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Sustainable Tourism in the Kent Downs AONB
A primary objective of the AONB Unit’s sustainable tourism development work is to protect and enhance this nationally protected landscape. Through pursuing co-operation and co-ordination of efforts with stakeholders in and around the Kent Downs, we aim to:
develop sustainable business practices within and around the AONB
support and enable tourism businesses to contribute to rural regeneration
develop quality tourism linked to the conservation of the high quality environment
develop a stronger identity for the AONB
Our activities and partnership exchanges focus on the following environmental, social and economic priorities:
to minimise negative impacts of tourism and develop low impact activities that contribute towards the local economy as well as landscape conservation
to support strong cultural identities by supporting and working with rural communities and businesses, promoting partnerships and encouraging active stakeholder engagement
to strengthen tourism multipliers; identify and develop linkages throughout the tourism and tourism related supply chain
Since 2004 the AONB Unit has received EU funding to enable us to deliver a number of projects in the Kent Downs:
Sustainable Rural Tourism Project (Mid Kent LEADER+, October 04 – June 07)
Our first pilot project was focused on the Mid Kent Downs – stretching from Detling, near Maidstone, across to Chilham and Wye. Additional funding was provided by Tourism South East, Maidstone Borough Council, Swale Borough Council and Ashford Borough Council. The project was comprised of eight initiatives which involved working with and supporting communities in developing interpretive projects, providing business support and training, conducting visitor research, piloting the Green Tourism Business Scheme and a number of awareness raising and marketing activities.
Renewable Energy Action Project (REAP) (Mid Kent LEADER+, June 06 – July 07)
Through the close working relationships established with tourism businesses during the Sustainable Rural Tourism Project, a need for more accessible information on renewable energy technologies and energy efficiency advice was identified. As a direct result of the tourism project we formed a working partnership with Creative Environmental Networks (CEN) who secured Mid Kent LEADER+ funding to provide specialist advice to businesses and communities in the Mid Kent Downs. Over 25 businesses and community organisations received onsite audits and advisory visits, leading to a number of installations.
Kent Downs Visitor Information Publication (SEEDA, February 07 – April 07)
In 2007 we received funding from SEEDA to further develop our primary visitor information publication and conduct a survey of tourism business needs. The results of this proved useful in determining future activities.
Transmanche Sustainable Tourism Project (Interreg IIIA, April 07 – August 08)
Our most recent project was funded through the European Regional Development Fund - Interreg IIIa, with additional support from Tourism South East, Maidstone Borough Council, Canterbury City Council and Sevenoaks District Council. The AONB Unit partnered with the Parc Naturel Regional Caps et Marais d’Opale* to develop sustainble tourism in each respective area. This enabled us to extend our work AONB-wide and, with substantial support from the East Kent Partnership, into Natural East Kent**. As a result of this project we were able to build upon the successes of our previous work and continue to build strong partnerships.
*The ridge of chalk that defines the Kent Downs reappears on the French side of the channel where it forms part of the Parc Naturel Regional Caps et Marais d’Opale. This is a protected landscape stretching from the Cap Blanc-Nez down beyond Boulougne Sur Mer and across to St. Omer, covering the areas of the Audomarois, Boulonnais and South Calaisis. For details of the PNR follow the link to their website.
** Natural East Kent is a rural tourism development and marketing area including the rural areas of Canterbury, Thanet and Dover Districts. For more information on the Green Tourism Project in Natural East Kent, follow the link to their website.
A summary of activities
Click on each heading below for an overview of our project activities and what has been achieved.
Business support for tourism businesses
Working in partnership with Tourism South East, Canterbury College and other organisations, a series of courses and workshops have been delivered covering the following subjects:
Welcome Walkers & Cyclists
Smarter Marketing 1 & 2
Green Advantage
Sourcing, serving and preparing local produce
Desktop Publishing for tourism businesses
Web Design for tourism businesses
How to find and produce information on walks
Local produce training in the Caps et Marais d’Opale for Kent pub and PNR estaminet owners
Each course was attended by tourism business owners and staff, ranging from b&b’s, pubs, hotels, restaurants, visitor attractions and tour operators.
