MORE than £1m has been poured into Slaley Hall as it aims to reinvent itself as one of the region’s finest hotels.

QHotels, which owns the resort, has ploughed the cash into refurbishing the rooms, updating the air conditioning and heating systems and improving access to the Edwardian mansion.

With 141 bedrooms, a variety of special event rooms to host up to 350 guests and a health club and spa, Slaley has long been a popular wedding venue and leisure destination, but is perhaps best known for its two award-winning, 18-hole championship golf courses.

It also boasts three restaurants and an outdoor activities centre.

To coincide with the major investment in hotel facilities, the running of the hotel will be overseen by new general manager Christopher Wayne-Wills.

With over 21 years’ experience in the hospitality industry, he joined Slaley from MacDonald Hotels, where he was chief executive officer at the Aviemore Resort, in Scotland.

He is being tasked with rolling out QHotels’ ‘Inspired by you’ customer-focused approach that aims to place service at the heart of the guest experience.

Christopher said: “After 21 years in the hospitality industry, it’s rare to come across a career opportunity as exciting as that at Slaley Hall, a resort that is well on the way to being one of the very best in the UK.

“I am asking customers old and new to rediscover the new Slaley Hall. Not only do we have the most incredible setting, which makes us perfect for weddings and events, but we can offer a complete experience, whether you want to relax and unwind or have an action-packed stay.

“People may not realise that Slaley was considered as a destination for the Ryder Cup in 2009, and for the second year running was named the best golf resort in the North of England at the 2016 Golfer Travel Awards.

“There are few, if any, other hotels regionally that can compete with these kind of facilities and now, with the latest investment, we want to remind people that Slaley Hall is a true destination hotel, wherever you may be coming from across the UK.”

Michael Purtill, managing director at QHotels, added: “Slaley Hall is an historic hotel with a great reputation, and that requires investing in the very best.

“In appointing Christopher, we are doing just that, and we are already witnessing the effect he is having on the hotel and his team.”