Irish Self Catering Federation Position Paper on Development of the Sector

POSITION PAPER

Irish Self Catering Federation Position Paper on Development of the Sector

 Date 02/12/2022

 IRISH SELF CATERING FEDERATION

Email: info@iscf.ie Mob: +353 86 1785654

Websites: www.iscf.ie / www.LetsGoSelfCatering.ie

CONTENTS

Introducing the Irish Self Catering Federation

Objectives to this document

Why self-catering has not been developed as an industry

Irish registry for STR + need for Guidelines

Development of STR in Ireland

Economic development of self-catering in rural areas

1. Ferries
2. EV Chargers

Quality Assurance

1. Code of Ethics

Accommodation Crisis for 2023 Tourism Season

Conclusion

Social Media & Website Links

References

Appendix 1

Appendix 2

Appendix 3

All Ireland Development

What the ISCF is seeking to achieve

INTRODUCTION TO THE IRISH SELF-CATERING FEDERATION

The Irish Self Catering was founded in 1998 bringing together the individual owners, group managers and Irish Marketing managers of sector. Under chairperson Jacinta Doolan initially and again in 2019-2021 Short-term rental is now a mainstream pillar of tourism accommodation rather than marginal with 1:4 of all tourism bookings and we are a viable, vibrant industry which has been disputed and fractured by the portals in the past 10 years. Eurostat now takes details from OTA’s giving the first picture of the sector in the EU economically.

Looking at the distribution by type of accommodation in hotels self-catering and campsites. All three types of tourist accommodation showed increases for 2021 compared with 2020. The number of nights spent in hotels increased by 32.9 %, remaining however 43.0 % lower compared with 2019. Nights spent in holiday and other short-stay accommodation and nights spent at campsites increased by 28.1 % and 35.0 % respectively in 2021.

Since covid tourism groups have come together in the Failte Ireland Advisory Group, the Tourism and Hospitality Forum, the Shared Island Tourism group, bringing a clearer understanding of the problems and needs of self-catering within the Irish Tourism offering.

The ISCF has pursued the policy of discussion and negotiation with all organisations who have control and legislation over the self-catering industry in Ireland and at EU level. Self-Catering as a sector has recovered well in 2022 but needs to develop rapidly to increase the accommodation offering for 2023 season.

Short-term rental is now a mainstream pillar of tourism accommodation  rather than marginal.   The most recent report on Self-catering was 2019 ISCF commissioned Frontline Consultants to carry out an Economic Impact Assessment of the complete Self-Catering Industry in Ireland, with support from Failte Ireland and HomeAway. The industry in 2018 supported over 7225 jobs direct and many more indirectly, mostly in rural Ireland.

The ISCF represents over 140 members with 6000 self-catering units, with all units having the ISCF Quality Assurance. Some units are also registered with Failte Ireland, and are assessed by their Quality Assurance, though many of the 2500 units registered with Failte Ireland are on hotel grounds and have been contracted to refugee accommodation.   Self-catering was the number 1 provider of accommodation along the Wild Atlantic Way, with low impact accommodation, which are part of the landscape.

A more recent Scottish report  (4) showed that the number of self-catering units had dropped from 23,000 pre-Covid to Latest figures show there are 17,794 self-catering units on Non-Domestic Rates. These properties generate: 4 million visitor nights per year; £867.1m total visitor spend; and support

OBJECTIVES TO THIS DOCUMENT

• Clear understanding of Why Self-Catering not been Developed as an Industry
• Register for STR and need for Guidelines for RPZ areas and Glamping in Rural areas.
• Development in Rural Ireland.
• Economic Development of Self-Catering in Rural Areas
• Accommodation Crisis for Tourism in 2023
• Development of Self-Catering Industry

