Popular Greater Manchester wedding venue files for administration with more than 90 redundancies

Popular wedding destination, Bredbury Hall has gone into administration.

Stockport’s landmark hotel Bredbury Hall has gone into administration, leaving many with wedding plans at the popular venue in the lurch.

Owned by Newco Ventures Ltd, the company entered insolvency on Friday and confirmed the loss of more than 90 jobs.

A former employee, Sam Hunter, laid bare the news and how the coronavirus pandemic has been devastating to the hospitality industry. 

She wrote: “Devastating news today that myself and all my colleagues have been made redundant and Bredbury Hall will not reopen its doors.

“Some amazing memories working for this company, and incredibly hard to say goodbye.

“I hope in years to come when we look back on this pandemic and the effect and stress the hospitality industry has faced – I hope we remember that it isn’t just jobs lost or businesses closed.

“In fact – it’s peoples careers, people’s families, their retirement funds and their hopes and dreams that have been taken away through no fault of their own.

“Years and years of our lives committed to the industry we love, for some of us our first jobs and for some of us a home from home.

“Raise a glass tonight for us – as we’re one business in one county in one part of the country – this is happening all over the country to businesses and staff in our sector.”

The devastating news of the closure has also meant those with wedding or events planned and booked at Bredbury Hall are left with no venue and are losing thousands of pounds.

One such person is Adele, who spoke to the MEN about how the closure will impact her wedding.

She said: “It’s an extremely stressful time for all us brides to be,”

“I myself stand to lose £1,250 and others even more.

“The thing that angers me most is that we were kept in the dark and had to find out through Facebook via staff who had been made redundant that day!”

FRP the business advisory firm explained that the Hall had experienced trading difficulties and financial pressure.

They added: “As a result of these inherent pressures, the hotel was unable to reopen after lockdown restrictions were eased and an appointment of administrators was made.”

The 148-year-old three star hotel, whose features include a Marco Pierre White-branded restaurant, fitness centre and 16th century barn converted into a nightclub, is seeking a buyer.

Anthony Collier, joint administrator and partner at FRP, said: “The COVID-19 pandemic has put incredible pressure on hospitality businesses across the country as domestic and international travel is severely restricted.

“As trading operations have already ceased, we will be taking steps to market the hotel for sale in its current form.

“We have a team on-site and working remotely to engage with and assist all the affected staff through this difficult time. We would encourage any interested parties in the business to come forward as soon as possible.”