Sustainable tourism award for Manning’s
Joseph Manning and his family have been presented with an award for excellence at their Old Macdonald’s Farm park near London. The award was given on behalf of Enjoy England in recognition of the Brentwood attraction’s contribution to sustainable tourism.
Old Macdonald’s Farm has been operating for over 10 years and was taken over by Manning’s in 2005, who have since made a sustained investment in improving the attraction as an educational and leisure establishment. During this time the average length of stay has increased from one-and-a-half to over four hours.
The introduction of a number of environmentally friendly initiatives, including reducing fuel use, recycling and saving water, were key to winning the award for sustainable tourism.
“We are proud of this achievement as we try to make learning about the environment fun for all our visitors,” says Manning. “I am delighted with the feedback we have received and trust that even in these difficult economic times this will catapult our business forward in the right direction.”
Joseph and his wife Sindy collected the award at an Enjoy England regional black tie dinner in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, on October 23. Old Macdonald’s Farm will now automatically be entered for the national awards, which will be presented in April 2009.
Old Macdonald’s Farm is part of the Manning’s Organisation, an operator and importer of amusement equipment for many years. Recently the family unveiled a new umbrella website uniting its various services: www.mannings-org.com
