East Anglian hotel closes

FOUR hotels owned by the Real Hotel Company, including one in East Anglia, have been closed following the firm's collapse into administration.A total of 150 jobs have been lost with the move, although no break-down of the split between the four hotels has been given by the administrators, from accountancy firm BDO Stoy Hayward.

FOUR hotels owned by the Real Hotel Company, including one in East Anglia, have been closed following the firm's collapse into administration.

A total of 150 jobs have been lost with the move, although no break-down of the split between the four hotels has been given by the administrators, from accountancy firm BDO Stoy Hayward.

The hotels involved include the Comfort Inn at Thetford, Norfolk, the Quality hotel in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, the Stop Inn Floatel in Northwich, Cheshire, and the Stop Inn in Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire.

Shay Bannon of BDO Stoy Hayward said: “The group has experienced deterioration in trading during the last quarter of 2008 with this trend accelerating into the first two weeks of January, which resulted in severe cash flow pressures.

“It is regrettable that we have had to close a small number of hotels but we continue to trade a significant number of hotels with the support of stakeholders and will be actively marketing the group for sale.

“We have already received several expressions of interest and are confident of a successful outcome which will save a significant number of jobs.”

The Real Hotel Company, which operated 40 hotels across the UK until going into administration on Wednesday, is under stood to have a total workforce of around 1,200.

Its own brands including Purplehotels and Stop Inns while it also operates under a number of other names under licensing arrangements.