Growth for Wirral's tourism economy

2nd February 2012

 Port Sunlight Summer Festival 2011

Wirral is increasingly becoming a destination for a mini-break as well as somewhere to go for a ‘great day out’, a recent survey of visitors to the borough showed.

And attracting more visitors, who are sticking around for longer, is having a positive impact on Wirral’s local economy with the tourism sector bucking the overall trend by reporting growth of some 15% over the last five years.

These headline findings from the visitor research study carried out by Ipsos Mori throughout 2011 are a vindication of the focused and collaborative efforts of Wirral’s tourism businesses, supported by Wirral Council, over the last five years.

The findings of that 2006 survey, which for the first time gave localised data as to exactly who Wirral’s visitors were, what brought them here, what they did while they were here and what could be done to improve their experience even further, provided the basis for the last five years of tourism development in the borough.

This development has included the creation of the Wirral Tourism Business Network, along with the establishment of the ‘Wirral Peninsula’ tourism brand and an annual marketing campaign with the theme ‘Play, Eat and Stay in Wirral’.

Juggy Landay, Destination Marketing Manager at Wirral Council, said: “The 2006 research told us that Wirral’s key attractions to visitors are our coast and countryside, quality food and culture; and that a large percentage of our visitors are relatively well off. Having this data allowed us to prioritise, to focus on clear areas and plan effectively for the years ahead.

“Establishing the business network has been key to the successes that have been identified in the latest visitor survey. Having a business-led network covering the six main industry sectors – accommodation, attractions, coast, food and drink, golf and history and heritage – demonstrates that we’re all working together. This not only benefits their business, but it also boosts the local economy generally and gives Wirral a strong identity both within and beyond the North West region.”

This benefit to the local economy is invaluable, particularly in the current financial climate. Tourism is worth more than £265 million to the local economy and provides employment for more than 4,000 people, the majority of them Wirral residents. Between the 2006 and 2011 visitor surveys, the value of tourism within the local economy has grown by 15%, a figure verified by the Mersey Partnership.

Cllr. Chris Meaden, Wirral Council Cabinet Member for Culture, Tourism and Leisure, says it is not just the sheer volume of visitors and the money being spent that has gone up over the last five years, the quality of people’s experiences while they’re here also shows that the area is getting it right.

“Overwhelmingly, visitors see Wirral as a beautiful place to relax, somewhere with something for all the family – according to the 2011 survey, 90% of visitors recommend Wirral as a place to visit.

“More than 80% of these visitors said that Wirral was better than other places they had visited in the last 12 months, which is a significant rise since 2006 when half of those surveyed said that. And more visitors said they were very satisfied with their visit to Wirral in 2011 than in 2006 – 66% compared to 55%. 95% said they were satisfied with their visit in 2011.”

Around half of those surveyed in 2011 said that the attraction of Wirral as a destination was that it provided ‘a great day out’ but a key finding of the survey is that the numbers of people who now extend their visit to an ‘overnighter’ has increased from 20% in 2006 to 26% in 2011.

Cllr. Meaden added: “More visitors are coming to Wirral for the first time than ever before and more of those ‘first-timers’ are coming from beyond the North West of England. This reflects the positive impact that everyone involved has had in promoting Wirral as a great place to visit over the last five years and also highlights the improvements that have been made in the quality of the offer once they get here in terms of accommodation, attractions, events and food and drink.”