Charnwood Borough Council - Leading in Leicestershire

Charnwood Promotions was launched at a major event held on Friday 31 March 2006 at Holywell Park in Loughborough.

Charnwood Promotions is a body made up of interested parties from the local tourism and allied services community, supported by Charnwood Borough Council and the Leicester Shire Economic Partnership, and led by Leicester Shire Promotions. The partnership will implement a new plan aimed at developing the tourism offering locally and attracting more visitors to the district based on the proposition of the area becoming a centre for active leisure.

The event was free and open to all individuals and businesses with an interest in attracting visitors and tourists to the Loughborough and Charnwood area including visitor attractions and accommodation providers. In addition to the launch of the new Essential Guide for Loughborough and Charnwood Forest, attendees were able to participate in a brochure swap where they could collect bulk copies of the new Essential Guide and pick up literature from other local attractions and organisations, along with an opportunity to take a guided tour of Loughborough University’s sports facilities.

Explaining the pivotal role of tourism to the local economy and the role of Charnwood Promotions, Guy Jackson, Head of Marketing and Development at Loughborough University's Sport Development Centre said: "Loughborough is recognised as a sporting hub, not only within the East Midlands region, but also nationally and internationally. As the reputation of the area grows with new developments in this area, the increasing interest will undoubtedly result in additional business for related local companies, organisations and businesses. Sports tourism will be one of the key factors affected and we hope that the active leisure proposition of Charnwood Promotions will be an important driver for success from the visitor services sector."

Kishor Tailor, Chief Executive of the Leicester Shire Economic Partnership commented: “To maximise the impact on the local economy we are supporting the launch of Charnwood Promotions because we believe a co-ordinated approach led by an experienced organisation is essential. Within Charnwood there are several very well known attractions but with appropriate promotion the district has much more to offer and we hope this will attract additional visitors into Leicestershire."

Martin Peters, Chief Executive of Leicester Shire Promotions added: “Charnwood Promotions will be the driver for a range of new tourism initiatives in the local area, aimed at bringing a new partnership approach to the delivery of visitor services and maximising the impact of tourism on the local economy. The launch of this new organisation will provide the ideal platform for those businesses that want to shape and seize opportunities from the growing tourism market around active leisure in Charnwood and Loughborough.”

For more details on Charnwood Promotions or the role of the partnership, please contact Angela Skelton on 07768 386011 or email angela.skelton@l-p-l.com