Rural businesses set to boost tourism in Leeds City Region with new £3m fund

The Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership (LEP) has announced that rural businesses will now have access to over £3m in European funds to improve tourism in Leeds City Region.

The funding, part of the Rural Development Programme for England (RDPE) Growth Programme, will be available to businesses, such as farms and farm shops, landowners, and charities, to invest in infrastructure that will boost tourism.

Grants from £35k are available where investment in capital assets will increase the number of visitors, increase the length of stay and/or increase the amount of money spent in the City Region.

Priority will be given where businesses can demonstrate that grant funding will extend the tourism season between October and March, create accommodation, footpaths or cycleways, and start or expand events and festivals.

Roger Marsh OBE, chair of the LEP, said: “Our European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) funding allocation is another fantastic addition to the business support available to Leeds City Region businesses.

“Culture and tourism are vital to driving the success of the Northern Powerhouse and this fund will allow us to add to and develop the wealth of tourism assets that already exists here.

“Our Strategic Economic Plan sets out how we will build on our distinctive regional assets to help deliver our ambition of creating 36,000 new jobs and adding £3.7bn to our City Region economy and I would urge rural businesses to apply.”

Jan Thornton, vice chair of the Yorkshire Food, Farming and Rural Network and member of the LEP’s European Structural and Investment Fund (ESIF) Local Sub-Committee, added: “Rural business and communities are a significant contributor to the success of our City Region’s tourism industry.

“With this funding we hope to see farms diversifying, more cycleways being introduced to capitalise on the success of the Grande Départ and Tour de Yorkshire and visitor attractions created or expanded to increase jobs and build on the celebrated tourism offer already here.”

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