April 10, 2008 14:51

Glastonbury Festival generates ?73m for local community

Festival economic report released

A new study has revealed that last year's Glastonbury Festival generated over ?73 million in spending in the local area.

The report was published by Somerset's Mendip District Council in a bid to assess the economic impact of the three-day bash.

The study, undertaken by Bristol-based Baker Associates, showed the average amount spent by each of the 177,500 festival-goers who attended last year's event was ?293.24.

Total spending at the festival site in Pilton by revellers and traders was also about ?25.6 million, and off-site spending was about ?26.5 million, giving a total spend of about ?52 million directly linked to the festival.

Estimated spending associated with staging the 2007 festival was also ?21.2 million, taking the gross total spent on the event to ?73 million.

Councillor Harvey Siggs, leader of Mendip District Council, said: "The study has provided some important data which will not only help those involved to plan future festivals but also to look at how the festival affects Mendip.

"This information will enable us to better understand how it affects our local economy, which is so important to many aspects of our lives and business, and has shown us in detail how large-scale events impact on our local area.

"I hope this study can be used by other festivals and organisations as a key educational tool to demonstrate the value and difficulties of large-scale events."