VisitBritain markets Britain to the rest of the world and England to the British, building the value of tourism throughout Britain and throughout the year by creating world-class destination brands and marketing campaigns. It also builds partnerships with - and provides insights to - other organisations that have a stake in British and English tourism.

Goals

• Overseas Customer: To promote Britain overseas as a tourist destination, generating additional tourism revenue throughout Britain and throughout the year
• Domestic Customer: To grow the value of the domestic market by encouraging key audiences to take additional and/or longer breaks in England
• Governments: To provide advice to Government on matters affecting tourism and contribute to wider Government objectives
• Strategic Tourist Board Partners: To work in partnership with the devolved administrations and the national and regional tourist boards to build the British tourism industry
• Staff: To achieve all goals by making efficient and effective use of resources and by being open, accessible, professional, accountable and responsive.

VisitBritain works in partnership with the national tourist boards in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales to promote an attractive image of Britain. It provides impartial tourism information and gathers essential market intelligence for the UK tourism industry.

VisitBritain is funded by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport to promote Britain overseas as a tourist destination and to lead and co-ordinate England marketing.

The net grant-in-aid to promote Britain overseas for 2004/05 is £35.5m. The total resource available for England marketing is £14m (of which £3.6 million is deployed directly through Regional Development Agencies). A further £1.5m 'challenge fund' is available for domestic marketing subject to VisitBritain raising £3.5 million partnership funding.

VisitBritain also raises around £17m non-Government funding through partnerships and other activities.

VisitBritain operates a network of 25 offices covering 31 key markets. VisitBritain employs 450 staff, 60% of whom are based overseas in Britain's key tourism markets.

Extensive research shows that in 2001, VisitBritain's activities generated £31 of overseas visitors' expenditure in Britain for every £1 of public money it spent. In 2004/05, VisitBritain will work towards generating a return on investment of 29 to 1.

VisitBritain's overseas offices work closely with British diplomatic and cultural staff, the local travel trade and media to stimulate interest in Britain. Back in the UK, it has strategic partnerships with other organisations, namely the British Council, the British Incoming Tour Operators Association, the British Hospitality Association and the UK Immigration Service.