Work starts on KP Club expansion
WORK is now under way on a country lodge development which is set to drive the transformation of one of Yorkshire’s most highly-regarded golf clubs into a leisure resort.
The expansion follows the success of Hull-based Chartered Accountants MWS Business Management in helping the KP Club to secure a substantial funding package.
The venture is a significant step in the development of the KP Club, based near Pocklington in East Yorkshire, and has enabled the construction of 23 new woodland lodges to begin, 12 of which will be ready in September with the rest due to be completed early in 2014.
Sean Maloney, associate director at MWS, said: “There was no doubt that the team at the KP Club had a remarkable and impressive vision for the resort’s development and we talked about how we could help them deliver on that.
“We carried out very thorough research including a SWOT analysis, examining all possible eventualities with the site and the leisure market and emphasising the strength of the management team at the KP Club. We then submitted a proposal which was accepted by HSBC.”
The woodland lodges already had planning permission and the business plan highlighted the potential to significantly increase turnovers, with the possibility of creating 12 jobs to take the total staff at the KP Club to more than 50.
Mr Maloney said: “From beginning the discussions to securing the funding took about six or seven months, which was very good progress considering the lodges had been part of the KP Club’s plans for nearly five years.
“Hopefully the success will help us get across the message to businesses, at a time when there are a lot of doubts about funding streams nationally and regionally, that finance is available for strong projects presented in the right way.
“We have known the team at the KP Club for a long time and we are very pleased that we were able to help them make progress with an investment which will help them to further establish the resort as one of the best in Yorkshire.”
Simon Dixon, a partner at the KP Club, added: “The KP Club is already a popular choice for weddings and other family celebrations and it is also increasingly in demand for corporate events and what this will do is enable us to improve the offer.
“By September we will have doubled our number of lodges, with more to come next year. The new accommodation is at the luxury end of the market and, as MWS identified, will have a significant impact on turnover and recruitment.”
