A CAMPAIGN to attract visitors to Selby has been launched as the district looks to capitalise on the demand for staycations and boost the area’s growing tourism industry.

A fresh website has been created to showcase the area as “the heart of Yorkshire”, highlighting the town as an ideal location to reach some of the region’s top attractions.

The marketing project, which includes images, logos and promotional tools for businesses to use, aims to boost the number of visitors to the area as the country comes out of lockdown restrictions.

Tourism is a growing industry in the district – the latest pre pandemic figures showed an increase in jobs and income related to visitors.

An economic impact report for 2019 found that tourism brought in £187.4 million to the area and supported 3,219 jobs – up 15 per cent on 2018 figures.

Councillor Tim Grogan, is Selby District Council’s executive member for culture.

He said: “The ‘Heart of Yorkshire’ launches at a perfect time.

“With the appetite for stay-at home holidays and days out at an all-time high, we have a unique opportunity to educate and inspire our residents and visitors to explore our beautiful district and discover everything that we have to offer.

“With 2.4 million tourism day trips to Selby District in 2019 worth £187.4 million, the visitor economy is one of the key drivers in the creation of jobs and prosperity for the district.”

The website boasts heritage walks, pubs, villages to visit and planned events.

Grace Chapman, advisory board member and community engagement officer at Selby Abbey, said: “As a district, we offer a warm and genuine welcome, as well as an authentic and exciting product.

“The Heart of Yorkshire will ensure that Selby District stands out for all the right reasons and that many new visitors will want to come and find out more.

“Not only will we connect more people to their home, we will attract new visitors and positively influence perceptions of the district, amongst local and national audiences.”

Vanessa Cook, owner of Stillingfleet Lodge Gardens, added: “With the new Heart of Yorkshire identity, social media channels and website, we will collectively tell a very compelling story around our district’s visitor and cultural offer and really shine a spotlight on our area.

“We have a lot to look forward to and I would encourage everyone to spend time in our district and for locals to really discover what we have on our own doorstep.”

The new website is exploreheartofyorkshire.co.uk and will fully launch this month. Businesses can also get involved with the campaign by visiting selby.gov.uk/explore-heart-yorkshire-toolkit.