MONTH IN REVIEW
MONTH IN REVIEW
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INVESTMENT HOTEL OPENINGS HOTEL OPERATORS
Warner Leisure Hotels, has invested
£50m in its first new property in the UK
for more than 15 years – the 209-room
Studley Castle Hotel In Warwickshire. A new £1.8m boutique hotel has
opened in Leicester overlooking the
site where the remains of King Richard
III were discovered.
Two empty office buildings in
Peacock Lane and New Street have
been converted into the 28-bedroomed
St Martins Lodge.
Building Services Design (BSD)
provided mechanical and electrical
engineering services for the grade
II-listed Georgian buildings, with
many of the original features being
retained – including the hallway, with
its chandelier and staircase.
Joel Sawyer, director at BSD, the
lead designer on the project, said:
“We’re delighted to be involved in
a project that has created modern,
elegant accommodation while at
the same time, honouring the
heritage of the important site and
its surroundings.”
As 40% of the hotel – located directly
opposite Leicester Cathedral – is
of listed status, all original internal
cornices, ceilings and floors are having
to be retained, meaning BSD had to
design the building services around the
structure of the existing building.
Nick Quinn, director of St Martins
House, said: “With our neighbouring
conference and events centre, St
Martins House, located only a few
steps away, we are now able to offer
a 24-hour conference rate – including
overnight accommodation with
breakfast – alongside our function run
hire and catering facilities.
“This is frequently requested by
conference and wedding hosts so
St Martins Lodge is now meeting a
known demand and adding to the room
capacity available for business and for
tourism in the city.” The administrators of the Richardson
Group of hotels have passed control
of three hotels back to the shareholder
Keith Richardson following the
successful conclusion of the
administration process.
Mark Boughey and Matthew Wild
from RSM Restructuring Advisory LLP
were appointed joint administrators of
the South West based hotel operator
Richardson Hotels Limited and
Fowey Hotel Limited in January 2018.
Both companies formed part of the
Richardson Group of hotels.
Following the sale of two of the
hotels in the group in July this year
– The Fowey Hotel in Fowey and
The Metropole Hotel in Padstow–
administrators have now handed
the keys of The Falmouth Hotel in
Falmouth, The Grand Hotel in Torquay
and The Royal Beacon in Exmouth
back to the owner.
The creditors of both companies
previously in administration will
now be paid in full via a Company
Voluntary Arrangement (CVA)
overseen by Mark Boughey and
Matthew Wild from RSM Restructuring
Advisory LLP.
Mark Boughey, one of the joint
administrators said: “This was a
complex administration, but we are
delighted to have reached an outcome
which has protected the position of
creditors, secured the jobs of all staff
and kept the hotels trading as usual
for the benefit of guests.”
A separate company which
manages The Abbey Sands Hotel in
Torquay, remains in administration
while the administrators assess their
options for returning the maximum
assets to creditors. In the interim, the
hotel continues to trade on a business
as usual basis.
Warner Leisure
Hotels injects
£50m into British
hotel market
Studley Castle Hotel is the hotel
chain’s 14th and flagship property.
The hotel will officially open its doors
to the public in March 2019. Set in 28
acres of the Warwickshire countryside,
Studley Castle offers rooms, four
different room types, two restaurants,
a cinema, bars and lounges, a spa, a
range of outdoor pursuits and one of
the largest live performance venues on
the UK hotel scene.
Originally designed by the famous
London theatre architect Samuel
Beazley, Studley Castle was built in
the 1800s and was once home to
an agricultural college that trained
the country’s Land Girls during both
World Wars. A substantial three-year
renovation project that has seen the
Grade-II listed building become one
of the most interesting conservation
projects in the country.
Upwards of £20m has been spent on
restoring the original parts of the castle,
including the main building, the stables,
and lodge. An additional £6m has been
spent on reinstating the stained-glass
windows, turrets, stone work, and roof
using carefully sourced original tiles.
The remaining £24m has been
invested into transforming an historic
building into a 21st Century Warner
Leisure Hotel, particularly its live music
venue, which has taken inspiration from
Samuel Beazley’s original designs.
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www.hotelowner.co.uk
£1.8m boutique
hotel opens near
King Richard III
discovery site
Three Richardson
hotels passed
back to owner
December 2018