BLENHEIM - Our Economic Impact

As I highlighted in the introduction to last year’s report, the summer of 2019 saw both Shakespeare’s Rose Theatre and Countryfile Live, two lavish and popular events which (even measured in a very narrow way) deliver huge amounts of economic contribution. Between them, they last year delivered over £9m to the local economy, but neither will repeat. The theatre made a significant loss and we could not justify doing it again, while Countryfile Live has moved elsewhere. Obviously, neither would have been possible in our year of Covid in any case. Events like these do not generate much for Blenheim, especially as they tend to reduce normal visitor numbers, but they generate economic contribution like nothing else we do, and we will have to find a way of filling this gap. I should also note that the Horse Trials (£3m of economic contribution) will also not have taken place this summer but we do expect this to be back, better than ever, in 2021. It remains crucial that we play our part in driving economic prosperity for the area around us, now perhaps more than ever. I am delighted to announce that sales for our Christmas Light Trail are significantly ahead of last year, as the footfall driven by this will give many of our local businesses a vital shot in the arm in what has been a year from hell. However, we have chosen not to run either the fairy-tale Christmas in the Palace or the Christmas market this year, as we do not think that the former will be practical in a more distanced format, while the latter will not be viable without those daytime numbers. 4