The Destination Management Study was comprised of the Destination Management Plan and supporting publications investigating tourism on the Manhood Peninsula.
Click HERE to download the final version of the Destination Management Plan from this website, or alternatively, use the link below instead to read or download the document from the ESSUU self publishing website:
Supporting publications: the following documents about tourist activity on the Manhood Peninsula can be downloaded by clicking on the appropriate title:
Revised 2009 Manhood Peninsula Tourist Economic Impact Estimates
Selsey Wittering 2010 – Tourism Report
The specification for the Destination Management Plan (DMP) was written by a working group comprised of representatives from the “Visit Chichester” Partnership, two major local tourism businesses, a community representative, officers from Chichester District Council, Chichester Harbour Conservancy and the RSPB. The make up of this group was designed to strike a balance between economy and the environment.
The peninsula attracts huge numbers of visitors (many of whom are beach day trippers) to a handful of heavily congested locations, over a very short season. The successful contractor, Dr Andrew Clegg from the University of Chichester, explored the potential for remodelling the current tourism product to extend the season and tap into a new market of bird watchers, walkers and cyclists in the light of the large scale managed coastal realignment and habitat creation at Medmerry. The emphasis was not to increase peak visitor numbers, but to add value and benefit to the local economy.
The inaugural stakeholder engagement workshop for the Destination Management Study was held on the 11th October 2010 at West Wittering Football Club, and was productive in assimilating the views of business owners in the local area. Money was kindly given by local individuals and business to allow the study to take place.
The Destination Management Plan was completed in May 2011 and the Council is now looking for funding to maximise the potential offered by the Medmerry Managed Realignment, a 550 hectare flood protection and habitat creation scheme. It represents an excellent opportunity for the peninsula to benefit from the very coastal scheme that initially attracted such huge opposition. The community is now pressing for off road routes and enhanced recreation facilities, which could offer connectivity between settlements, and regeneration opportunities for the local economy.
The findings of the Destination Management Study as a whole, will help to inform the diversification of the existing tourism product and achieve a better balance between environment and economy. It could provide the link with earlier investigative work that was commissioned by the Council for the regeneration of Selsey’s East Beach area and support the aspirations of the proposed community owned coastal trust.
