Scottish Enterprise drives growth in highland Perthshire through ambition and cooperation

A new initiative to increase tourism in highland Perthshire has received a boost following a £300,000 grant from Scottish Enterprise.

Highland Perthshire Limited (HPL) combines the expertise of the Blair Atholl Area Tourism Association, the Dunkeld and Birnam Tourism Association, Explore Aberfeldy and The Pitlochry Partnership. It will develop a new Highland Perthshire brand and focus on stimulating business growth and attract new inward investment opportunities to boost the local tourism economy.  

Allan Watt, Scottish Enterprise’s director of infrastructure and industries in Tayside said: "We have identified Highland Perthshire as one of Scotland’s key tourism destinations that will help to drive growth within Scotland’s wider tourism industry.

“By investing in areas such as these we can successfully increase the number of tourists that visit from throughout Scotland and from all over the world, enabling Scotland to be more globally competitive and helping to accelerate the growth of the Scottish economy.”

To support the delivery of HPL the new ‘destination management organisation’ (DMO) has been incorporated and its new board has already identified three short term priorities which will build on existing initiatives and publications:

• A Walking Guide, covering the whole area and incorporating the new Heart of Scotland 100
• An Events Calendar, regularly updated and distributed to accommodation providers
• A Website, illustrating the breadth of HP product and enabling quick access to products

This Scottish Enterprise support is based on a business plan prepared for HPL’s Board by consultants Dunira Strategy who were also commissioned by Scottish Enterprise to conduct a feasibility study for the DMO.

Dunira’s Benjamin Carey, said: “The challenge is to create an organisation that will do everything possible to ensure the sustainable development of Highland Perthshire.  Given the extraordinary range of cultural and natural heritage in the area, tourism inevitably has a role – although it needs to be well planned and constructively managed.

“The primary beneficiary must be the community of Highland Perthshire.  Are there jobs and sufficient housing stock for young people?  Do local enterprises have access to fast broadband?  Tourism can be a catalyst for change and contribute to economic development, but it should never be the primary motivation for public sector interventions.”

Andrew Holmes, HPL’s interim Chair commented: “The local associations have worked hard to create this new organisation together. Tourism is at the core of the Highland Perthshire economy and HPL gives us the means to improve the tourist offer over the whole of the area.  We look forward to working with all partners to develop the organisation to make a real difference.”

Councillor John Kellas, Convenor of Perth & Kinross Council’s Enterprise and Infrastructure Committee said: The visitor economy is of course Highland Perthshire’s most important industry, worth an estimated £185 million in annual revenue and supporting around 4,000 jobs.  It is important to bring together all the stakeholders from the public and private sectors in one forum to ensure that the Council’s support for economic development in this area is sustainable and meets the needs of residents and investors alike.  We therefore welcome the new DMO and look forward to working with its new board for the benefit of all

VisitScotland’s Regional Director Richard Pinn, who sits as an observer on the HPL board added: “This is a positive development for Highland Perthshire because it provides a dynamic forum for tourism businesses to engage, and will help VisitScotland align its strategy more closely with local ambitions.”