Congratulations
…to John Keane (left pic), Champion for 2006 at Beales Hotel
…to Barry Crossley Champion for 2006 at West Lodge Park (middle pic)
…to Pat Skinner (right pic) Employee of the Quarter at West Lodge Park
All three have done brilliantly over the last year and thoroughly deserve their success.
…Lunches at WLP are up 83% on last year in February following the January introduction of an excellent value midweek Table d’hote menu, Lunch Naturally, at prices from £10 for a main course with bread, coffee & mints.
www.bealeshotels.co.uk
New pages this month on the ever growing website include a winter gallery of WLP in the deep snow, the amazing BH standards of performance manuals on the staff area of the site, and a stunning archive of all the adverts we have placed in the last 3 years – on the staff pages.
• Over 15000 visitors came to the site in January – 600% more than last year! 197 downloaded the WLP wedding brochure in February, 128 downloaded the BH map.
www.activehotels.com , and www.laterooms.com
• Currently BH is the third highest rated hotel in Herts according to the Active guest ratings. Check out the hotel review section on both sites for WLP & BH
Investors in People
Beales Hotels has been awarded the IIP status for a record 4th time, after past success in 1997, 2000, and 2003. The assessor Martin Turner commented on how he had never been into an organisation that was better prepared than on his visit to Beales Hotel – a great turnaround on last year.
Estates News – WLP
At WLP, new bathrooms have been completed in rooms 10 and 11.
• New feather and down duvets and pillows arrive at WLP on 19/3 giving a much more contemporary feel to the bedrooms
• The major refurbishment of the WLP lounge and reception areas starts next week.
• An application has been made to Enfield Council for the purchase of the freehold at WLP
• Exciting plans are in for a leisure club and spa at WLP on the site of Cedar Lodge or under the Marquee lawn!
• Free broadband is now live in all conference rooms at both WLP and BH
Estates News – BH
• The planning application for 20 more rooms at BH has gone to Welwyn Hatfield Council
• At BH, new carpet has been laid down the restaurant corridor improving the ambiance of OutsideIn no end.
Beales Caterers
Beales Caterers, our new Outside Catering Business, looking after people wishing to hold functions at venues other than WLP or BH in North London and Hertfordshire, is now up and running, with a splendid home page and much other information online. We have not been inundated with bookings yet, but the word is getting out there. In February 08, there were 28% more unique visitors to www.bealeshotels.co.uk in this shorter month than in December 2007.
Just 11 months ago, I wrote that the number of visitors to the www.bealeshotels.co.uk website were 2500 a month – some 100% up on 6 months previously. Well the stats for the autumn are in now and in the September to December period, the visitors numbered an average of 12124 per month or 397 per day – an increase of almost 500%! It vindicates the strategy to ensure everything that we do is online and accessible to all. The next phase will see us putting job descriptions and Standards of performance manuals online – I know I know, not gripping reading but a terrific resource for all in our management team and saves rooting around for that dusty file or that lost CD – everything definitive about the company is online.
New artwork
A stunning new work of art by Sam Jury entitled Slow Sexy has been purchased for TalkBar at BH (shown opposite)
• Exciting further art schemes include additional works in the Buckland Suite, outside pieces in the garden and deck areas at BH, and a refurbished Cedar Restaurant and Terrace Bar with the art loosely based around Trees.
STOP PRESS
Nick Tilley has now carried out the audits at Hatfield and WLP – a great improvement.
• The results were 84% at Hatfield and 95% at WLP – last time 63% BH and 84% WLP.
Andrew Beale
Managing Director
