Harrogate council agree £222,000 in exit packages due to tourism restructure

In the summer of 2021, Harrogate Borough Council agreed to create a new Destination Management Organisation (DMO) for the district called Destination Harrogate after a review found the authority had a “fragmented” approach to tourism and marketing.

The DMO was set up to raise the profile of the Harrogate district and help attract tourists and investment but the restructure meant its marketing teams from Visit Harrogate and Harrogate Convention Centre were merged into the one organisation, resulting in job losses.

The council’s draft statement of accounts, which lists income and expenditure during 2021/22, includes details of 14 exit packages with the majority of payments linked to the restructure.

It says 12 payments worth up to £20,000 were agreed as well as one payment between £20,001 and £40,000 and another between £80,001 and £100,000.

The number of exit packages last year was unusually high for the authority. In 2020/21 it only agreed just one worth £15,000.

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In 2022, Destination Harrogate unveiled a three-year plan to position the Harrogate district as a “first choice destination for tourism, large-scale events and investment”.

Alongside its partner Market Place Europe Ltd, the DMO recently organised Christmas festivities in Harrogate, which included a Ferris wheel, ice rink and Christmas market.

A council spokesperson said: “In summer 2021, Harrogate Borough Council agreed a restructure of the culture, tourism (including Visit Harrogate) and Harrogate Convention Centre marketing teams in order to establish a new Destination Management Organisation (DMO) for the Harrogate District.

"The DMO’s purpose was to raise the profile of the Harrogate district as an exceptional place to visit, meet and invest.

“The DMO required a staffing structure that was fit for purpose and suitably flexible to respond to changing customer expectations/market developments and seasonal demand.

"The restructure supported this and enabled the right mix of skills and experience to be in place to deliver the DMO’s vision and strategy.”

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