Visit Gloucestershire has received £100,000 from Gloucestershire County Council to plot a prosperous recovery for the county's tourism economy after coronavirus.

The body is uniting key organisations for a Together for Gloucestershire approach to ensure the county is well place to thrive when visitors begin to return following the pandemic.

A draft plan is set to be completed with March with the aim of an approach which allows all visitors to access everything the county has to offer, minimises the impact on the climate and environment, supports the local economy, makes the most of local supply chains and creates jobs for local people.

The plan will also be looking to actively promote the whole county and maximise the potential of digital technology.

Steve Gardner-Collins, who chairs the Visit Gloucestershire Partnership, said: "The challenges of 2020 continue in 2021 and we are busy planning a way forward to support all tourism businesses across the county.

"To do this we are taking a proactive approach to tourism in Gloucestershire for recovery and the future.

"Recovery planning is no easy task, particularly when businesses just want to re-open, but it is a necessary part of the process for us to go through before diving into recovery itself, "Together Gloucestershire.

Visit Gloucestershire will be working with the public, private and community sectors in the coming weeks, as well consulting nationally and internationally to ensure the right people are involved in the process.

"This planning and engagement has been in the pipeline for several months and businesses can be assured that we are working together to deliver a tourism strategy that works across the county," he said.

"In taking this moment to ask questions, we can determine exactly what your organisations need in regards to a responsible recovery outcome and beyond.

"This is a three-year tourism strategy for Gloucestershire that will support build back and there will be activities aligned to the management of tourism in Gloucestershire to 2024."

Council leader Councillor Mark Hawthorne stressed the importance of a united approach to welcoming visitors back to the county.

He said: "It is going to be so important that with such a strong visitor offer we are, together, ready to make the most of what is likely to be greater numbers of people who want holidaying close to home in the future, enjoying all our beautiful and diverse county has to offer.

"By having more of a co-ordinated approach to tourism in the future we will make Gloucestershire ever more attractive to investors and provide a positive outlook for tourism ahead."

You can hear more from Steve Gardner-Collins as part of Punchline's Friday Business Briefing panel tomorrow.