By Ellis Butcher

Last updated at 12:30, Friday, 06 July 2012

The financial storm to strike the county’s tourist board has been laid bare for the first time in newly published annual accounts.

Ian Stephens

Cumbria Tourism (CT) has spent the last financial year negotiating choppy economic waters after a £1.2 million government funding cut. The move forced the body into a do-or-die restructure which resulted in the loss of 18 jobs including boardroom directors and staff salaries were slashed by £9,000 on average.

The new-look company, which represents more than 3,000 tourism businesses county-wide was “born” on April 2011 with the aim of generating its own revenue and reducing its dependency on Government funds.

Its crucial first year of trading shows the organisation successfully brought in more than £965,000 in “commercial income”, and won £519,000 in public sector grants.

It also received a one-off £631,000 “transitional funding” cheque from the Government after Whitehall-ordered closure of its chief grant giving body – the Northwest Regional Development Agency.

Deductions such as wages, taxes, costs and bills, show that CT’s total net profit amounted to just under £47,000.

Senior executives told business members at its annual meeting that the company is now “not-for-profit” and that all income is reinvested into promoting the area.

Eden-based businessman Simon Bennett of Augill Castle, who was appointed head of the board’s commercial members committee, said the company had adjusted well.

Mr Bennett said: “CT has had to reinvent itself to turn what was largely a public-funded organisation into being a commercial one. It sinks or swims by providing its customers – all of us – with (chargeable) services that we want.”

The profit and loss account reveals how CT slashed its annual wage bill – from £1.4m in 2011 down to £672,000 in 2012.

It pitched for and won public cheques of £207,737 to promote Cumbria as the UK’s Adventure Capital which has to be match-funded by private business, and £129,000 to bring alive a long-awaited green transport initiative aimed at getting more Lake District visitors out of cars and onto bikes, boats and buses.

It also won £67,000 in grants to promote the arts, culture and different places around the county.

Cumbria County Council and the county’s six districts contributed a total of £114,250 to pay for tourism promotion work in their areas. More than 3,000 tourism business members across Cumbria pay the organisation an annually-renewable subscription fee for services but the figures suggest turnover from these slipped on the previous year.

Managing director Ian Stephens said: “I’m very pleased CT has stabilised and has remained solvent throughout an extremely challenging period for the company. We are a ‘not for profit’ company limited by guarantee and all of the funds we raise are used to promote the Lake District, Cumbria brand and improve the quality of our extensive visitor offer.

“CT has also maintained ‘official’ status and is recognised by Government and other public sector organisations as the strategic tourism organisation for Cumbria.”

First published at 11:27, Friday, 06 July 2012
Published by http://www.newsandstar.co.uk