TOURISM is going greener in Malvern with the launch of the council’s grant for more sustainable businesses, writes Amy Ford.
More than 50 people attended the ‘Visit the Malverns Tourism Forum’ held by the district council at the Morgan Experience Centre last Thursday.
The event outlined how the tourism, hospitality and leisure sectors could all become more sustainable and launched exciting new projects to help local businesses achieve these goals.
Guest speakers for the occasion included Matthew Barker, Carbon Reduction Project Officer, Coun Daniel Walton, Portfolio Holder for Tourism and Economic Development and Rebecca Hawkins from RHP LTD.
Each speaker gave an insight into how they believe companies can become more environmentally conscious.
Marcus Blake, from Morgan Motor Company was another guest speaker who gave an introduction and tour of the renowned car company.
The function was deemed a great opportunity as everyone involved got to hear expert opinions, learn about sustainability and also network with local businesses- the success offers a very promising future for the scheme.
Also during the event, Victoria Carman, Visitor Economy Officer qualified by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council, launched the new ‘Sustainable Tourism project’.
This project consists of a Grant Scheme in which the Malvern Hills District Council will provide 50 per cent match funding for projects which cost a maximum of £5,000 (£2,500 grant) with extra advice on how to access other grants for ventures costing over £5,000.
Additionally, benefits such as energy audits, electric car sharing points, low energy hand dryers and funding towards the internationally recognised Green Tourism Business Scheme are also included within this grant.
Among the advantages of this proposal, a ‘Green Tourism Toolkit’ is offered to provide a Green Mark which helps to develop a sustainable tourism community for Malvern.
Tips on how to stay mindful about the environment- a behaviour the council encourages all companies to adopt are within the kit also.
Coun Daniel Walton said: “The Sustainable Tourism Project contains some really useful benefits to help adopt greener business practices and we would encourage local businesses in the tourism industry to enquire.”
Visit www.visitthemalverns.org/sustainability for more information.