 WHY SELF-CATERING HAS NOT BEEN DEVELOPED AS AN INDUSTRY

•  In 2007 we lost our Failte Ireland Self-catering book, and the Gulliver booking system was closed in 2009.
• The OTAs came in to manage the market in 2011, disrupted the market until Covid in turn brought a change of attitude at national and EU level. The system in Ireland was seriously fractured by now.
• The holiday Sector 25 Group Schemes in scenic coastal areas were built in the 1990’s and reached tax maturity – and were all sold off individually in 2010-20 – to include Achill Island, Ballybunion, Dunmore
• Lack of Registration and management of self-catering to allow development of industry.
• Due to the rampant disregard for regulations, and the lack of a Register for Self-Catering in Ireland OTA’s such as Airbnb took over a large part of the Irish Market, with no regard for the sector as a whole. They charge up to 25% of a mark-up on property rented and using dynamic pricing have increased costs in Dublin. The Dept of Housing brought in the RPZ areas and has seriously disrupted the STR (Short term Rental)

IRISH REGISTER FOR STR + NEED FOR GUIDELINES

 A Self-Catering business involves one or many  vacation homes, (5)  including heritage homes, thatch cottages, and glamping run in a professional manner, with such business’ members of a national federation. The Irish Self-Catering Federation has developed a diagram of the Eco-System  showing the benefits to the local economy and the sales channels for owners in Ireland. Self-catering accommodation was not detailed in the 1939 Tourism and Traffic Act, and we look forward to the Register for STR which will give a legislative status to industry.

The ISCF called for a Register for Self-Catering in 2017 and presented to a joint committee on this request. The ISCF have worked with the Dept of Tourism and Failte Ireland as the statutory body to manage the Register for STR to replace the 1933 legislation. We also work at EU level with the EHHA (European Holiday Homes Association) where legislation is coming  (6)on all STR rentals.

• The Register for STR will give clear guidelines the industry, allowing for its development. Management of the Register will be by Failte Ireland and they have already taken on staff to manage the register.
• The ISCF have a negotiation committee in place made up of individual owners and marketing management companies to discuss the practicalities of a Register and its management
• The ISCF has asked for a Register which is one-off, proportionate, centrally managed, online, inexpensive, consistent, notified to the EU commission and in line with their regulations
• The Register will start in Q2 of 2023 and have 18 months to roll out, before information is required at EU level. The aim of the EU legislation is to ensure clear data and transparency is in place. As there has been no clear data on the Self-Catering sector since 2009, the ISCF welcomes this.
• The ISCF has a positive working relationship with the Dept of Tourism, Failte Ireland and we attend mostly Failte Ireland Advisory meetings, Tourism and Hospitality meetings, Shared Island Tourism. We have started to welcome members from Northern Ireland, whose STR offering is much more developed and managed. The Eco and Glamping offering in Norther Ireland is widespread in Northern Ireland, but due to a lack of clear planning guidelines, most Glamping and extension of Self-Catering businesses have been turned down for planning. We have forwarded our recommendations on Planning for Self-Catering in RPZ areas and Glamping in rural areas to the Department of Housing and hope clear Guidelines for Planners and Owners will be available as part of the new planning
• We need to make planning and booking this easier to do for individuals and ferry companies domestically and internationally.
• Clear details on STR as at present the Dept of Housing legislation refers to a max of 14 days, Failte Ireland sees it as 21 days while planning authorities look on it as 90 days. We need a flexible approach to allow business to thrive and the ISCF suggests up to 6 months as STR, allowing the RTB take over any accommodation longer than this as a long-term rental.

 DEVELOPMENT OF STR IN IRELAND

There needs to be a plan for development of Self-catering in all its forms, in a regulated way in rural Ireland. In September 2022 Eurostat published 1 monthly data  (1 ) on short-stay accommodation offered via online platforms referring to the current year. They are the result of an agreement between the European Commission and the four private collaborative economy platforms reached in March 2020, showing that privately held data can successfully be used as a source of official, albeit experimental, statistics.

The statistics show that there was 139% increase compared to 2021 with 199 mil bed nights in the EU.  However, this statistics for Ireland are limited as there are many more bookings with local marketing agents and direct bookings, so does not clearly reflect the industry. A Failte Ireland report published last week showed Self-catering had the highest occupancy rate in Q3 of 2022 with unit occupancy for Q3 was 78% (compared to pre-Covid norm of 75%) – the sector’s performance overall throughout 2022 has been similar to pre-Covid norms (8).

