Wednesday, June 19, 2024
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The British Holiday and Home Parks Association (BH&HPA), representing around 3,000 holiday and residential parks across the UK, has released a pre-election manifesto outlining its plans to collaborate with the next government.
The association, whose members are often family-owned businesses, emphasizes the need for the incoming Prime Minister to prioritize changes in planning, taxation, employment, and energy regulations.
Distributed to leaders of all major political parties, the manifesto is described by BH&HPA’s Director General, Debbie Walker, as having the potential for significant positive impacts.
The proposed changes aim to boost investment in rural and coastal areas and encourage more UK holidays.
Additionally, the manifesto highlights the potential to increase the availability of high-quality housing in residential parks, particularly benefiting older individuals looking to downsize, thus freeing up traditional family homes.
BH&HPA’s energy reforms call for expanding grid capacity to support sustainable technologies, such as heat pumps and electric vehicle charging points, in parks.
Debbie Walker states that the manifesto serves as a roadmap for supporting an industry vital to the wellbeing of Britain’s rural and coastal communities:
“We seek a partnership with the government to reform the planning system, encouraging more private investment into park homes, increasing choices, and freeing up bricks-and-mortar housing,” says Walker.
“Park homes offer good quality, single-storey accommodation that can be provided more quickly and affordably than traditional housing.
“We also aim to collaborate with the next government to establish a fair and competitive tax environment that promotes domestic tourism and acknowledges its immense value to local businesses.
“Our industry is committed to addressing skills gaps in rural and coastal areas by providing long-term training and employment opportunities for all age groups.
“Furthermore, we support the government’s Net Zero goals by identifying areas where grid capacity expansion will greatly benefit local communities.
“These expansions will supply parks with the power necessary to meet current and future demands and adopt new technologies for industry decarbonization.
“We anticipate an early meeting with the new government to discuss the implementation of our industry’s proposals,” Walker added.
An independent economic survey recently revealed that UK holiday parks and campsites generated £12.2bn in visitor spending for 2022/3, contributing £7.2bn in gross value addition to the UK economy and supporting over 226,700 full-time equivalent jobs.
