Drayton Manor Park Hotel, Hotel & Conference Centre

A&H Construction is celebrating 25 years in business with the completion of one of its most prestigious and high profile projects this year, “Drayton Manor Park Hotel”.

Located in the heart of the Staffordshire countryside, this exciting new development was the 14 year dream of owner Colin Bryan – after 70 weeks on site that dream was turned into a reality by A&H Construction & Developments PLC.

Dramatically styled, this £14 million, Luxury Hotel consists of 150 Bedrooms across four-storeys with extensive Conferencing and Hospitality Facilities to compliment those already at the Theme Park, with a Thomas the Tank Engine theme echoing in the Hotel itself.  The Hotel boasts unashamed luxury and since it opened its doors has been fully booked to include many visitors from overseas.

The Hotel Comprises of:-

A towering four-storey Atrium; predominantly open, gives a spacious feel and contains 5 High Quality Bedrooms with Balconies, Retail Space, Amusement Arcade, Meeting Rooms, single-storey Kitchen Area and a Thomas and Friends themed Crèche and Playroom with hand-painted murals.

A four-storey South Wing Bedroom Block; with tri-end and Plant-Room Basement containing 95 Bedrooms of which 27 have specifically themed Thomas Land Bedrooms, with Thomas the Tank Engine Bunk-Beds, integrated Televisions and hand painted murals of Thomas and Friends.

A four-storey North Wing Block; contains a further 50 Bedrooms, of which 16 are Executive Bedrooms and 3 are Magnificent Presidential Suites of breathtaking proportions with Balconies.

A ground floor Amenities Area below the North Wing Bedroom Block contains a large Dining Room, Brasserie, 2 Bars, Kitchen and Function Room, along with the Offices required to run the Hotel.

A Basement which is beneath 50% of the North Wing Bedroom Block houses another Plant-Room and a Luxury Bar.

The Building Structure and Associated Works include:-

Atrium

Erection of a steel-framed building four-storeys high on concrete pad and strip foundations on driven pile foundations.

South Bedroom Block

Beam and Block floor on concrete pad and strip foundations on driven piled foundations with a Reinforced Concrete Plant-Room Basement beneath.  Erection of a Met-Frame System upon the beam and block floor four-storeys high.

North Bedroom Block

Construction of a reinforced concrete frame forming a Basement and Ground Floor on concrete pad and strip foundations on driven pile foundations.  Erection of a Met-Frame System upon the Podium Slab three-storeys high.

All Areas:-

·         External walls constructed of traditional brickwork and blockwork with a part rendered finish, Windows and Curtain Walling.

·         A combination of Pitched Roof Trusses and with traditional Roof Tiling, including Circular Turret Roofs and Trocal Flat-Roofing.

·         Internal partition walls of blockwork and metal-stud partitions.

·         Installation of all internal Mechanical and Electrical Services.

·         All of the Decorative finishes and fixings are to a very high, bespoke standard, including specially made woodwork and joinery hand-crafted by local and Black Country Carpenters.  Beds and Bedroom fittings are of the highest quality with the walls being decorated with hand-painted murals by specially commissioned Artists.

·         External works include Retaining Walls, Roadways, Pavements, Car Parking, Drainage and Landscaping.

The Hotel was not without its challenges, complex in nature, we utilised up to 150 Employees and Contractors on site on a daily basis, and as many people as possible were recruited locally.  Many of the trees had tree preservation orders on them and there were “no dig” zones to protect their roots, this involved the deployment of complex scaffolding to work around the trees.  Despite the constraints of working within a fully operational Theme Park, the Hotel was completed on time and within budget.

The Hotel was officially opened with a Champagne Reception by HRH Sophie, Countess of Wessex, who met some of those involved in the construction of the Hotel, as well as Hotel Staff.