Visit East Midlands launches with £1bn visitor economy ambition

A new regional partnership has been launched with the ambition of growing the East Midlands visitor economy by an additional £1 billion by 2035 – attracting more visitors, encouraging longer stays and increasing spending across the region.

Visit East Midlands brings together the East Midlands Combined County Authority (EMCCA), local authorities, destination organisations and businesses to give the region a stronger voice, attract new audiences and help tourism and hospitality businesses grow.

The partnership and its new website were officially launched by Mayor of the East Midlands at Nottingham Castle tonight, Wednesday, 14 October.

Mayor Claire Ward said: “Today marks an exciting step forward as we bring our partners together being one shared ambition to showcase the very best of the East Midlands.

“When I stood for Mayor, I promised to put the East Midlands back on the map as a place to visit. From the Peak District and Sherwood Forest to our cities, market towns, heritage, culture and world-class sporting venues, we have an incredible story to tell and so much for people to discover.

“By working together, we can tell that story more effectively and make it easier for people to explore more of the East Midlands. We want visitors to stay longer, spend more and discover brilliant places they might not otherwise have considered.

“We have set ourselves an ambitious target of growing the visitor economy by an additional £1bn by 2035. By working together and telling more people what makes the East Midlands special, we can attract new visitors, create opportunities for local businesses and make sure communities across our region benefit.”

Central hub

The Visit East Midlands website will provide a central hub for the region’s visitor economy, bringing together research, sector data, investment opportunities, funding programmes and practical resources for businesses. It will also showcase the East Midlands’ collective strengths, from its landscapes, heritage and culture to its sporting venues, major events and business tourism offer.

The platform will complement established destination websites, including Visit Nottinghamshire, Visit Derby and Visit Peak District & Derbyshire, which will continue to promote individual places and experiences directly to visitors. Visit East Midlands will help partners promote the wider region alongside these established local campaigns.

Jo Dilley, Visit Peak District & Derbyshire managing director, said: “Tourism is a vital part of our local economy, contributing £3.58bn to the Peak District and Derbyshire and supporting thousands of jobs and businesses across our communities.

“Visit East Midlands provides an exciting opportunity to build on the strength of our individual destinations, working collaboratively to raise the profile of the wider region, attract new audiences and encourage more visitors to stay longer and spend more.

“Crucially, the Partnership will help champion the visitor economy as a key growth sector, attracting the investment and funding needed to support the diverse mix of businesses that make up our industry and deliver the ambitious growth targets set out in EMCCA’s Growth Plan.

“By showcasing the diversity of our offer, from our outstanding landscapes and heritage to our vibrant towns, culture and experiences, we can create more opportunities for tourism businesses and drive sustainable growth across the East Midlands.”

Megan Powell Vreeswijk, Marketing Nottingham & Nottinghamshire, including Visit Nottinghamshire, chief executive officer, said: “Nottingham and Nottinghamshire have an incredible story to tell. From our legendary heritage and vibrant city to Sherwood Forest, our historic market towns, world-class sporting venues, culture and creativity, we have so much to offer visitors from across the UK and around the world.

“Being part of Visit East Midlands gives us an exciting opportunity to elevate our offer as part of a bigger, stronger regional voice. By bringing together the distinctive strengths of our destinations, we can reach new audiences, raise our collective profile and encourage visitors to discover more of what our region has to offer.

“As the Local Visitor Economy Partnership for Nottingham and Nottinghamshire, our visitor economy contributes £2.53bn in Gross Value Added (GVA) to the region and we recognise the importance of building on this with the expertise, established relationships and successes of our individual destinations, while working collaboratively to unlock opportunities that would be harder to achieve alone.

“This ambition is about more than attracting visitors. It is about encouraging longer stays, supporting our businesses, attracting major events and conferences, creating jobs and investment, and ensuring that the benefits of a thriving visitor economy reach communities across our city, county and wider region.

“We are proud of what Nottingham and Nottinghamshire contribute to the East Midlands, and equally excited by what we can achieve together. Through this partnership, we have an opportunity to put our destinations on an even bigger stage and turn our shared ambition into lasting economic growth.”

Visitor Economy Strategic Framework

The launch supports EMCCA’s new Visitor Economy Strategic Framework, which sets out how partners will work together to deliver the £1bn growth ambition over the next decade. Priorities include improving visitor experiences and facilities, attracting more domestic and international visitors, developing the skills businesses need and making it easier to travel between destinations.

A key focus will be attracting more overnight visitors. The framework aims to increase overnight stays from about 8m to 12m a year by 2035.

The framework also aims to build on the East Midlands’ strong film and television connections – Chatsworth House featured as Pemberley in Pride and Prejudice, while Wollaton Hall in Nottingham was used as Wayne Manor in The Dark Knight Rises, for example.

Promoting these locations could encourage more fans to visit the places they have seen on screen, while a proposed regional screen office could help attract productions and support the local creative industries.

Other opportunities include building on the region’s strengths in conferences and events, international tourism and sport, helping attract new audiences and investment.

Latest 2024 estimates show the visitor economy across Derby, Derbyshire, Nottingham and Nottinghamshire generates £5.48bn in direct visitor spending each year, supports about 55,700 full-time equivalent jobs and attracts about 8m overnight stays and more than 70m day trips.

Visit East Midlands will give partners a shared platform to raise the region’s profile, help tourism and hospitality businesses make the most of new opportunities and bring more of the benefits of tourism to communities across the East Midlands.

For more information, visit the Visit East Midlands website at https://visiteastmidlands.org