Working with local communities
Through the LEADER+ Sustainable Rural Tourism Project, we provided six communities with funds to develop and produce their own interpretation. The initial proposal was for each community to create a visitor information pack. However it quickly became apparent that the levels of existing interpretation varied in each community, so their needs for new interpretation varied accordingly. It was decided that the guidelines given to each group should not be too prescriptive but allow each community to identify the best form of interpretation to suit their needs. As long as the key sustainability criteria were fulfilled, each group led on their own individual interpretive project.
Harrietsham: clearance and landscaping of a lay by on the Pilgrims Way and the installation of a life size wooden sculpture of a resting Pilgrim, bench, picnic table and interpretation panel.
Chilham : publication of a new village leaflet, produced as a ‘village directory’ aimed at both residents and visitors
Lenham : publication of a new village leaflet featuring three walks in and around the village
Sheldwich, Badlesmere & Leaveland: three communities working together to produce a new visitor guide to the area, featuring a walk that can be undertaken in one, two or three parts linking all three areas
Doddington & Newnham: two villages working together to develop and launch a new village website called www.twokentvillages.org
Through the Transmanche Sustainable Tourism project we assisted a number of communities to establish itineraries known as Country Breaks – a key objective of which was to form the basis of future collaboration between tourism businesses and other stakeholders within each community.
Each Country Break was developed to include all elements of a stay in their part of the Kent Downs – what to do in the area, where to stay, how to get there – and involved forming a local tourism group, conducting a product audit and identifying key stakeholders to collate relevant information.
The Kent Downs AONB Unit worked in partnership with the Hidden Britain initiative on this project and had the support of Tourism South East and their Rural Ways project. Each break is featured on the Rural Ways website, as well as on the Visit Britain, Enjoy England and Visit Kent websites.
To view each Country Break leaflet, click on the following:
A Country Break in Chilham
A Country Break in Elham
A Country Break in St. Margaret’s – First Light Coast and Country
The greatest benefit to each community has been the creation of a local business group that continues to work together for the benefit of their respective areas:
The Chilham Tourism & Retailers Group – responding to planning applications, responding to Southeastern’s threat to reduce rail services, exhibiting under the newly created “Enjoy Chilham” logo at local events, developing a new website
First Light Coast & Country – developing St. Margaret’s as an eco-tourism destination and participating with the wider community in developing the village as a low carbon community
The Elham Valley Tourism Group – looking at developing the group beyond Elham to work in partnership with other communities within the valley
Green Accreditation for Tourism Businesses
The Kent Downs AONB Unit first piloted the Green Tourism Business Scheme in Kent, with the support of Tourism South East. Both tourism projects have involved holding a series of workshops, training courses to support the scheme, support during the advisory and auditing stages and ongoing promotional activities for Kent members.
For details of Kent’s GTBS members, go to our Green Tourism page.
Through the duration of the Transmanche Sustainable Tourism Project, CEN and Business Link Kent were each running resource efficiency projects. By working in partnership we were able to ensure that our respective projects worked in tandem and complimented each other. The site audits took the place of GTBS advisory visits and the resulting benefits to tourism businesses included free personalised reports and advice on their resource management.
Visitor publications
Throughout the course of our work, the Kent Downs AONB Unit has produced the following publications for visitors and tourism businesses, some of which are available to download here:
The Kent Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty: an A4 size visitor pack / bedroom browser which provides an overview of the unique features of the Kent Downs, its history and culture, landscape and wildlife.
Green Guide to the Kent Downs AONB: a DL leaflet opening to A2 size, focusing on the many low impact activities and opportunities available to help visitors get to the heart of this special landscape. Information on walking, cycling and riding routes is highlighted along with details of organisations that provide maps, guides etc. The main feature of the leaflet is an AONB map with a listing of countryside sites and visitor attractions. Details of GTBS members are also provided.
Exploring the Mid Kent Downs: a DL leaflet opening to A2 size, focusing on the middle part of the Kent Downs. Providing information on what to do and see in the area, with lists of accommodation, pubs, restaurants and visitor attractions.
Postcards: a series of four postcards promoting the beauty of the AONB landscape, carrying a simple message to support and conserve the landscape through practising sustainable tourism.
