Worthing Borough Council has been awarded approximately £170,000 of funding through the European 2 Seas Programme for a project which will support Tourism businesses and the visitor economy in Worthing. The Regeneration Team has formed a partnership with 10 other towns across England, France, Belgium and the Netherlands to put together a project called “Seaconomics” which will fund a number of initiatives aimed at growing the tourism sector.
Part of the funding will be used to pay for a new children’s play area on Beach House Grounds in Worthing adjacent to the sand sports courts. There is also a small fund available for multi-lingual signs and promenade/beach chalet improvements in the Splash Point area. This part of the EU funding will be matched by Worthing Borough Council’s own capital budget.
New initiatives such as a mobile version of the www.visitworthing.com website will be investigated and more people will be attracted to the town through a series of targeted marketing campaigns. The Tourism Section at the Council will have funding to develop a new range of marketing materials and will be able to promote Worthing as an attractive destination at a series of Trade Shows throughout Europe.
Businesses will be offered tailored training opportunities and one of our first tasks is to consult with our tourism sector to identify where training is required whether it be in making better use of new technology, marketing techniques or achieving industry standards.
The success of this funding application means that the Council’s Regeneration Team has managed to draw in well over £1million of external funding over the last couple of years.