The staff of a landmark Harrogate hotel have been left awaiting confirmation of redundancy, as its new owners closed the business and shuttered its doors today.
The Hotel St George is to be remodelled and reopened as a pub with rooms following a 16-week programme of works, but none of the hotel’s 76 current employees has been invited to remain in post.
General manager Paul Donkin said the day marked the end of an era:
“It’s very sad – there’s a lot of upset here today. I came into this job just as lockdown ended, and I had seven weeks to put together a team and get the hotel back up and running. We’ve spent two years building the business back up again, so to see it close is hard to take. It’s very emotional for those of us who have put such a lot into it.”
The St George Hotel, opposite the Royal Hall on Ripon Road, was bought in February last year by The Inn Collection Group, a Newcastle-based company that also owns the Ripon Spa Hotel, Dean Court in York, and the Black Swan in Helmsley, among others.
The Inn Collection Group is the hotel’s third owner in as many years. Its previous owner, Bespoke Hotels, acquired it from Specialist Leisure Group, which went into administration in May 2020.
Mr Donkin said:
“Why they want to make everyone redundant, only to have to find new staff when they reopen, I don’t know – it makes no sense to me.
“But to give them their due, Inn Collection Group have followed all the proper procedures and have been very decent about it.”
Mr Donkin said the blow of redundancy had been further softened for most of the hotel’s employees because he had managed to find them alternative employment.
He said:
“The day after I heard the hotel was to close, I emailed the general managers of all Harrogate’s hotels, and they’ve all been fantastic, sending me their vacancy lists and moving heaven and earth to find people jobs. Probably 95% of staff now have new jobs to go to.
“I always said hospitality was the best job in the world, but in Harrogate it’s even better.”
The St George Hotel grew out of the Chequers Inn and was renamed after George III’s gift of the Stray to the people of Harrogate in 1778.
It was enlarged several times during the 19th century and renamed the St George shortly before the First World War.
It was badly damaged by fire in 1927 and requisitioned by the Post Office and Air Ministry during the Second World War before re-opening as a hotel in 1952. It acquired a spa facility in 1985.
Read more:
- 76 jobs at risk at Harrogate’s St George Hotel
- St George Hotel in Harrogate to close at end of month
- Ripon’s Spa Hotel aims to reopen next spring
