A group of tourism operators travelled to London this week for the English Tourism Council's Excellence in England Awards and came home with an impressive haul of one gold and three silver accolades for the county.

Cumbria Tourist Board's chief executive Chris Collier spoke for many when she said that the awards showed Cumbria still has the best tourism businesses in the country.

Just 12 months ago the picture was very different, as foot-and-mouth disease continued its onslaught, bringing disaster for tourism businesses, farmers and many others.

The epidemic still had several months to run, and no-one was sure when, or even if, things would get back to normal.

However, there are now signs that the situation is starting to improve.

The Duke of York told those assembled at the awards that he was hopeful that recovery was on its way.

He also said that it was important to encourage more people to take short breaks in this country.

The success of Easter showed that many people's worst fear - that visitors would get out of the habit of visiting the Lake District - was largely unfounded.

If anything, they seemed delighted to be able to return to the area after missing out last year.

Now we must build on that success to ensure 2002 is remembered as the year tourism got back on its feet.

... at long last

Many towns would give the earth for a prime development site with glorious sea views, but in Grange-over-Sands they have one going begging which has been largely ignored for more than a decade.

So it is good news that the town's 3Ps Working Party has this week brought discussions over the future of the disused swimming pool on the Promenade back into focus.

The days of the open-air seaside lido may be long gone, but the site surely has a crucial role in the ongoing plans to restore the town's tourist fortunes, which have wilted since the hey-days of the mid-20th century.

What would be sad, however, would be any development which involved flattening the old complex, for its art deco style has a certain ambiance that blends with the Edwardian atmosphere on which the town seeks to capitalise.

The working party says there are "hundreds of ideas in the pipeline" including an open-air performance venue, skateboard park and a mini-Eden project, similar to the scheme that has been so successful in attracting floods of tourists to Cornwall.

However many ideas there may be, it is important that the working party decides swiftly which one is most suitable for the town, for the example of the replacement swimming pool, which is only now under construction, demonstrates that getting the necessary planning consents and raising the cash is a time-consuming exercise.

It would be sad if, in another decade, the focal point of the Prom was still an unused and decaying shell.