Reflections on 2023
EventScotland
As part of VisitScotland, we work to make Scotland the Perfect Stage for events.
Paul Bush OBE, Director of Events at VisitScotland looks back on the 2023 events landscape.
2023 has been one of those year’s where time has marched on exceptionally quickly, it seems like only yesterday when we were all enjoying the range of summer events on offer, and here we are, reflecting on what’s happened across the year, and looking ahead to what 2024 may bring.????
Here in Scotland, despite the many challenges we still face as a sector, 2023 has continued to reflect a resilient, creative, and forward-thinking spirit.????
From music festivals to esports championships, film festivals to high-profile business events, Scotland has maintained a vibrant, enviable and world-leading calendar of events, blending much-loved established events with brand new ones.?
Despite the ongoing funding challenges being felt by many, including ourselves, we’ve been proud to continue our support for a range of events across the country this year through our core programmes and through new ones developed in celebration of activity such as the Community Cycling Fund, which supported 57 number of events across 21 local authorities.?
It’s hard to include all the special event moments across the year which have brought people together, enabling them to connect and make memories. Amongst the many fantastic examples of music events across 2023 , highlights included the eagerly anticipated arrival of Radio1s Big Weekend to Dundee in May, attracting over 81,000 attendees, and a fantastic line-up of top talent.???
That same month, Orkney Folk Festival celebrated its 40th anniversary edition.? As an entirely volunteer-run festival, longevity of this scale is testament to the commitment of the team. In recognition of this commitment, the festival was named Event of the Year at the recent MG ALBA Scots Trad Music Awards – congratulations to all!??
May also saw the publication of the Year of Stories 2022 evaluation report – a real success story which highlighted how the themed year engaged communities and captured the imagination of people right across the country.
Shetland took centre stage in July with sailing ships from around the world arriving in Lerwick for the 2023 Tall Ships Races. More than 10,000 people attended the event on each of its four days as 37 visiting tall ships docked in Lerwick Harbour.??
Edinburgh’s renowned festivals in August once again attracted global attention with their captivating performances, international outlook and extraordinary creativity and innovation.? Edinburgh International Festival Director, Nicola Benedetti was also the 2023 recipient of the Edinburgh Award, celebrating individuals who have made a truly unique contribution to the city.?
Scotland continued to shine in the golfing spotlight this summer with record crowds of more than 72,000 attending the Genesis Scottish Open, which saw Rory McIIory claiming his first Scottish Open title and become the first player to win The Open, Scottish Open and Irish Open.? Meanwhile Frenchwoman, Celine Boutier, won the Women’s Scottish Open as the co-sanctioned LPGA and LET event returned to Dundonald Links in Ayrshire for the third year running.?
And of course, it was only a few months ago in August, that Glasgow and Scotland welcomed the first UCI Cycling World Championships which brought together over 7,000 elite and amateur competitors from 129 competing countries across 11 incredible days. Supported by nearly 3,500 volunteers, it drew record crowds of nearly 1 million spectators and was broadcast to 130 countries to a cumulative audience of over 537 million, and over 200 million hours viewed, with the event undoubtedly providing a vote of confidence in Scotland as a destination of choice for staging major global events.???
Last month (Nov 23), we supported Host City in our role as Global Presenting Partner, welcoming more than 200 global representatives from cities, marketing organisations, cross-sector rightsholders, and organising committees. It was a highly engaging two-days of discussions with Artificial Intelligence, sustainability and climate change, governance, funding and economic and social benefits of events among the many topics covered.?
领英推荐
Recognition must also be given to both the regional and national Scottish Thistle Award winners across all event categories.? Exemplary in their approach to areas such as collaboration, innovation and sustainability – the event categories celebrated some of the fantastic and diverse events taking place across the country.
I’d also like to offer my personal thanks to the industry and Scotland’s Event Industry Advisory Group for their valuable input throughout this year as part of Scotland’s National Events Strategy refresh 2025-2035. Our work in collaboration with the sector, Scottish Government and a range of stakeholders has focused on the collective ambition to sustain and grow the industry and we look forward to the launch of the refreshed strategy in Spring 2024.
Of course, showcasing Scotland to the world at international events is incredibly important too for maintaining our reputation as a world-leading events destination. Through collaborative partnerships with the industry, we were able to continue shining a spotlight on Scotland at events in 2023 such as The PGA Show in Orlando, IMEX America, The Meetings Show, London and the UCI World Congress.??
The consistent and sustained focus on developing Scotland’s events sector over the last twenty years has been transformative, to the point where Scotland’s reputation as a global events leader is well established.??
The 2020 UK Events Report highlighted 2019 as a landmark year for the event industry reporting direct spend of ￡70 billion, accounting for over 50% of spend in the UK visitor economy. The proportion of this activity attributed to Scotland was estimated by VisitScotland to be in the region of 9%, equating to ￡6bn of direct spend and up to 50% of total spend in the Scottish visitor economy*.?
However, this capability and reputation has not always existed, but instead has been specifically targeted, developed, invested in, and grown. We must not take our capability and well-earned reputation for granted, however, in order to maintain and drive this forward in alignment with the ambitions of the strategy, financial support will be absolutely essential.??
As we look ahead, building an economy that is inclusive and promotes sustainability, prosperity and resilience, where businesses can thrive and innovate has never been more important. A key focus on the social benefits of events, and Fair Work practices will also continue to be at the forefront of funding decisions as we move into 2024, and indeed the refreshed strategy.??
While we close the chapter on another year of outstanding events in Scotland, we can look forward to an exciting pipeline of events in 2024 and beyond including attendance at Sport Accord, Birmingham in April, the inaugural VisitBritain Business Events Association Conference in Edinburgh in February, the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Glasgow next March, the World Orienteering Championships in Edinburgh in July, both The 152nd Open at Royal Troon and the AIG Women’s Open in the summer, as well as the Orkney 2025 Island Games and the recently announced UEFA EURO 2028 across the UK and Ireland.??
We also have ‘Scotland’s National Events Conference 2024’ taking place at the Assembly Rooms in Edinburgh on Tuesday 26 March 2024.? Led by VisitScotland’s Events Directorate, and aligned to Scotland’s national events strategy, the conference last took place in 2019 attracting hundreds of delegates from across the sports, cultural and business events sector in Scotland.? I look forward to seeing many of you there!
National Events Conference 2024 - Register your Interest - Scotland's National Events Conference 2024 ( eventsair.com ) ?
Finally, on behalf of myself and the team, we would like to wish you an enjoyable festive season, and a safe and successful 2024.?
* Scotland’s share of UK tourism value in 2019 was c.9%, based on the value of domestic day tripper and domestic and international overnight visits. Scotland’s event sector is considered to be worth c.￡6 billion, which is a proportionate share of the known value of UK events (c.￡70 billion). This estimation is purely illustrative.??