HebCelt Festival on course to deliver £40m boost to Outer Hebrides by 2027
The award winning event is gearing up for this year's celebrations but also waiting on news about a vital funding application as it looks to secure its long-term future
If you tuned into the radio today, picked up a newspaper or clicked a news website, there’s a good chance you’d have read about the HebCelt Festival.
The award-winning event has provided a vital £12m economic lifeline to the Western Isles over the past three years since the COVID-19 pandemic while helping secure dozens of jobs, say organisers.
Analysis highlights a £4.1 million boost to the local community from the 2024 festival alone, marking an increase of £600,000 on the previous year, and safeguarding 76 tourism related jobs and providing work for artists, musicians and technical staff.
Since its return to full-scale operations after lockdown which saw islanders go two years without a main event, the economic benefit achieved has more than doubled that from pre-pandemic events in 2018 (£2m) and 2019 (£1.8m) to £4.1m last year.
Organisers now predict the festival to have generated more than £40m in financial benefits over the years should it reach its 30th anniversary celebrations in 2027.
But the figures come as they await a critical funding decision from Creative Scotland, which BBC Radio’s Good Morning Scotland programme today reported will come next Thursday.
Also BBC Naidheachdan who have lead their website this morning with this article.
Tickets for the event featuring the likes of Tide Line, Eddie Reader, The Tumbling Souls (pictured), Beluga Lagoon, NATI. and more are available now at the festival website.