Manchester City Council (MCC) has outlined its new plan to ensure the city continues to provide a year-round cultural offer that will attract more overseas visitors and create more opportunities for local residents.

The Cultural Ambition plan aims to build on the city's Cultural Strategy, which was first published in 2002 and set out objectives to develop the tourism destination potential of Manchester. MCC's new vision is centred around five themes to enhance the city's cultural provision, such as increasing access in local communities, offering more employment opportunities and the expansion of the digital and creative economy in Manchester.

A Cultural Commissioning Fund will help to deliver the Cultural Ambition and is set to be funded through both the private and public sectors after being approved by the council. MCC's executive member for culture and leisure, Mike Amesbury, said: "We have a responsibility to ensure that the exceptional talent in the city is both discovered and nurtured and is encouraged to stay in Manchester.

"The city has the largest creative and digital economy outside London, and, alongside the knowledge economy, these are the sectors which are continuing to expand and will offer significant future employment."