THE owners of the Daresbury Park Hotel have spoken for the first time about the hotel’s asylum seekers past, as it prepares to reopen to the public for the first time in more than five years next month.
Owned by Britannia Hotels, who acquired the property from De Vere Group as part of a £20m deal in 2012, it has been undergoing a major refurbishment, after closing to the public to facilitate the Government’s strategy regarding the short-term settlement of asylum seekers, which came to an end last year.
News of the rebrand to a four-star Elite Venue Selection hotel was met with a mixed reaction on social media, with many stating they would be boycotting the venue.
Now the owners have issued a statement, after being approached by Warrington Worldwide, expressing their desire to move forward following a “challenging time in the hospitality industry.”
The new look health club
A new health club and spa has already reopened to the public, with the main hotel set to reopen in March.
A spokesperson for Elite Venue Selection commented: “In 2020, Daresbury Park Hotel was identified as having the capability and capacity to help facilitate the Government’s strategy regarding the short-term settlement of asylum seekers and the hotel was used to provide emergency accommodation to individuals and families seeking refuge. This was a decision taken during a challenging period for the hospitality industry when it was not commercially viable to operate as a public hotel and it ensured the site remained operational and enabled essential maintenance of the property to continue.
“The current refurbishment marks a clear transition away from that period. Our decision to reopen and rebrand the hotel reflects a desire to move forward, reinvest in the local area and re-establish the hotel as a respected community asset. Daresbury Park Hotel is being comprehensively upgraded to allow it to open as a 4-star hotel under our new, premium Elite Venue Selection brand in order to attract a raft of new leisure and business guests to the area, create employment opportunities and contribute positively to the local economy.
“We hope that over time, focus can shift to what the hotel will now offer going forward: local employment, luxury accommodation, event space and a new health club with an indoor heated pool, steam room, spa pool, gym and fitness suite. The imminent reopening represents a new chapter and we encourage residents to come and see the completely new-look hotel and health club for themselves.”
1 Comment
Loved this hotel in the 80’s, my first job as appprentice chef, and one of the best hotels outside manchester with the best staff and well managed under Devere Hotels, well famous for its Carvery and fine dining rerstaurant, many happy memories, so sad to see the way it was trashed over the years, here to a new era I hope..