We need to build a more resilient tourism industry and as the first-ever Destination Development Partnership pilot we have ambitions to double the size of the visitor economy over the next 10 years, which has the potential to create and support an additional 25,000 jobs.

Destination North East England will support the sector to build back better with a more productive and resilient tourism industry and workforce. These means an industry employing more UK nationals in year-round, quality jobs, supported by the government’s skills agenda.

Addressing the skills gap and developing a pipeline of future talent will be critical to accelerating our region’s growth potential.

To address this head on we have commissioned a comprehensive survey to provide the intelligence to better understand the complex skills issues and emerging workforce challenges. This will then inform interventions and initiatives to address the challenges the sector is facing.

Recruitment and retention issues have been a recurring concern and by working together we can ensure that our industry is equipped with the skills it needs to thrive.

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• In 2022, there were almost 26,000 unique job postings in 2022 in hospitality in the North East, with 30% of those in Newcastle.

• Tourism is one of England’s largest and most valuable industries and is one of the main drivers of economic recovery.

• Only 37% of visitor economy businesses across the UK believe the training and development opportunities on offer meet the skills needs of employees (People 1st International).