A landmark Huddersfield hotel is to undergo a £500,000 revamp following a change of heart by its owners.
Pennine Manor Hotel at Scapegoat Hill has been owned by Rochdale-based family business Decker Hospitality Group since 2005.
The hotel had been on the market for the last 12 months but Decker has now decided to keep it and is to invest £500,000 replacing the roof, all the bathrooms and updating the bedrooms including all new televisions.
It has agreed a commercial tie-in with the Best Western chain to promote the hotel more to commercial clients in a bid to boost the numbers of people staying there midweek. The hotel will be renamed the Best Western Pennine Manor but will remain owner by Decker.
The hotel – which used to be the Flying Horse – has 32 bedrooms and will now work hard to have more business customers staying in them midweek. The hotel can also host conferences and is now recruiting chefs, housekeepers and front of house personnel.
The refurbishment work began last week and should be finished by January although it will halt during the busy pre-Christmas period.
The hotel’s general manager Mandy Foster said: “I am overwhelmed by the decision the Board has made and look forward to working with Best Western to improve our occupancy. Pennine Manor has a strong function-based business with more than 100 weddings and private functions per year but without a busy corporate customer base throughout the week it has been difficult to show growth.
“The capital investment and entry into Best Western shows that the Board are committed to developing this business for the future.
Decker Hospitality Group Managing Director Max Brierley said: “I am so pleased to confirm the news that Pennine Manor is to remain owned and operated by the Deckers Hospitality Group. The financial investment and Best Western franchise will help build on the hard work that the team have already put in to deliver a secure future for the venue.”
Decker Hospitality Group also owns the Royal Toby hotel Rochdale and The Crimble restaurant, also in Rochdale. The business also sells butchery and liqueur wholesale.
