Industry Update: 8 October

Latest guidance on local restrictions

As of Saturday 3 October, there is now one set of restrictions in place across the whole of Greater Manchester and full details can be found on the UK Government website.

There is, however, still some unique advice in Oldham about only using public transport for essential reasons, as well as a lower limit number on those that can attend a funeral there, so please read the guidance carefully if you plan to travel to or from Oldham.

The situation can change at any point, we therefore ask that you familiarise yourself with the information on our Know Before You Go page which is updated regularly so that both businesses and consumers have a one-stop resource for planning visits in and around Greater Manchester.

Support available for Bolton businesses

As detailed above, from Saturday 3 October, lockdown measures in Bolton were brought into alignment with measures across Greater Manchester, meaning that:

  • Hospitality businesses including bars, pubs, cafés and restaurants could resume table service subject to early 10pm closure and the rule of 6 restrictions.
  • Bowling alleys, indoor skating rinks, casinos, indoor play, including soft play and conference centres and exhibit halls were also be able to reopen in Bolton. Restrictions on attending weddings, wedding receptions and funerals have also been brought in line with the rest of Greater Manchester and the country.

Last week the government also announced that businesses that were closed for three weeks due to local lockdown restrictions in Bolton will now be eligible for grants of up to £1,500 each. In addition to having been closed for three weeks, eligible businesses must fit the following criteria:

  • eligible business properties with rateable values of less than £51,000 will receive a grant of £1,000
  • eligible business properties with rateable values of £51,000 and over will receive a grant of £1,500
  • eligible businesses with more than one affected property will receive a grant in respect of each property

In addition, Bolton Council will receive an additional 5% of funding to run a local discretionary grant fund which could be used to support businesses that do not pay business rates and other severely impacted businesses that are prioritised locally. As with the grants to business-rate paying businesses, this additional top-up grant will be paid every three weeks to businesses where closures persist.

Reminder: there’s still time for hotel partners to join our Have A Night On Us campaign

There is still time for accommodation providers to sign up to our short breaks campaign – Have A Night On Us – which is focused on promoting overnight visits from areas within 3-4 hours travel time of Greater Manchester and will lead with an offer developed by the city’s hospitality sector, in order to help drive bookings throughout the autumn season.

The campaign, developed in partnership with the MHA, will see all participating hotels offer an extra night’s accommodation for free with bookings of a certain length. Visitors will book their rooms directly from the Visit Manchester website and fulfilment of the bookings will be through VisitEngland’s intermediary platform, TXGB.

6 hotels have already signed up to be part of the campaign. If you would like to join the campaign, please contact Laura.Mason@marketingmanchester.com to find out more.

EU Exit Preparedness Survey

The Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport has created a survey on Brexit preparedness of the sectors within their remit, which includes tourism, and would like your input.

Completion of the survey will help DCMS to best understand the level of preparation within the tourism sector, the issues and areas where businesses need further clarity/guidance and how the department can best support tourism businesses between now and the end of the year.

The survey should take no longer than 10-15 minutes to fill in. To access it, please click here.

Register for VistBritain’s new series of free webinars

VisitBritain’s second series of Business Recovery webinars will start on 15 October, with a look at the Latest Inbound and Domestic Research and Insights, followed by sessions on Tour Guiding (21 October), Destination Marketing (5 November), Micro-businesses (24 November), We’re Good to Go (26 November) and Creating Great Content (8 December). We also partner with Google Digital Garage to help you Create Videos with YouTube (3 December), and Find Customers with Google Maps (10 December).

Also upcoming are two new webinars for the Business Events sector. The first will focus on the Power of Digital Marketing (15 October), and the second will look at Working with Ambassadors as a route to Successful Bidding (26 November).

And there is also a new series of webinars for UK Travel Trade, focusing on market trends and insights on India (13 October), China (20 October) and Southern Europe (22 October).

To find out more about all VisitBritain marketing and event opportunities, please click here.

Introducing… So Let’s Talk

So Let’s Talk is a non for profit platform providing preventative and holistic trainings on mental, physical and financial health for hospitality organisations. Their aim is to end the silence around mental health in the industry through training created by experts in their fields, made relevant to the industry and delivered by a team of current or ex-hospitality professionals.

Six training modules on offer include: The Business of Health; Healthy Operations; A Good Days Sleep; Nutrition; Exercise; Mental Health; and Financial Health.

To find out more about So Let’s Talk, please click here or contact Patrick Howley.

Partner and industry news

Please email your news to press@marketingmanchester.com FAO of Andy Parkinson and also add this email address to your media/press distribution lists.

Tourism and Hospitality Support Hub

Throughout the COVID-19 crisis the Tourism and Hospitality Support Hub has been available to ensure that tourism and hospitality businesses are given the most up to date information including reopening standards and guidance. We have streamlined the Hub to give the most useful information; however, we will continue to deliver the service throughout the reopening of the visitor economy and anyone who needs specific and detailed support should contact supporthub@marketingmanchester.com for bespoke help and advice.

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