Royal Anthropological Institute / Development Studies Association Tourism Research Seminars: Theme – Mass Tourism

SEMINAR SERIES AT THE ROYAL ANTHROPOLOGICAL INSTITUTE

Seaside towns in the age of austerity

Professor Steve Fothergill, Sheffield Hallam University

Monday 12 October at 5.30 pm

Britain’s seaside towns are home to a substantial population and a visitor destination for millions.  But they are often overlooked and misunderstood.  Stereotypical views about seaside towns abound, but until surprisingly recently there has been a distinct lack of hard evidence on trends in their economy and on their wider social profile.

The seminar will outline the substantial evidence base on Britain’s seaside towns developed over the last decade and a half by researchers at Sheffield Hallam.  Myths about the terminal decline of the seaside tourist industry are debunked, but a number of places do display evidence of acute socio-economic problems.  It is also clear that generalising from one resort to another is fraught with difficulty.  The ‘age of austerity’ has posed new challenges but for the British seaside tourist industry it has also opened up new opportunities.

The Sheffield Hallam evidence has proved influential in government and sets the context for much contemporary debate around coastal tourism in the UK.

Steve Fothergill is a Professor in the Centre for Regional Economic and Social Research (CRESR) at Sheffield Hallam University.  An economist by background, he has a long track record of influential research, especially on UK urban and regional issues.  A visit to Margate in the mid-1990s first sparked his academic interest in seaside towns and he has subsequently undertaken a range of pioneering studies including The Seaside Economy (2003), England’s Seaside Towns: a benchmarking study (2008), The Seaside Tourist Industry (2010), Caravan Communities of the Lincolnshire Coast (2011) and Seaside Towns in the Age of Austerity (2014), mostly in collaboration with his CRESR colleague Christina Beatty.

This event is free, but tickets must be booked. To book tickets please go to http://fothergill.eventbrite.co.uk