AFTER almost a year of disruption for tourism and hospitality businesses, Covid-19 has caused a 'tectonic shift' across the sector, according to tourism boards in the North-East.

Over the last sixteen weeks, the NatWest North of England Tourism Business Barometer has taken the temperature of the North’s tourism – which the managing director of County Durham's tourism board calls 'sobering'.

The study started mid-July when the first lockdown was eased and up to the three tier system in October. It looks at changes in employment, trends and business confidence in the industry.

Visit County Durham and the NewcastleGateshead Initiative, Cumbria Tourism, Make It York, Marketing Cheshire, Marketing Lancashire, Marketing Liverpool and Visit Leeds took part in and helped with the survey.

It found half of hospitality and leisure businesses across north were trading at a loss of over 60 per cent for 10 weeks out of the 16-weeks.

Businesses also expect revenue to recover in January 2022, compared to previous outlook of July 2021 at start of study, as a third of businesses report forward bookings for first quarter of 2021 are significantly down. A fifth of those surveyed also said they are unsure they will be trading next summer.

The Northern Echo:

Richard Topliss, chairman of the NatWest regional board, North, said: “Tourism and the wider hospitality and leisure sector has faced and continues to endure unprecedented challenges.

"The final survey points to low confidence for the immediate future and the need for central and local government support. Business leaders and providers of finance must work together to help the rebuild for the future when it becomes clear that widespread vaccination will allow a new normal to emerge for tourism.”

Michelle Gorman, managing director at Visit County Durham said: “Although sobering, it is vital that as destination management organisations we fully understand the impact that Covid-19 has had, and may continue to have, on the north’s visitor economy and work collectively to ensure businesses are supported as they work towards recovery.”

The Northern Echo:

Businesses across the north of England have had to make significant reductions to permanent and temporary staff and from the end of September and throughout October half of businesses reported that they were downsizing their permanent staff over the next month.

Ian Thomas, director of leisure tourism and research at NewcastleGateshead Initiative, said: “The tourism and hospitality sector has been one of the worst impacted by the pandemic with many businesses, including theatres, lives music venues and nightclubs, not able to open their doors since March.

"These findings confirm the lack of business confidence and the need for collaboration and further support to help the industry through winter.”