Local wealth creation and subsequent employment are heavily dependent on small businesses, predominantly in the tourism, agriculture or distribution sectors.

Tourism is possibly the largest sector although its extent and potential are still being realised. The target visitor is one who appreciates beautiful landscapes and a sense of history, wants to stay in a local establishment and to linger in the area rather than car-tripping to bigger attractions further afield. Ideally, arrival and departure should be by train or by ferry from France or Spain. This is the essence of environmental tourism which seeks to protect the very thing that draws people to visit in the first place. The theme is being developed by the various tourism associations across neighbouring market towns but would still benefit from greater co-ordination and wider promotion.

Despite its importance, the future of local farming is very uncertain. The average age of farmers is over 55, subsidies are being changed and there is strong competition from a global market. The same alarm bells presaged the collapse of market gardening in the Tamar Valley in the 1980s. In the face of such huge challenges, local initiatives may often appear insignificant but they could still tip the balance between local farming’s survival and extinction. The main areas to address are: finding new markets, removing collective overheads and improving training especially for younger workers.

The distribution sector includes wholesale, retail and transport enterprises. It is not changing at the same speed as agriculture or tourism but is still a major contributor to the local economy and needs to be watched. Retail employs the most people and the small individual shops in Tavistock are a major attraction for the town. They appear to be holding their own alongside branches of the big chain stores although, in the villages, several shops have closed as their trade has declined in recent years.

Increasingly, businesses are finding they need access to modern office technology and suitable meeting places, which can be very expensive when provided individually. Collective support open to all small businesses is a key aim, using community facilities such as village halls as well as having a dedicated centre in Tavistock. More generally, there is a demand for more office and shop space in Tavistock and for more workshop space across the area.

Against this background, the Tavistock and Villages Initiative will work to:

Strategic aims	Supporting projects	Health Check references
Develop sustainable tourism	Tavistock heritage buildings Prison museum Yelverton walks Reopen railway to Tavistock Abbey Place lighting Town signage Events calendar Music festival Town museum Tavistock Town guided tours Tourism and Marketing Strategy	Main visitor attractions, including festivals and events Importance of tourism-related employment to the local economy Seasonal variations in visitor activity Ability to meet visitor expectations and needs Specialist tourism enterprises Long distance footpaths, cycle and bridleways linking town and country
Promote local products and services	Internet marketing Local food supply Annual food festival	Labour market participation rates Types of shops and services in Tavistock town centre Confidence of local retailers about future trading prospects Promotion of Tavistock as a shopping destination Main visitor attractions, including festivals and events Town centre management Importance of countryside for agriculture
Provide more office, shop and workspace	Princetown corner site Lopwell pumping station	Spread of local shopping provision between town and out-of-town Numbers of vacant shops and trends Amount of office or industrial floorspace that is vacant Availability of affordable premises for new small businesses Adequacy of facilities for local arts groups
Provide support services and facilities for small businesses	Business support centres Lamerton Sports and Community Centre Lydford Community Hall The Princetown Village Centre	Availability of affordable premises for new small businesses Broadband delivery Adequacy of business meeting and conference facilities
Reduce business overheads	Materials reprocessing Business support centres	Vulnerability of markets to closure Existence of business directory Adequacy of business meeting and conference facilities Results from existing town centre management work Importance of countryside for agriculture
Increase training for all ages		Applicability of vocational training to needs of local residents and employers Successful business support initiatives Proportion of population with professional, managerial or skilled jobs Proportion of population with semi-skilled or unskilled jobs