This item will provide the Committee with an update on progress with recommendations flowing from its recent Tourism Review Group.

Councillor Mary Clarkson , Cabinet Member for  the City Centre, Covered Market and Culture and  Matt Peachey, Economic Development Officer,  have been invited to attend for this item.

The report will follow as  a supplement.

Tom Bridgman, Executive Director Development,  introduced the report by reminding the Committee of the profound effect Covid-19 had had on the visitor economy and the City centre with footfall down by some 39%, contributed to in some  part by many peoples’ current  reluctance to use buses. Implementation of many of the review group’s recommendations remained partial, this was principally due to the limited capacity of the Economic Development Team which had had to divert its attention, temporarily, from work on the City Centre Vision and the Economic Development Strategy (which will frame the response to the matters raised by the review) to focus on the more immediate demands of responding to Covid-19. Going forward, this work would seek to address the recovery of the Visitor economy at a County level through the Economic Recovery Plan which OxLEP is required to deliver to central Government by the end of the year.

Matt Peachey, Economic Development Officer, said the review had been and would continue to be valuable in framing the City’s economic strategy. He went on to highlight some key points from the report.

The Chair noted that not all of the Cabinet responses were covered in the report and was anxious that the spirit of the original recommendations should not be lost.

The Committee recognised the particularly difficult challenge of addressing these matters in the present environment. 

It was intended to brief members on the City Centre Vision before Christmas. Publication and engagement with the wider stakeholder groups was likely to be best timed after Christmas.

Budget discussions to confirm what bids might be made to support this work were ongoing. Given the significance of the challenges facing this sector, efforts would be focused on the countywide economic recovery plan (and ultimately central Government funding) referred to above.

It was noted that the “Rediscover Oxford” scheme had been beneficial. It was agreed that a future version of it (one was proposed for Christmas) would benefit from refined messaging to emphasise the measures taken to ensure the safety of visitors.

While not one of the original review’s recommendations, it was noted that the previously rehearsed arguments for a cable car in the City might be better framed as a tourist attraction rather than, principally, as a transport option.

In relation to tourist coaches coming into the City it was hoped that they would be subject to the same emission requirements as those vehicles based in the City.

The community toilets scheme had been recognised as being important for visitors (the absence of which was a recognised factor in visitor dissatisfaction). The City Centre Manager had been in touch with local businesses about the scheme. There was awareness of a similar scheme in Bath and it had been flagged as something which may be brought forward as part of  the City Centre Strategy.

Recent applicants for Covid-19 Discretionary Grants had been asked if they paid the Real Living Wage (RLW). While the Council is clear that the aspiration is for employers  ...  view the full minutes text for item 43