Destination report |
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champion Hugh Porter , to gold medal-winning javelin star Tessa Sanderson and ex-international footballer Steve Bull .
While rightly proud of its star and industrial heritage , Wolverhampton is now very much focused on the future , and the City Council has a plan that not only involves Wolverhampton hosting more major national and international events but being able to do so with a much-improved infrastructure of facilities .
Aside from the major investment in the University of Wolverhampton at The Halls , the city has secured over £ 100m of key visitor economy infrastructure projects , including the transport Interchange connecting visitors to the city better than ever before , and major public realm works creating more events spaces and an improved environment for all .
The city is also hosting the semis and final of the Kabaddi World Cup , which is coming to the West Midlands in March 2025 .
New destination management and nighttime economy strategies are also being developed by the council to further boost visitor numbers and the economic and social benefits that brings .
The citywide investment programme goes beyond events : Living schemes such as Canalside South , City Centre
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West , St George ’ s , The Royal Quarter and Sunbeam are all regenerating neglected brownfield sites and there are plans to build more than 6,500 new homes , part of £ 2.6bn worth of investment and set to deliver 4,000 jobs and supply chain opportunities .
Visitor economy A study by independent tourism research body Global Tourism Solutions and West Midlands Growth Company , in 2023 , put Wolverhampton ’ s visitor economy as worth £ 458m , up 12.8 % from the previous year .
That report showed Wolverhampton
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Above : The railway station , part of a new £ 150m transport Interchange |
attracted more than 10m visitors in 2023 , an increase on 2022 ’ s 9.8m ; and the numbers of full-time equivalent jobs supported by direct and indirect tourism activities rose by 5.6 %.
Councillor Burden , again : “ Giving visitors reasons to stay longer and support local businesses is a priority for the council , backed by our exciting and broad culture and events programme .”
He added : “ Creating an exciting place that works in the round is important to the city ’ s future and the meetings and events sector offers us great potential for growth in terms of jobs and investment .
“ As we continue to deliver our five-year events strategy , it genuinely feels that the city ’ s offer now is a competitive one and we are going to continue to invest in a way that makes sense for Wolverhampton . We ’ re very ambitious , we know we ’ re not a Birmingham or a Manchester , but we can be very exciting , nonetheless , in a slightly different space .” n
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Left : Wolverhampton Pride |
n For more information on how you can deliver events in Wolverhampton and the wider West Midlands region , visit : meetbirmingham . com bcb . conferencesales @ wmgrowth . com |