 The tourism service can assist with business start-ups
 It can help companies with feasibility studies
 It can assist with development and planning issues
Employment
 Tourism provides jobs within hotels, attractions, gift shops, clubs, theatres etc
 It supports jobs within associated sectors – e.g. highways, street cleaning,
parking, building work
Quality
 The tourism service pushes up quality by working solely with accommodation
providers that are quality graded
 It educates “ambassadors to the destination” – taxi, bus drivers etc
 Through training initiatives it helps raise the level of service offered to the
customer in all areas
Sustainability
The tourism service helps to:
 Manage tourism flows
 Control new developments
 Control planning permissions – ensuring the market is not swamped
 Encourage staying as opposed to day visitors
 Ensure green spaces are left for all to enjoy
 Provide public facilities
 Ensure residents are aware of benefits of tourism
In addition:
 Entry fees paid by tourists can help financially in maintaining the fabric of
buildings
Educational programmes
The tourism service can assist with the educational curriculum by:
 Giving lectures and presentations
 Offering work placements
 Providing guided tours for local and foreign students
Infrastructure
The existence of a tourism service can have a positive impact in relation to:
 Good road and rail links to the destination
 Parking facilities – to minimise congestion
 Improved leisure facilities
 The creation of pedestrian-only areas which reduce the clogging narrow streets
 The spreading of tourism around the city – not clogging the “honey pot “ areas
 The siting of coach parks away from the centre
Local Authority Tourism Service Functions
As has previously been stated, LA tourism services frequently undertake their
activities in partnership with the local tourism industry. However, with the advent of
Regional Development Agencies, the delivery of LA tourism services is now often
carried out in collaboration with other destinations under the umbrella of Destination
Management Partnerships or Destination Management Organisations.
Such activities whether undertaken independently or in partnership include:
Strategic planning
Strategic planning, usually for a five- to ten-year period, is a vital building block of
LA tourism activity, not least as tourism is a highly fragmented industry. It is also a
key component in ensuring that a sustainable approach is adopted. A successful
strategy, based on wide consultation with stakeholders, should include a destination
assessment, take a long-term view, articulate policies for a comprehensive range of
issues, identify proposals for implementation by the various partners and provide a
framework for monitoring and review.
Research
Access to robust and reliable research data, both of a quantitative and qualitative
nature, underpins strategic planning, development proposals and accurately targeted
marketing campaigns. Volume and value data, historically furnished by the STEAM,
Cambridge and (in London) LATI econometric modelling techniques, are important
elements in establishing tourism’s importance to a destination’s economy. Trend data
and forecasting are crucial to product development and cost-effective promotion
Development
No destination can afford to stand still in terms of the appeal and variety offered by its
ambience and attractions. Quite apart from helping to maintain the basic
environment, LA tourism services constantly strive to identify what product
development is needed to enhance the attractiveness of the destination, whether this
relates to leisure facilities, attractions or events. Such developments of course are of
equal benefit to local residents.
Development activities can also relate to quality. This can embrace quality
accreditation relating to accommodation and attractions or training schemes aimed at
improving the levels of customer service.
Marketing
No matter how attractive a destination is, it counts for little in a tourism context if
potential visitors don’t know about it. By analysing research data at both a national
and regional level, an LA tourism service can undertake marketing activity which is
targeted at the right visitor markets, be they overseas, in the UK or in a day –visit
context more regional. Marketing activity often makes sense on a partnership basis,
whether this be with VisitBritain, VisitEngland, regional tourist boards or other
destinations in the region. Whatever approach is adopted, it is important that the
brand being promoted resonates with the target market.
In its broadest sense marketing can embrace advertising, public relations, direct
marketing through mail and electronic media, IT, literature provision and exhibitions.
It can be directed directly at the consumer or use intermediaries such as the travel
trade.
Information provision
While information provision is an important element of marketing, it also
encompasses information given to visitors at the destination, be they casual day
visitors or those on a longer break. Such information, traditionally provided through
Tourist Information Centres (TICs) but also made available through accommodation
establishments can do much to enhance the visitors enjoyment and can be
instrumental in generating repeat visits. TICs can also help on a reciprocal basis to
promote other destinations and attractions throughout the region and occasionally on a
nationwide basis
At the current time when LA budgets are tight, TICs in some destinations are under
threat. However, as an important part of the country’s tourism infrastructure, it is
highly desirable that a strong network of TICs is maintained. For that reason it is vital
that TICs identify ways of generating revenue, so they are less dependent on
receiving grants from their LA.
