Memorandum submitted by the Tamar Valley
Tourism Association (TAVATA)
TAVATA is one of the many associations with
relatively small membership (140) which are run totally voluntary
with no paid administration. It was formed five years ago to fill
a gap in the mosaic of Devon and Cornwall.
— the Tamar Valley from Plymouth
and Rame Head stretches 80 miles due north to Bude. The County
boundary splits the area down the River Tamar;
— it is a deep valley of great
beauty partly covered by an AONB and with considerable mining
heritage. It is therefore a tourist entity in its own right; and
— other Associations such as SECTA
(South East Cornwall) centers on Looe. BoB (Best of Bodmin) centers
round Bodmin Moor, DTA (Datrmoor) do not cover the Tamar Valley
and could not represent the area.
TAVATA looks inward to the support visitors
to the area and tourism associated businesses. It provides, for
a membership fee of £45, an entry in:
— six leaflets. 10,000 of each
are printed yearly for distribution locally; and
— accommodation lists to go out
to Tourist Information Centres.
The Secretary in addition to normal Association
administration keeps the membership informed by email of:
— events arranged by the NT, Towns,
Gardens, Devon & Cornwall Railways etc;
— police notices, scams; and
The Committee are of course all volunteers.
— one member is a IT consultant
and has designed and developed the web;
— one produces an e-newsletter;
and
— one is a member of the AONB
etc.
PRIVATE/PUBLIC
PARTNERSHIP
TAVATA works closely with the AONB, Local District
Councils, Town Councils, QHM on river related problems, other
Tourist Associations. It is now working closely with CoaST (Cornwall
Sustainable Tourism) to implement an Association wide green agenda.
Though we represent 140 tourist related business
we have never been approached by any of the government sponsored
tourist organisations and certainly have never been offered any
help. We have little idea who is in charge as there is a plethora
of organisations especially in Cornwall, none of whom are taking
a leadership role.
FUNDING
Money for tourism does not cascade down beyond
the public bodies. There is no sharing of resources for local
initiatives such as our leaflets or development of web sites.
We have to find grants from organisations which are not primarily
tourist support organisations.
QUALITY AGENDA
Quality is vital for the success of any tourist
industry and vital for our 80 Accommodation providers of which
34 are NQAS. If TAVATA insisted on inspection we would probable
lose a high proportion of the 46 unregistered. Why:
— cost. VisitBritain charge a
joining at a cost of £60 or £70 a year plus yearly inspection
fees of £140. £200 is one weeks rent for a small self-catering
cottage out of season;
— inflexibility of organisation;
and
— does not bring in the bookings.
VisitBritain is trying to bring in the scheme
by the back door by insisting that accommodation providers cannot
use the TICs or be members of the Green Tourism Business Scheme
unless they have been inspected. On what authority do they do
this since we all pay taxes and rates?
ALLOCATION OF
FUNDS
It would appear from an outsider that the tourism
budget is spent on administration for the plethora of organisations
and for the provision of training courses. The sheer number of
courses offered for free and the poor take up on the whole surely
indicates that that sector is saturated. Some of the money would
be better spent on the promotion of the SW to increase numbers
of visitors and to extend the season either end.
GREEN AGENDA
All Tourist Associations wish to improve their
green credentials because it is a good marketing tool and a good
financial tool for many businesses. TAVATA:
— prints all leaflets on recycled
paper;
— is encouraging all members to
join CoaST at £32 a year; and
— is planning to join SECTA's
Green Acorn Scheme at £30 a year with inspection every two
years.
VisitCornwall is encouraging businesses to join
the Green Business Scheme at a cost of £120 for inspection
every year but only if you are inspected at a cost of £140
having joined VisitBritain for £70.
March 2008
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