Delight at Covid crisis cash for tourism sector
A trio of tourism businesses have received a valuable windfall as part of a national programme worth £500,000.
The support is being organised by VisitScotland and was launched last month to companies across the sector to cope with the devastating impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
In total, 81 membership organisations were successful in securing funding, including three from the Forth Valley region.
They are Callander Enterprise, Discover Clackmannanshire and Scotland Best B&Bs, a marketing website advertising B&Bs throughout Scotland, which is based locally.
The one-off fund was created in response to the crisis in Scottish tourism and was open to any group with a membership base made up of tourism businesses and proved popular, receiving a total of 98 applications totalling £1.8 million.
Riddell Graham, director of industry and destination development at VisitScotland, said:“The coronavirus pandemic has had a devasting impact on the Scottish tourism industry and this funding package for destination organisations and sector groups will hopefully go some way towards supporting them through this challenging time.
“We are pleased to have been able to increase our original funding pot to enable us to provide some funding for all eligible applicants.
“Even then it is unsurprising that the number of applications has been in excess of what is available and as such difficult decisions have had to be taken.
“Recovery will require our collective efforts and this fund represents a great opportunity to enable a collaborative approach to meet the massive challenges set by the pandemic and ensure the best possible outcomes for the whole of the visitor economy.”
The chairwoman of Scotland’s Best B&Bs is Naomi McMahon, who also runs the Garvally House B&B in Alloa.
She said:“Scotland’s Best B&B’s are absolutely delighted and very thankful to receive this funding.
“It will make a difference to us. It will enable us to continue the marketing work that we do for our members and help us to continue providing them with support over this really difficult period.”