Performance management and monitoring
To ensure that the quality of service delivery of an LA tourism unit constantly
evolves, it is important that the service undertakes ongoing performance monitoring
and evaluation. This can include the tracking of resources in terms of
income/expenditure and staff, measuring the return on investment from campaigns,
the implementation of local industry satisfaction and destination benchmarking
surveys, assessing performance against agreed local and national indicators and
comparison of outcomes with similar destinations. Destination Performance UK (DP
UK), an LA tourism service membership organisation, specialises in this area.
(www.dpuk.org.uk)
Representation
LAs’ interests in a tourism context are represented to an extent by the Local
Government Association (LGA) but also more specifically by the British Resorts and
Destinations Association (BRADA) and DP UK. Both are membership organisations:
BRADA concentrates more on representation and lobbying (particularly for coastal
destinations), while DP UK’s main focus is performance management, evaluation and
best practice.
Individual tourism practitioners, particularly those working in the public sector, may
join the Tourism Management Institute or the Tourism Society, both of which are
concerned with professional development but also undertake lobbying activities as
appropriate.
Emerging Trends
As is the case with many sectors, tourism is in a constant state of flux but recent
changes to the structure in England will present an opportunity for a more coordinated
approach to national, regional and local tourism activity. These recent changes
include the creation of Partners for England, the emergence of a separate Visit
England organisation as part of the British Tourism Framework Review and an
emphasis on local authorities to establish new strategic partnerships and identify
creative ways of working within the wider tourism sector.
Partners for England is a collaborative partnership established in 2007 with a
targeted focus on increasing the prosperity of the visitor economy in England. The
initiative places a strong emphasis on the national, regional, sub-regional and local
tourism interface and the pursuit of economies of scale, involving both the public and
private sectors. The primary objective is to create a shared sense of purpose through
agreeing a core set of priorities for joint action and delivery.
Partners for England has five specific areas for action: 1. Leadership
o Creation of Visit England, a new organisation for the development and
marketing of England’s visitor economy, supported by Visit Britain but acting
in a stand-alone capacity. Visit England will be responsible for delivering an
effective and co-ordinated tourism strategy for England.
o Real and continuing engagement at all levels through the Partners for England
Forum. Representation on the forum includes national bodies representing
both the public and private sectors, Regional Development Agencies,
Destination Management Organisations, Local Authorities.
2. Intelligence
o The creation of the English Tourism Intelligence Unit overseen by the English
Tourism Intelligence Partnership (ETIP). The purpose of the Partnership is
to lead action and investment to improve tourism intelligence and statistics
within England and to provide better evidential support for tourism investment
and strategy development. Funded jointly by the Regional Development
Agencies and VisitBritain, ETIP has the Office of National Statistics as a key
partner and ONS have established a new Tourism Intelligence Unit as part of
the delivery programme
o The Unit will be looking at the potential to track the economic impacts of
tourism through ‘mainstreaming’ of tourism satellite accounts as well as
producing guidance on measuring tourism locally.
3. Place Making Charter
o The Place Making Charter was developed to help realise the huge crosscutting economic, environmental and social benefits of a thriving visitor
economy where a focus on destination management and development is
essential, as is the need for joined up thinking in the development and
implementation of national and regional policy.
o The Charter promotes continuous quality improvement and provides a core set
of principles (integrate; inform; innovate; invest and improve) to be
championed by stakeholders in a destination - recognising that places are
unique. By signing up an organisation is agreeing to champion excellent
destination management in their area and identify where delivery
responsibilities lie.
o The key aims of the Charter are
Awareness – to influence prioritisation by national and regional
bodies, local authorities and businesses
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Clarity – roles and responsibilities of key players
Focus – on destination management and place-shaping
Partnership – encourage and foster collaboration in a fragmented
sector
Improvement - drive continuous quality improvement
4. Marketing
o The fourth area of activity is marketing with a desire to achieve a better
alignment of national, regional and local marketing.
o This programme includes championing new digital communication
technologies, making greater use of user-generated content (Trip Advisor) and
improving the overall quality and range of tourist information services.
o The new approach includes a Partners for England marketing planning day to
look specifically at short- to medium-term marketing strategy; campaign
themes and priorities; media approach and product development. This will be
the first time that marketing is planned from the bottom-up.
5. Skills and Welcome
o The focus here is very much on the 2012 London Olympic and Paralympic
games with a desire to deliver a world class visitor experience and maximise
the legacy from the games.
o The programme is focused around developing and implementing a ‘Welcome
to Britain’ strategy with four areas of action
-
Procedures and Processes
Information
Customer Service
Perceptions