Harrogate hotel begins recruiting — three weeks after laying off 76 staff

The St George Hotel in Harrogate is recruiting staff — just three weeks after it closed with the loss of 76 jobs.

The hotel is due to re-open in about 13 weeks as a pub with rooms rather than a traditional hotel. That is the preferred model of The Inn Collection Group, a Newcastle-based company that bought the historic venue in February last year.

The company is now advertising for a general manager on a salary from £45,000 and a head chef on a salary from £42,000.

A spokesman said the venue was still due to re-open in mid-summer. Scaffolding has gone up outside the building.

Asked about the decision to recruit so soon after making redundancies, the spokesman said:

“There were unfortunately delays to our refurbishment programmes as a result of problems within the construction industry and associated supply chain having a knock-on effect.

“This unfortunately meant in some cases we have had to make some redundancies in order to secure the long-term future for the sites.”

The Inn Collection Group also owns the Ripon Spa Hotel, Dower House in Knaresborough and Dean Court in York, among others.

The St George Hotel, which is opposite the Royal Hall on Ripon Road, 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. 

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St George Hotel in Harrogate to close at end of month

Harrogate’s St George Hotel is to close at the end of the month.

Staff at the 90-bedroom Edwardian hotel, situated opposite Harrogate’s Royal Hall, were informed of the news yesterday.

The Inn Collection Group confirmed the closure when the Stray Ferret called today.

The company’s portfolio also includes the Dower House in Knaresborough and Ripon Spa Hotel in Ripon, which are both currently being renovated.

A spokesperson said:

“We are currently in consultation with colleagues about a proposed closure to Hotel St George from January 30 for a period of refurbishment and renovation.

“Further details of developments at Hotel St George and the ongoing refurbishments at The Ripon Spa Hotel and Knaresborough’s The Dower House will be communicated in the near future.”

The Country Living St George Hotel will not re-open after its parent company went into administration

The historic hotel is situated in the heart of Harrogate.

The Inn Collection Company bought the venue for an undisclosed sum a year ago.

The St George Hotel, which has a restaurant and six function rooms. has had a number of owners in recent years, including Bespoke Hotels and Specialist Leisure Group.

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Man jailed for two-month fraud spree at Harrogate and York hotels

A man has been jailed for embarking on a two-month fraud spree at hotels in Harrogate and York at the end of last year.

Parmpareet Singh-Pooni, of no fixed address, admitted two offences at the Crowne Plaza on King’s Road in Harrogate when he appeared before magistrates in York on Monday.

He pleaded guilty to dishonestly obtaining accommodation, food and drinks by claiming he was called Nikko Singh and not paying for them between November 3 and 6.

Singh-Pooni also admitted trying the same ruse at the Crowne Plaza on either November 23 and 24.

He pleaded guilty to stealing £140 cash from behind the reception at the Dean Court hotel in York on December 17 and defrauding Malmaison in York by giving another false name and not paying for food and drink between December 27 and 31.

He was jailed for 10 weeks, with court documents saying he was jailed because of the number of offences, his record and due to the fact he was on recall.

Singh-Pooni was also ordered to pay compensation totalling £1,083 to the Crowne Plaza, £140 to the Dean Court Hotel and £452 to Malmaison.

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COLUMN: Make no mistake, there will be many hospitality businesses that will not re-open

This column has been written for The Stray Ferret by the Managing Director of Rudding Park Hotel and Spa in Harrogate, Peter Banks:   

I am an hotelier. Sadly, it defines my existence. For 35 years I have worked in, or managed, organisations that provide hospitality and welcome guests 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. I am part of the industry that never sleeps. Until now. The “clang” when I closed the gates was both literal and metaphorical.

Suddenly we have no guests, no staff, no reason to get out of bed. To say I feel rootless is an understatement. Strange times indeed.

 

The view of the pandemic from the Hospitality industry has been in five very distinct periods:

The first was the week when Boris told everyone not to go to the pub and restaurants, but gave us no support. In that week it is estimated that 250,000 hospitality jobs were lost. This was the worst five days in my career. We’ve built Rudding over 24 years, and in 24 hours it all came crashing down.

The second period was one of euphoria, when that wonderful Mr Rishi Sunak (I love him and want his babies!) announced the furlough scheme that saved so many hospitality jobs while the scheme lasts.

The third was one of acceptance and hard work, only 12 of us were not furloughed. We tried to understand how furlough worked, we closed the hotel, turned off all appliances, moved all the furniture, emptied freezers (how much vanilla ice cream does one operation need across five kitchens?) and dealt with a barrage of phone calls from guests who were trying to process the impact on their plans. One guest wanted to know what had happened to his bottle of gin that he had won as a prize in November and left at the Hotel. (yes – really!)

The fourth was settling in to the new normal; zoom meetings, moving bookings, remote working, and starting to understand the financial damage this has done to our industry. We sell serviced space, if we can’t sell that space it is exactly the same as a manufacturer having a warehouse fire and all of his stock going up in flames. Make no mistake, there will be many hospitality businesses (primarily stand alone restaurants), that will not reopen. The high street will be changed for good.

The fifth, and current, is where are trying to reimagine the Hotel of the future, with social distance built in, How welcome will guests feel going to a Perspex screen reception, ordering on an App rather than to a person, less service staff in the restaurant, how do you socially distance in a Kitchen,  booking slots in the steam room, additional and visible cleaning, temperature checks on staff and guests when walking through the door, your barman wearing a mask, 72 hours between hotel room occupancy, a cashless society, no flags on the golf course, no loo blocks open on the holiday park, what will our revenues be like….. The list is never ending and some will come true and some won’t – but the hospitality world that I have known will be turned on its’ head.

For an industry that only exists to facilitate social interaction, discouraging social interaction is against the very core of our being. We thrive on providing “hands on” personal service, and this will not be possible.

When this is all over, and we emerge from our caves, shaking our heads and wondering if it was all a bad dream, please go to your local restaurant, pub, hotel, golf course, holiday park or spa and give them your support. As Hoteliers and service professionals we need to look after people and make people feel happy. It’s why we do our job and it’s what we’re missing dreadfully.

As we say in Hospitality before a particularly difficult service –“I’ll see you on the other side”!

The night Peter closed the gates of Rudding Park