The future… all about Local Visitor Economy Partnerships

Local Visitor Economy Partnerships

(LVEPs) are the key outcome of the 2021 independent review of Destination Management Organisations, in which VEE was cited as an example of good practice for partnership working with local authorities and DMOs.

The review outlined a new national portfolio of strategic and high-performing LVEPs to support collaborative working locally and nationally on shared priorities and targets to grow the local visitor economy.

As tourism and hospitality is the largest industry sector and biggest employer, Suffolk and Norfolk should have an ambition to become an accredited LVEP, through Visit East of England & Partners.

Since its launch in 2019, VEE has worked successfully with VisitEngland and VisitBritain, but in future only accredited LVEPs will get support from the national tourist organisations and be able to bid into national funding opportunities.

In the last six months many major tourism destinations in the country, including Cornwall, Yorkshire, Kent and Cumbria, have been made accredited LVEPs, following the initial pilot scheme set up between Visits Durham and Northumberland with the Newcastle Gateshead Initiative in the North East.

Without an LVEP in Suffolk and Norfolk, all the partnership working of the last four years will be lost and we will forfeit our seat at the national table again.

In the past six years, Visit East of England has successfully bid for £720,000 of funds to promote Suffolk and Norfolk. In the future, only LVEPs will get support from the national tourist organisations.