Architect gets Lakes hotel extension contract

LANCASTER-based architecture practice Harrison Pitt Architects has been appointed to oversee the extension of an award-winning Lake District hotel.
 
The £250,000 project will see the addition of five new bedrooms at the Grade II-listed Hipping Hall, which is based in the Cumbrian market town of Kirkby Lonsdale.
 
The scheme will take the hotel’s room count to 15, boosting occupancy provision by 50% and enabling it to cater for larger weddings and corporate events.
 
A stables building adjacent to the main hotel, which was purchased by Hipping Hall owner Andrew Wildsmith last year, will be renovated to accommodate the new rooms.
 
Wildsmith said: “With confidence in the economy on the up, the leisure and tourism sector has seen a heady recovery so business in the Lake District is booming.
 
“Since opening the hotel ten years ago, we’ve maintained high occupancy levels and demand continues to grow so it makes good business sense to invest in the extension and expand the business.”
 
The scheme is the sixth project that Harrison Pitt Architects has worked on for local entrepreneur Wildsmith, who also runs The Ryebeck in Bowness and The Forest Side Hotel in Grasmere.
 
Richard Parker, a director at Harrison Pitt Architects, said: “We’ve seen a steady increase in the number of jobs we’re picking up in the leisure and hospitality sector, especially in the Lakes which has always been a national hot spot for tourism trade.
 
“We’ve worked on a number of projects at Hipping Hall, including the original upgrade works to the historic building in 2005, and more recently the addition of a conservatory and luxury suite, so the new works will fit in with the look and feel of the hotel.
 
“The designs will tastefully restore the building while maintaining the stables’ original features and character, by using high quality finishes that complement the existing structure.”
 
Harrison Pitt Architects is working closely with landscape architect Frances Truscott who is overseeing works to the hotel grounds.
 
The project is expected to be completed during August 2015.