A GROUND-BREAKING project linking West Somerset with South East England and France is providing tangible results for the local tourism industry – the mainstay of West Somerset’s economy.
The COOL Tourism Project saw £186,000 pumped in to developing and promoting rural tourism across the area by four Somerset and Exmoorbased partners.
West Somerset Council contributed £13,000 of cash to the project, which levered in an additional £34,000 of match-funding from Europe for the district.
COOL involved West Somerset Council, Sedgemoor District Council, Somerset County Council, Exmoor National Park Authority, Norfolk, Kent and Essex County Councils, Visit Kent, and the regions of Pas de Calais and the Somme in Northern France.
The initiative helped the partners develop strong links with representatives from France who attended the Exmoor Tourism summit in Minehead late last year.
As a result of the COOL project a new Visit Exmoor website has been developed.
A dozen short films were made to promote great local experiences to visitors such as rock pooling on the coast and, inland, spotting Exmoor ponies while four photo shoots were arranged featuring people enjoying some of the experiences available.
Some 200 business delegates attended workshops and seminars focused on improving skills in digital and social media, marketing and business resilience.
Partners worked with local business networks including helping to support the newly-formed Dunster Tourism Forum which has gone on to develop their own branding toolkit.
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