This is a snapshot of the accommodation in self-catering and the economic value of the sector as a whole is yet to be revealed.

The economic footprint of Self-catering in all its forms was growing prior to the pandemic, and this only looks set to continue.

In the UK and Northern Ireland 3 STRs truly are the economic lifeblood rural regions, driving spending, providing direct employment, and supporting local businesses alike.   (10 + 9). In The UK there are 86,445 properties, provide 9.4 mil visitors nights per annum, worth £2.6 bill in visitor spend and supporting 69,635 FTE jobs and worth £1.98 bill to the UK Economy (10). Moreover, the relative importance of the STL market is proportionately largest in regions of the UK where there is a lower-than-average household income, meaning it is an even more vital source of GDP for these areas.

Sykes Holidays bought Forest Holidays – with cabins – and built 700 units – very profitable with 97% occupancy. They are building in Brecon Beacons – want to have 80 centers in next 10 years in forest areas. (11)

There are new types of customers who need to be encouraged, as they have a high spend wherever they stay:- ( 12)

• Business Customers – who now choose self-catering rather than hotels for stays of more than 4 nights, if can find them.
• Digital nomads – not bound by office and landing point for my tribe or area and the Silver Surfers who have retired early.
• Medical Tourism – people visiting the hospital for a program of treatment may choose Self-Catering for family members accompanying them. This is not common in Ireland.
• Teleworkers– Many have been moved around a lot during Covid and spend a short time in an area. Other workers may move to an area for a week or longer to install services such as solar panels or improve the internet service.
• Senior Co- Living and Co-housing– Accommodation in the short or long term for people who cannot live in their own home due to illness, inability to climb stairs, or following an operation.

We have lost some members due to retirement, family returning home to rural areas during Covid and selling up business. There needs to be a linking of Tourism Development Plans as developed and published by Failte Ireland with a structured approach to Planning Permission for Self-Catering.

We believe that the above figures are from the 2019 report (3) and no longer reflect the Industry in Ireland. RPZ areas have spread to over 50 regions (mostly urban) in the country (15). Covid has caused a much higher demand for self-catering in rural areas, while demand in cities has reduced, similar to a trend all over the EU.

I am attaching our proposals for allowing for planning permission in RPZ areas, and for the development of Eco and rural development. In Sligo a surf centre is being developed, with no self-catering allowed due to RPZ Legislation ( Appendix 1 + 2).

In many coastal areas the Section 25 schemes were all sold off piecemeal in the past 15 years, this should not be allowed to happen again. We want to work with community groups to develop viable rural self-catering in villages and towns. Restoration of farm buildings and old buildings should be supported as well as larger Eco schemes linked to Greenways, waterways, reclaimed bogs as well as coastal areas. Planning for any such development is presently impossible to get.

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT Of SELF-CATERING IN RURAL AREAS

Employment – Self-catering is a central and integral part of the tourism infrastructure, which needs to be developed in tandem with other parts of our tourism offering. We developed the complex EU Self-Catering Eco System (appendix 3), and the simpler Irish Self-Catering Eco System. Research by the EHHA shows that every 2 s-c units are equal to 1 full-time position, as caretakers, cleaning, maintenance, and many other staff as shoe in the ISCF self-catering eco system. The 2019 showed levels of employment and. community engagement is important to self-catering owners working with local shops, markets, restaurants, pubs, activity providers and visitor attractions as well as sports clubs, visitor attractions as  well as sports activity and nature tourism. The graph here shows the direct employment in rural Ireland.

Extra support for island and rural communities with clear development goals. There should be a variety of basic to luxury properties own offer and including “Bothies” in rural remote areas to support walking, horse-riding and cycling holidays

ISCF QUALITY ASSURANCE

 During Covid the ISCF developed a Quality Assurance Scheme, approved by Failte Ireland. This Quality Assurance is accepted by all members of the federation with visual inspections on a percentage of properties annually. (13) This in turn has given confidence to Ferry companies to request to book though a portal with the ISCF. We. Do not have a booking website at present, which is a serious disadvantage to individual and small group members.

business plan. We have a negotiation team ready to meet with the Department of Tourism too discuss the minute of implementing the register.

