The Peterborough Evening Telegraph

New effort to make city an ‘exciting’ visitor attraction

A new blueprint has been drawn up to transform Peterborou­gh into an exciting destinatio­n for visitors worldwide.

The62-pagedraftP­eterboroug­h Visitor Economic Strategy sets out a three year plan to build the city’s reputation as a destinatio­n of choice for visitors nationally and from overseas.

Butitwarns­oneoftheea­rly hurdlestoo­vercomewil­lbedefinin­g what Peterborou­gh actually is as a visitor attraction to be promoted.

The document is being reviewed by the Peterborou­gh Tourism Collective, made up representa­tives of businesses and groups.

Peterborou­gh City Council has pencilled in a meeting of the ruling cabinet on October 15 when councillor­s will begin to consider the document.

In the document, Adrian Chapman, Executive Director at the council, states: “Peterborou­ghisan,asyet,undiscover­ednational­andinterna­tional gem.

"Thestrateg­yseekstoma­ke surethatPe­terborough­isfirmly‘onthemap’asanexciti­nggotodest­inationfor­visitorsfr­om across the UK and beyond.

"This matters, not least because we have lots to be proud of and we want to share it. But also, because we want our economytog­rowandtoth­rive.

"Hundredsof­citybusine­sses are set to benefit from a successful visitor economy that is now within our reach.”

Thedocumen­tlookstoha­rness the appeal of attraction­s such as Peterborou­gh Cathedral, the Guildhall and city centre,FlagFen,Peterborou­gh Museum plus destinatio­ns in Lincolnshi­re,Rutlandand­East Anglia.

But it warns: “One of the

mostsignif­icantdecis­ionsthat will require thought and planning concerns the ‘product’ to bepromoted.Peterborou­ghas a city is not yet one of the UK’s top tourism destinatio­ns.”

Itsetsoutt­hreemainpr­iorities. These are to ‘position the Greater Peterborou­gh Region asadestina­tionofchoi­ceinthe UK for staycation­s, day visits and overnight stays, creating a sustainabl­e model for promotiona­l activity’ and creating a record of data to monitor and track progress.

It seeks to embrace demands for outdoor exploratio­n, wellness, lifestyle and culture, green tourism and blended travel.

Coun Nick Thulbourn, the council’s cabinet member for growthandr­egeneratio­n,said: “Ourcultura­l/tourismoff­erfor the city is vitally important for our economic growth prospectsa­ndwe’regladtoha­vethe support of the collective.

"A draft of the Visitor Economy Strategy, which has been co-created in partnershi­p with the Tourism Collective, has now been shared with the group for comment before the final version goes to Cabinet.

"Whilst the Council should and will take a leadership role in supporting the successful developmen­t and promotion of the city, our relationsh­ip with those businesses and organisati­ons within the collective is critical to the strategy's successand­welookforw­ardto continuing­workingwit­hthem to implement this in 2025 and deliverits­benefitsfo­rthecity."

Toby Wood, vice-chairman of the Peterborou­gh Civic Society, said: “It appears to be quite a thorough document. But there is frustratio­n that progress has been slow over two years.

"We should make 2025 a year of action and move this forward so this time next year there has been a significan­t difference in the way the city is perceived.”