MP visits Fishers Farm Park for English Tourism Week
Arundel & South Downs MP Nick Herbert visited Fishers Farm Park on Friday (31 March) to highlight the attraction of West Sussex during English Tourism Week.
Fishers Farm Park in Wisborough Green is a popular and growing family-friendly farm park which is owned and run by the Rollings family.
The MP was met by husband and wife owners Tim and Trina Rollings and their son Tom. Trina gave Mr Herbert a tour of the park and showed him how they have earned a ‘highly commended’ award for the Best Farm Attraction UK 2017 in the recent National Farm Attractions Network Awards.
Opened in 1990, the farm park has developed over the years to provide a vast range of indoor and outdoor activities. At the beginning of this year they opened the doors to three family-sized self-catering cottages on the site. The MP was also given a special tour of the newest attraction, planned to open next month, an indoor tree-house and party barn.
The popularity of the UK’s farm parks is a big tourism success story. Nationally there are over 20 million visits annually to farm attractions, which in turn boosts the local economy. Fishers Farm Park employs over 160 staff across the site.
Nigel Smith, Chief Executive at Tourism South East said: “Tourism in the South East of England is worth nearly £12 billion to the economy and supports over 400,000 jobs – it is the most visited region outside London and in terms of value is equivalent to Scotland and Wales combined. In 2016 the region saw increase in day visits and overnight stays from both domestic and overseas visitors – with very favourable exchange rates the expectations for 2017 are equally optimistic”.
Nick Herbert said: “It was a pleasure to meet the Rollings family and to see the award-winning farm park they have created. It is easy to see why it is such a popular destination for families with young children.
“West Sussex is a fantastic county to visit with so much to offer. I am pleased to help promote our beautiful county, and the many local businesses which rely on tourism during English Tourism Week.”
Fishers Farm Quoted:
Trina and Tim – Fishers Farm Owners said: “It was a pleasure to meet Mr Herbert and to be able to show him around Fishers. We are extremely proud of our family-led and run business; we are now entering our 27th year of entertainment! We rely on a great team of staff, our part-timers drawn from local towns and villages, and train them ourselves in the art of dealing with customers – customer care being our main priority throughout the Farm Park.
With the addition of the Holiday Cottages to the Park we are now able to extend the Fishers experience nationally and encourage families from further afield to enjoy the benefits of, not just the Park, but the many attractions of West Sussex in general. It is one of our greatest pleasures to know that Fishers has featured in the happy memories of many, many children over the years and indeed those very children are now bringing their own families to visit us now.”