CODE OF ETHICS

1. The property and gardens/grounds and any facilities should be

presented and maintained to the highest standard of decor and cleanliness.

2. The property should comply with all Health and Safety standards for a residential dwelling.
3. The owner/manager should provide an excellent service to guests, from initial enquiry to booking, providing full information on terms and conditions, and arrival and departure details.
4. The owner/manager should provide a warm welcome to guests which could include a welcome hamper, a nice bunch of flowers from the garden, rooms warm and lit – as appropriate for the property/location and time of year.
5. The guests should be greeted by the owner/manager/caretaker or a suitably arranged method of key collection agreed with the guest.
6. Following on the information given at the time of booking, the owner/manager should present excellent information on local amenities and provide essential telephone numbers and information for the guests’ enjoyment.
7. Assist guests with arrangements during their stay to enhance their holiday and deal with any Issues that may arise in the property promptly and efficiently.
8. Thank guests for choosing your business and provide a warm goodbye, encouraging feedback on social media or review channels.
9. Deal with any issues or complaints in a professional, respectful manner

Ferries – there is a great increase in the number of guests who can get to Ireland from the UK and Mainland Europe with larger ships bringing cars and foot passengers from:

Dublin into Hollyhead,

Cherbourg into Dublin,

South Wales into Rosslare,

Rosslare into Dunkirk & Le Havre,

from Cherbourg into Rosslare,

from Bilbao into Rosslare

from Roscoff to Ringaskiddy Cork

This access to the island of Ireland needs route maps from ferry ports, guides to allow overseas self-drive tourism to access all of Irelands rural regions with links to Tourism Development plans. Those who fly into Ireland need details on how to access Donegal, Ireland West, Shannon, Cork Dublin is not just the focus of all access to Ireland, as urban areas are now  more off-putting to tourists post Covid.

EV Charging points – Most self-catering customers use cars to get around. Unfortunately, the lack of cars available for hire here resulted in many last-minute cancellations of bookings during 2022. We want to promote the use of hybrid and EV cars, which are much more commonly in use on mainland Europe. In 2020 25% of cars on the roads in Holland were EVs as were 14% of cars in Germany and 11% of cars in France.  (14)

Charging points are seriously lacking in rural Ireland with a single charger for 100km of road. To put it another way: in Holland there were 66,665 charging points whereas in Ireland there are only just over 1,350 public charge points. Ireland is 69 % bigger than the Netherlands, while their population is more than three times larger than ours.  In order to be able to do our bit for the environment and to help with climate action efforts, we are looking for extra grant aid to be made available to the self-catering sector.

We want extra grants to be given for the installation of EV charging points at self-catering units as well as additional funding for retrofitting PV solar panels for micro-generation of power, which will not only help to run the houses, but any over production of which can now be sold back to the grid, presently at 18 c per unit.

 ACCOMODATION CRISIS FOR 2023 TOURISM SEASON

Our aim is to empower our diverse and professional membership, enabling them to deliver exceptional experiences to guests. Our focus is on supporting individual owners, businesses, marketing agents in Ireland and communities in the promotion of Irish Self-catering as a sustainable, inclusive and responsible form of accommodation, at the heart of Irelands’s rural tourism offering.

We would like to re-build the urban offering in the next 3 years, which has been decimated by RPZ legislation, leaving a very unbalanced urban accommodation offering (15). This has been exacerbated by the arrival of refugees and migrants, resulting in serious mark-up in hotel rates in 2022.

In October the ISCF did a roadshow of meetings around the country and were alarmed by the lack of hotels open to the public.  Due to the number of hotel and hotel based self-catering units now accommodating refugees there is a lack of hotel beds with 1:5 beds used for refugees.   Clare, Galway and Kerry  were notable with the high level of accommodation now housing refugees. On an assessment of 3 tourism areas we find the number of beds not available for the 2023 season as follows

Killarney – Kenmare –    + 72 self-catering units

Kilkenny – 690+ bedrooms gone (some d’oibleagaid & other triple rooms). Clifden –   1 Hotel left (Station House) and 3 BnB’s – All other hotels, BnB, town self-catering are all gone as outside Clifden.

