Hospitality & Tourism is an important sector in Portsmouth's labour market, providing many jobs and forecast to grow in importance in the next few years.

The main skills shortages are for customer service positions and people with basic skills, generic skills and attributes, management/supervisory skills, multi-skilling and occupational-specific skills.

When Portsmouth lost thousands of jobs in and around the naval dockyards during the 1980's and early 1990's, it was decided to try to replace the loss to the local economy by establishing Portsmouth as a tourist destination - not just somewhere people came to catch a ferry to their holiday abroad, but somewhere people would spend time (and money).

So, the area around the harbour was re-developed, with Gunwharf Quays leading the way and new tourist attractions such as the Spinnaker Tower, Action Stations and the D-Day Museum.  New hotels have sprung up, with still more to come, hosting conferences as well as holiday-makers.

Between 1994 and 2003, Portsmouth saw the number of hotels and restaurants increase by 28% - nearly three times the national increase of 10% for Great Britain as a whole.  By 2003, hotels and restaurants represented 11% of the businesses in Portsmouth, compared with the national average of 7%.

Portsmouth has hosted some major events, bringing hundreds of thousands of visitors into the city; events such as the Trafalgar 200, Volvo Ocean Race Stopover, International Festival of the Sea and the Cutty Sark race - with plans in the future for more.

 

Employment Figures for Hospitality and Tourism in Portsmouth

• The 2001 Census showed that there were 5,082 people living in Portsmouth employed in hotels and catering trades in April 2001 - that's around 6% of Portsmouth's workers.

• Research into local employment trends in the South East has predicted that the number of people employed in hotels and catering throughout Hampshire & the Isle of Wight will increase by over 10% between 2000 and 2011

• In the twelve months to June 2004, Jobcentres in and around Portsmouth had a total of 2,905 vacancies in hotels and catering.

• The Learning & Skills Council has found that the hotel and catering sector is one of the most likely to recruit sectors, with 60% of employers recruiting.

 

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