£1.5bn boost to economy from heritage across region History plays part in economic future
HERITAGE tourism in the West Midlands contributes £1.5 billion to the region’s economy and employs more than 17,000 people, according to a new report.
The study, Heritage Counts: Heritage And The Economy 2017, also suggests that heritage adds £978 million or 1.5 per cent of the West Midlands’ total gross value added (GVA).
The report has been published this week by Historic England, on behalf of the West Midlands Historic Environment Forum, and reveals the contribution of heritage to the region’s economic prosperity.
Birmingham and the wider region is awash with listed buildings and places of historical interest, including the city’s famous Jewellery Quarter, Soho House in Handsworth and Shakespeare’s Birthplace in Stratford.
Adala Leeson, head of social and economic research at Historic England, said: “The West Midlands’ historic environment provides jobs, attracts tourists and contributes to the construction sector and GVA.
“It’s intrinsically linked not only to the region’s economic prosperity but to the whole country’s.
“Our new report shows the value that heritage brings to the West Midlands. “It’s not just about money. “We are growing the ways in which we can measure the social benefits that heritage brings through the sense of identity and belonging that it gives communities.
“We have also calculated that volunteers dedicate £520 million in the hours they give towards day-to-day protection of our built heritage.”
The report says more than 17,100 people were employed in the heritage sector in the West Midlands with 28,000 jobs supported in total, either through direct employment or the supply chain.
Maintenance of historic buildings also yields £602 million through the construction sector, although this was slightly down on last year.
Nationally, it is estimated that England’s history and heritage generated £16.4 billion in visitor spending in 2015.
In the recent Nations Brand Index report, the country was ranked fifth out of 50 nations in terms of being rich in historic buildings and monuments.
It is estimated that, for every £1 spent as part of a heritage visit, 32p is spent on site and the remaining 68p in local restaurants, cafés, hotels and shops, while on average £1 of public sector expenditure on heritage-led regeneration generates £1.60 in additional economic activity over a ten-year period.
One in five visitors spend more in an area after investment in historic buildings, Historic England’s research also claims.
The buildings themselves provide premises for 138,000 businesses representing five per cent of all employment in the UK and creative and cultural industries are 29 per cent more likely to be found in a listed building.
The research suggests volunteering at heritage organisations represents six per cent of all voluntary work in England.