There was not clarity on the number of mid-priced hotel beds gone from the Tourism offering for 2023. Self-catering groups schemes have also been taken off the market, especially those on hotel grounds.

Self-Catering and Bed and Breakfasts have been called on by Failte Ireland to fill the vacuums for 2023 – though this is being asked with no financial supports to the sector, but we need a DMO Booking system for this to happen in 2023.

CONCUSION

Despite the challenges that we face, as an association, our vision is that the ISCF takes the leading role in supporting and promoting a vibrant and prosperous self-catering sector that is recognized as pivotal to the future of Irelands Tourism Economy. Our aim is to empower our diverse and professional membership, enabling them to deliver exceptional experiences to guests. Our focus is on supporting individual owners, businesses, marketing agents in Ireland and communities in the promotion of Irish Self-catering as a sustainable, inclusive, and responsible form of accommodation, at the heart of Irelands’s rural tourism offering.

• Dept of Tourism – We need to be back under management and control of Dept of Tourism completely.
• Desk Research – The Irish self-catering is an unknown quantity of units – due to the lack of a register in previous years. The ISCF can quantify in detail each of the owners and agent members but there are many properties listed with OTAs, on co council websites, in large groups such as Centre Parks, on hotel grounds as well as the Failte Ireland website. We request desktop research to quantify the total number of STR properties which will be open for the 2023 season to take place prior to the Register for STR being put in place
• Planning Guidelines – Proportionate enforcement of the RPZ areas, clear Guidelines for Planners and STR Owners.
• Destination Management Organization (DMO) Site Funding Support – Direct booking supported with a DMO system which the ISCF would manage North and South of the Island. Funding for this website and staffing over 3 years. Funding stream needs to be provided by Government to allow this sector to develop rapidly.
• Guides for Tourism Development plans and a variety of accommodation
• Urban Offering – We would like to re-build the urban offering in the next 3 years, which has been decimated by RPZ legislation, leaving a very unbalanced urban accommodation offering. This has been exacerbated by the arrival of refugees and migrants, resulting in serious mark-up in hotel rates in 2022.
• FAM Trips – Familiarization trips to Self-catering for overseas media, similar to that offered with hotels.
• Marketing – Funding for development of a Marketing team in the ISCF which could link agents, ferry companies and owners to increase the bookings in the sector all year around.

Self-Catering and Bed and Breakfast have been called on by Failte Ireland to fill the vacuums for 2023 – though this is being asked with no financial supports to the sector, and no clear supports system. The lack of clarity on planning in RPZ areas is leaving owners fearful  for the 2023 season, when self-catering in all its form will be in more demand than ever before.

In order for the ISCF to its critical role in the re-development of a Tourism industry that supports the economy throughout the island of Ireland state funding will be required to:

• Fund the appointment of a Chief Operating Officer.
• Fund the wages and related costs of sufficient personal to enable the ISCF deliver the agreed objectives.
• Funding to enable the Federation and its members present self-catering in Ireland as a professional, high standard industry, that we can all be proud of.
• Enable the Federation to run it’s 2023 Conference using the best of input from the Irish and European Industry

WEBSITES & SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS

Media Links for the ISCF are as follow:

Website: https://iscf.ie/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ISCFederation

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HolidayHomesIreland

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/10361668/admin/

Links for the Customer listing site

Website:  LetsGoSelfCatering.ie  are

Facebook: ttps://www.facebook.com/LetsGoSelfCatering

Twitter: https://twitter.com/LetsGoSelfCater

Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/letsgoselfcatering/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/70494767/admin/

REFERENCES

1.https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/IP_21_3293

2.https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics  explained/index.php?title=Tourism_statistics_-_annual_results_for_the_accommodation_sector

3.https://iscf.ie/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/IR0202-Irish-Self-Catering-Federation-EIA-Final-Report.pdf

4.https://www.assc.co.uk/policy/economic-impact-study-self-catering-worth-867m-to-scottish-economy/

