01

London GreetersCase Study

Visitor Information & Marketing

02Visitor Information & Marketing |

London Greeters

As host to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, London is expected to welcome over 4 million extra visitors over 4 years. However the legacy of this once in a lifetime event will only be realised if visitors are warmly welcomed to the capital.

The concept of London Greeters was mooted in The London Tourism Action Plan 2009-13. The Five Host Boroughs of the London 2012 Games - Greenwich, Tower Hamlets, Waltham Forest, Newham and Hackney were funded by London Development Agency to set up the scheme and run it until 2013. The London Borough of Camden later joined the scheme, which was launched in February 2011.

London Greeters aim to highlight parts of London that are often over-looked by visitors, to promote local knowledge, characters and the enthusiasm of Londoners

and their local neighbourhoods.

03

PracticalitiesThe scheme is managed by the Royal Borough of Greenwich working in partnership with the London Boroughs of Hackney, Newham, Tower Hamlets, Waltham Forest, Camden and the London Development Agency. Public Liability Insurance is provided by individual London Boroughs if guidelines are followed.

New greeters receive orientation sessions. All Greeters were offered an opportunity to attend the Welcome to London 2012 Training developed by the Greater London Authority. The training complements and enhances existing knowledge by providing an understanding of the scale of the London 2012 Games, an overview of Games time transport and London as the Host City in order to help welcome the world to London.

Visitor Information & Marketing |

Travel expenses for greets, training and meetings are currently provided by London Greeters. Greeters are asked to commit to 2 Greets per month, plus orientation sessions and annual briefing sessions.

Visitors book greets online via www.londongreeters.org, the form collects purpose of visit, visitor profile and interests to match the visitor and greeter. Greenwich Tourist Information Centre receives the electronic form and then puts the visitor in touch with the greeter. The Greeter is then left to contact the visitor to confirm details.

Greets must remain in public areas and must use public transport or travel on foot. Greeters are passionate about their local area and have specific interests such as architecture, history and have a basic knowledge of the London 2012 Games. Greeters now operate in Camden, Epping Forest, Greenwich, Woolwich, Tower Hamlets, Eltham, Canary Wharf and the Isle of Dogs, Hackney, St Katharine’s Dock and Wapping, Hoxton and Shoreditch, Brick Lane and Spitalfields, Newham, Walthamstow and Stratford.QU

OTE

Roger Mason is a London Greeter who specialises in Camden Town and the surrounding neighbourhood. Following the first London Greet, Steven from Chicago reviewed:

“We had an excellent walking tour; I was particularly impressed by your flexibility in altering your course when we expressed an interest in sites not on your original itinerary” (www.londongreeters.org).

04

Lessons learned

• Utilise existing community / volunteer groups; best practice and

advice was sought at Volunteer Centre Greenwich at the set up stage

of the scheme on the best ways to recruit and manage greeters.

• Greets take place in the resident’s own area of London to ensure

local knowledge and to reduce travelling costs.

• Volunteering should not affect Job Seeker’s Allowance, Income Support,

Incapacity Benefit or Disability Living Allowance and London Greeters

are happy to give a reference for a volunteer, making the scheme

attractive to job seekers.

• Due to the high number of international visitors, greeters with

foreign language skills have been welcomed.

Visitor Information & Marketing |

Contact details:Wendy Tang, Greenwich Tourism Officer, wendy.tang@greenwich.gov.uk, 020 89216105

Visitwww.londongreeters.org

WEB