Country Breaks: a series of village destination leaflets produced as a result of working with local communities (see the section on Working with Local Communities) for Chilham, Elham and St. Margaret’s.
Transport campaign
Throughout the course of the tourism projects, the AONB Unit has collaborated with the local rail network Southeastern on three poster campaigns. This has involved a series of posters displayed at stations throughout Kent and at main London terminals that serve the county. This was organised on the basis of match funding provision by Southeastern, i.e. distribution and display was provided at no charge, so the only costs to the AONB Unit was for design and print. The first campaign allowed for the inclusion of Kent Downs contact information and a short message. The following campaigns saw a restriction on such information as the rail network introduced stronger branding guidelines. For copies of the posters follow these links:
Campaign One - 2005
Campaign Two - 2007
Campaign Three - 2008
The production of the Mid Kent Downs visitor guide was based on distribution throughout the rail network. Of the total 80,000 copies printed, approx. 55,000 were distributed at railway stations throughout Kent and at London terminals.
Through the Transmanche Sustainable Tourism Project, a series of posters were produced for display on P&O Ferries, in tourism information centres and other interested organisations. The focus was on landscape and spending time to explore the easily accessible countryside.
Research
As part of the LEADER+ Sustainable Rural Tourism Project, visitor research was conducted to provide up to date information on current visitors to the Mid Kent Downs, with feedback on the area’s future visitor potential and development needs. The report can be downloaded as a pdf document.
As part of the Transmanche Sustainable Tourism Project, preliminary research into the feasibility of establishing a bike hire operation at railway stations was conducted. The results indicated a positive response to trialling such an activity in Kent, with a focus on the Natural East Kent area. The report can be downloaded as a pdf document.
Familiarisation events for tourism information centres, press and tourism businesses
The Kent Downs AONB Unit has held a large number of presentations and familiarisation trips to the Kent Downs and Natural East Kent for tourism information centres and tourism businesses. All these events focus on improving knowledge of the rural product.
Press trips have resulted in coverage in the Sunday Times, inclusion in Ecoescape and features in local newspapers.
A series of workshops focusing on walking and finding information on walks in the Kent Downs were held for tourism business owners and Kent TIC staff, to improve their knowledge of information sources as well as map reading and local public rights of way.
The Kent Sustainable Tourism Network (KSTN)
The Transmanche Sustainable Tourism Project funded the development of an online business support, expertise exchange and communication forum for tourism businesses providing links to related services and organisations. The main objectives of the KSTN are to:
improve access to information
improve support from Kent based organisations and agencies to tourism businesses
improve networking between Kent based tourism businesses and supporting organisations and agencies
improve sustainable business practice and increase efficiency
The site will consist of the following:
Email discussion forum: a facility for members to post and ask for advice and information, share ideas and best practice.
Resource use pages: information pages providing details of and links to local organisations covering energy efficiency, renewable energy technologies, waste management, water use etc.
Business support pages: providing links to and details of organisations that provide support to tourism businesses, such as BLK, the Kent Tourism Quality Programme, KSBP etc covering a wide range of services including:
New business start ups / developing a business strategy / marketing plan
Farm/business diversification
Renewable energy technologies
Tourism regulatory information, e.g. quality grading schemes, DDA, food regulations, health & safety
IT information and advice
Training pages: details of and links to forthcoming training courses, workshops and other educational opportunities throughout Kent, covering all aspects of sustainability
Local produce / arts & crafts pages: links to organisations that support the development of local produce, arts and crafts
Events / calendar pages: for communities and tourism businesses to share details of events and activities
Links to research, feasibility studies, case studies and examples of best practice
Members’ directory: information on members of the network
Subscribing to Europarc Sustainable Tourism Charter Status
The Europarc Federation’s Charter for Sustainable Tourism in Protected Areas has been developed by a European group representing protected landscapes and stakeholders. To place both project partners firmly on the map of responsible tourism destinations, the AONB and PNR aim to achieve Charter status. The Transmanche Sustainable Tourism Project formed the basis of the strategy and action plan required to gain Charter status, and stimulate the sharing of best practice and joint promotional opportunities. Our future work will culminate in gaining full Charter status.
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