5.https://iscf.ie/blog/what-is-self-catering-business/

6.https://iscf.ie/blog/ehha-welcomes-eu-commission-register/

7.https://iscf.ie/blog/register-for-self-catering-ireland/

8.file:///C:/Users/info/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/WMNGFSCE/SELF%20CATERING%20REPORT%20Occupancy%20July%20to%20September%202022_.pdf

9.https://www.pascuk.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/AS1006-00-Self-Catering-NI-2021-Economic-Impact-Report.pdf

10.https://www.assc.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Economic-Impact-Study-UK-Report.pdf

11.https://www.sykescottages.co.uk/blog/short-term-lets-economic-impact-report/

12  https://iscf.ie/blog/changing-landscape-self-catering/

13.https://iscf.ie/blog/third-party-quality-assurance-framework-for-self-catering/

14.https://iscf.ie/blog/electric-car-charging-ireland/

15.https://iscf.ie/blog/rpz-self-catering-ireland/

Appendix 1

Reasons Why Self Catering should be allowed in RPZ areas

Appendix 2.

Reasons Why Glamping Should Be Given Planning Permission

Present situation with Glamping Pods

• Lack of clarity on who can get permission for Glamping pods in Ireland, many people have contacted the ISCF and expressed an interest in setting up a Glamping business. They have the necessary land and start-up capital but have found the planning process to be both daunting and disheartening.
• While in Northern Ireland the Glamping Industry is very well developed. Support and coordinated planning from local and national bodies exists in the North of Ireland. Their Glamping Businesses are thriving.
• There are many glamping pods being places in existing businesses, with the hope of retention, due to a lack of clarity on planning permission. With the Register for STR these units will also needs planning permission, no matter how many units an owner provides. Huts, bathes, Single remote units, and all forms of STR, whether plumbed or not should require certification.
• Glamping sites can be located in areas right across the country.  Each site can draw from the strength and characteristics of key destination areas while grounding their offering in personable, local interactions.
• Income is retained in the area. Successful Glamping sites – due to their very personal nature- often draw from the local community i.e., local food produce, local guided walks, local pubs and restaurants, local crafts etc.
• Festivals and events deliver income to rural areas and are being supported and incentivized to return to normal. There is a massive shortage of beds in key areas around the country – due to war needs, urgent viable sustainable bed stock is needed.  Lahinch, Lisdoonvarna, Kinsale, Clifden, Tralee, Westport, Killarney to name but a few, all lack mid-priced tourism beds, due to the number contracted to housing refugees in the hotels.
• The airline and ferry infrastructure has greatly increased access to Ireland with Tourism Ireland expecting an increase of up to 10 million guests by 2025.
• Where there is a serious overlap of the Tourism Destinations and RPZ areas, allowing these areas to provide adequate tourism beds is essential.  Killarney & Kinsale being prime examples. These towns face not just a collapse in growth but are facing a collapse in their bed stock available for tourists. Sites on the edge of these towns could be identified as suitable sites which could add to the accommodation. Rugby, GAA clubs, yacht clubs who all have space could be used as well as private sites.
• Glamping like self-catering is supportive of local economies with money being spent by those in such accommodation in the local area and on the accommodation. It has long been a policy goal of successive governments to increase the benefits of tourism spending into the local economy. By situating visitors in these communities we can prompt growth and vitality across rural Ireland communities.
• When a Glamping business applies to be placed on the edge of a village  or town a flat rate for connection of services – water, sewage and power, would allow a clear simple viable business plan. These businesses would in turn be paying rates for services provided.
• There are many Greenways in development,  which add to the diversity of the tourism offering. However there is a lack of planning or development of the accommodation structure for such projects, with glamping bringing a quick and easy solution to the market. We are currently building cycling and walking trails across the country. There are ample opportunities to build Glamping Accommodation along these routes and turn Ireland into a world best-in-class hiking / cycling destination.

• The pods are an example of sustainable tourism, with a lower carbon footprint which appeals to the modern tourists. There are many examples in the UK and Scotland offerings which are more sustainable.

3   EU ECO System as compiled by EHHA Members

For more information

ISCF Office: Attn. Daisy van Dongen Email: info@iscf.ie Phone: 086-1785654