An award-winning new boutique hotel, pub and restaurant on Felixstowe seafront is changing ownership – less than a year after opening.

The Fludyer Arms in Undercliff Road East opened after an extensive restoration of the Edwardian building and the addition of a bold contemporary three-storey extension at the side and rear of the property.

It has already been become a popular destination for people from the town and visitors since opening last summer.

But the Yeo Group, which has run the venue, has announced “with great sadness” that it will cease to operate it after January 27.

The group will still continue to operate its three other venues in Felixstowe - The Alex, Café Bencotto and The View Point Café.

Tim Yeo, of the Yeo Group, said the Fludyer Arms would be taken over by the group’s business partners, operating as The Fludyers Ltd, with the same management team, chef and staff.

He was immensely proud to have been involved in the restoration of one of Felixstowe’s finest buildings and to have created a new attraction for the resort, and wished the new operators every success for the future.

He said: “For us, business-wise, it didn’t work out but I am sure it will continue to be a success. We have received some lovely comments even since we put out the email explaining the change – people saying what awesome value the Fludyer Arms is for Felixstowe and appropriate and good it is.”

He felt the development was a key piece in the jigsaw of the regeneration of the resort, alongside such projects as the pier redevelopment, Landguard, the Viewpoint visitor centre, and the future of the Spa Pavilion.

He added: “The most important thing about any business is not about who runs it, but whether the meal was good, the service, and so on.”

The Fludyer Arms project – designed by Last & Tricker Partnership and constructed by AMF Building Contractors, of Felixstowe – was highly commended in the Suffolk Coastal Quality of Place Awards.

The restoration of the building, constructed in 1903, included removal of a 1960s wood-clad front extension and restoring the building to its Edwardian glory.

New windows were put in and the whole building re-pointed, with a first-floor balcony running all the way round the outside, and the interior remodelled to create the 14 letting rooms, kitchens, bar and restaurant areas.