Agenda item

DECISION

1.    The establishment of Destination Lincolnshire – a business led, project focused initiative – a county Destination Management Organisation (DMO) be approved.

2.    A proportion of the Additional Restrictions Grant funding of £300,000 be allocated to support the delivery of the Visitor Economy Resilience plans.

3.    The East Lindsey Destination Strategy be developed to incorporate Boston and reflect a joint Cultural Strategy across the Alliance.

4.    Authority be delegated to the Assistant Director for Town Deal to establish a Service Level Agreement with Destination Lincolnshire.

Portfolio Holders and Officer

RA/NW/

LR

REASON FOR DECISION

CouncillorRichard Austin presented a report by the Assistant Director - Towns Fund, which outlined the delivery of a plan to support the visitor economy, incorporating support to businesses within the retail, leisure and hospitality sectors.

The plan was a key component of the recovery plan developed by the Strategic Alliance and would deliver core elements of the Corporate Plan. It would deliver an improved visitor experience – new products to take advantage of the rise in domestic travel – as well as critical support to tourism and hospitality businesses – connecting them to national initiatives to re-open safely and bring more consumers to the District’s towns.

The importance of the tourism sector to the area, the opportunity for future growth through the Town Deal and the imperative to support recovery for an industry significantly impacted by the pandemic restrictions, combined to make the case for a sector focused delivery plan.

The plan for the visitor economy was based on working in partnership to deliver recovery, assist businesses and underpin growth. It would complement the new Economic Growth’s team amalgamation for the Alliance and was phased to reflect the Government’s roadmap.

Attached at Appendix A was an interim report containing the early recommendations from the Towns Fund Tourism Report.

Councillor Austin explained that he would be heavily involved with the establishment of a service level agreement (SLA) with Destination Lincolnshire.  Councillor Austin was keen to communicate with the Visit Lincolnshire team to acquire more details and hoped that the SLA would provide more opportunity for Boston to feature in publicity and promotion to enable people to discover, rather than simply visit, Boston.

CouncillorWelton described the plan as a comprehensive document that would take Boston forward into the future.  The incorporation of Boston in the East Lindsey Destination Strategy was significant, as it removed boundaries and would allow productive, collaborative partnership working across the whole area.  A huge amount of work had gone into producing the plan and it was a working document.  The Alliance would bring in more resources than ever and improve the skills available to both authorities to improve their economies.

Members commended the proposals as exciting and excellent. Although there was some concern regarding future funding of the Destination Management Organisation (DMO), Members were keen to support the visitor economy and businesses in the borough, and promote the area’s unique offer.

The Assistant Director - Towns Fund explained that the Visitor Economy Resilience plans were part of the Recovery Plan for the Strategic Alliance.  The plans were in line with national policy.  The Department for Culture, Media and Sport was preparing a visitor economy recovery plan and planning future funding opportunities through culture and tourism.  It was essential to support all businesses that supported the visitor economy, including retail, and be prepared for future funding opportunities following the critical effect of Covid19 restrictions.

In response to questions, the Assistant Director - Towns Fund confirmed that a Destination Lincolnshire pathway group had been set up from various private businesses to look at the establishment of the DMO and that the group would consider offices in different locations across the county.  The £300,000 was a ring-fenced amount provided by the Government for business support measures.  The proposed SLA would support businesses in line with that funding with Destination Lincolnshire around outcomes; it was not purely for the DMO establishment. The funding could not be used internally to support staff etc. and would be spent in line with funding requirements based on the SLA in year one.  The pathway group was focusing on the sustainability of the DMO and working with officers on a robust business plan for its future. The DMO was being established by Visit Lincoln as a separate organisation.  The SLA would be examined in liaison with the Portfolio Holders to ensure it met the requirements for Boston and East Lindsey.

OTHER OPTIONS OR ALTERNATIVES CONSIDERED

The alternative option is to allocate all funding to support business grants and not follow the recommendation of the funding grant from Government to support wider business support activities.

This would not be reflective of the approach of other local authorities, or the need to support a priority sector that has been most impacted by the pandemic.

If no support was given to Destination Lincolnshire it could hinder and restrict the effectiveness of the recovery plan developed by the Strategic Alliance – particularly elements of the proposed environmental improvements and the direct and indirect assistance to local businesses.

In the long term, there is a risk to the implementation and adoption of the Destination Strategy and the wider corporate plan priorities for the visitor economy.

RECORD OF ANY CONFLICT OF INTEREST

None.

RECORD OF ANY DISPENSATION GRANTED

None.