UCB students boast destination tourism success | News

April 2026

Malvern Hills: where student insight meets industry impact

By Claire Huggins

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Main photo credit: Panorama Tower and the Malvern Hills, courtesy of Phillip Halling.

From Church Stretton in Shropshire, to Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, via the Malvern Hills and Birmingham Airport, the insights and expertise of University College Birmingham students are in high demand by industry. Working on so much more than purely theoretical learning, the staff and students from the Department of Hospitality and Tourism are always seeking opportunities to make a practical impact.

A beautiful part of the country, Church Stretton boasts the accolade of being on the first UK destination to make an ABTA ‘must visit’ destination. It was the Mayor of Church Stretton who recognised the value our students could bring, to designing and developing a strategy that showcased the village’s potential for digital and adventure tourism, in turn, widening its appeal to a broader audience.

The project’s success lay in the collaboration and research work undertaken by the students, and it has led on to similar success with students developing a sustainability strategy for Birmingham Airport.

“Projects like this give students a platform to excel, apply their knowledge in a real-world setting, and enhance their personal brand and employability,” said Simon Faulkner, senior tourism and hospitality lecturer.

“At the same time, University College Birmingham benefits from the opportunity to show the industries in which we work, that our students are ready to make an impact."

Attending the presentation of the students’ work for Church Stretton, Victoria Carmen, Visitor Economy Officer at Malvern Hills District Council, was keen to engage our students in their next challenge:

How can The Malverns better engage younger domestic visitors and unlock growth from the 18–35 market?

The team included Nafsika Kasapi, Sarthak Kant Sedhain, Skye Smith, Diego Funes de la Torre and Alexandra Tousouni, all undergraduate or postgraduate students from the International Hospitality and Tourism Management BA (Hons), International Tourism Management BA (Hons) and Marketing Management for Events, Hospitality and Tourism MA courses.

They worked to identify the key drivers behind Millennial and Gen Z travel behaviour, establishing the need for authenticity, sustainability and experience-led; with The Malverns only an hour from Birmingham by train, the audience was there, the trick was how to entice a younger audience to the region.

“As part of the project, it was amazing to visit the Malvern Hills and experience the area first hand,” said Nafsika.

“That really helped us understand what would appeal to a younger and more international audience.

“It was also important for me, to work with professionals in a sector I want to build my career on."

"This type of collaborative project work establishes UCB as an organisation that doesn’t just teach the industry, we’re part of it."

Simon Faulkner Senior tourism and hospitality lecturer

Taking the role of consultants, the students were able to act with impartiality as they analysed visitor data and mapped digital behaviours, to develop a suite of recommendations that evolved into two clear strategies:

Disconnect to Reconnect: drew on The Malverns natural beauty as a haven for boosting wellbeing, embracing nature and digital detoxing.

International Students as Domestic Tourists: targeted Birmingham’s wealth of international students as a ready audience for The Malverns’ heritage spaces and picturesque landscapes, ripe for cultural exploration.

“Building something from scratch really sparked my interest in branding,” added Alexandra.

“Turning research into something Gen Z would engage with was a great opportunity to put what we’ve learned on our degree into practice.”

Their work has since informed the council’s wider tourism plans and sparked new conversations about how rural destinations can evolve to meet changing expectations.

Speaking immediately after the students presented their work at the Tourism Forum, to an audience of 50+ stakeholders, Victoria Carmen was quick to praise the group:

“The work was thoroughly researched, highly relevant and professionally presented,” she said.

“The students delivered their ideas with genuine passion and enthusiasm for destination marketing, and the presentation was extremely well received by both myself and all attendees.”

And the good news keeps on coming.

The success with the ‘Engaging the Next Generation’ Malverns Tourism Strategy has opened door to further project work for other organisations:

“Since the presentation, another three organisations represented at the Tourism Forum have reached out to collaborate with us,” Simon added.

“The next confirmed project is with the Great Yarmouth Community Engagement Team, it will focus on analysing tourism trends and aligning local strategies with emerging visitor expectations.

“I am excited about working with our students again; they consistently demonstrate enthusiasm, professionalism, critical thinking, with strong communication and teamwork skills – they’re an asset to any organisation.

“This type of collaborative project work establishes UCB as an organisation that doesn’t just teach the industry, we’re part of it.”

Find out more about our tourism courses.