VisitScotland Business Events has released the results of its annual Scottish Association Survey, revealing the association meeting sector’s unprecedented economic contribution to the visitor economy of nearly £350 million, double the 2022/23 figure.
The latest research from VisitScotland also shows that there has been a considerable rise in delegate attendance. Over 146,000 delegates visited the country in the last financial year, representing an increase of 55% compared to 2022/23.
Providing further insights into the scale of association conferences held in Scotland, the survey revealed that the sector achieved record-breaking visitor spending and supported more jobs than ever before.
Rory Archibald, Senior Business Events Manager at VisitScotland Business Events comments: “The results of our latest survey underscores the significant economic and social value that the association sector brings to Scotland. A thriving business events sector not only supports jobs, stimulates local economies, and advances societal ambitions, but also drives activity during off-peak seasons, contributing significantly to Scotland’s visitor economy. We’re delighted with these encouraging results and look forward to welcoming many more business events to our innovative country.”
Key findings:
- Record economic impact: £349.1 million net additional impact to Scotland’s economy representing a 100% increase from 2022/23 (96% when adjusted for inflation).
- Significant rise in delegate attendance: 146,000 delegates representing an increase of 55% compared to 2022/23.
- Increasing events: 317 events hosted, which was an increase of 12% from 2022/23 levels.
- Increasing value per event: Over £900,000 additional spend per event 2023/24. The average value of events held in Scotland exceeded the recent historical average, as did average delegates and delegate days generated per event.
- Relatively stable event duration: Average event lasted 2.7 days which was relatively consistent with 2022/23 levels.
- Substantial activity in low season months: 40% of events took place between October and March, in typical ‘shoulder’ or ‘low’ months.
The Scottish Association Survey covers the 2023-2024 financial year and gathers contributions from convention bureaus, conference venues, and hotels to monitor the performance of high-value inbound association conference events.
Methodology
The Scottish Association Survey is coordinated by VisitScotland, which invites convention bureaus, conference venues, and hotels to submit details of relevant events hosted within their cities and venues. Value calculations incorporate Scottish Government and industry recognised “Delegate Expenditure Benefit” multipliers which have been adjusted to current prices using the HM Treasury Price Deflater. All submitted data undergoes a thorough audit by VisitScotland, with any non-qualifying events removed from the final dataset.
Author: Adam Parry
Adam is the co-founder and editor of www.eventindustrynews.com Adam, a technology evangelist also organises Event Tech Live, Europe’s only show dedicated to event technology and the Event Technology Awards. Both events take place in November, London.
