Premier Inn owner secures go-ahead for new hotel in Milton Keynes

by | 03 Jun 2020 | Portfolio

The proposed new hotel and restaurant will overlook Willen Lake.

Whitbread, which owns the Premier Inn brand, has secured planning consent to create a new lakeside hotel and restaurant.

Whitbread has secured the go-ahead to open a new Premier Inn hotel and family restaurant in the English town of Milton Keynes.

The scheme at Willen Lake, which involves a multimillion-pound investment, is expected to create 60-70 jobs. The project comprises a 120-bedroom Premier Inn hotel and a 211-cover Cookhouse and Pub restaurant off Brickhill Street, immediately to the south of the Unify office building.

Milton Keynes Council’s planning committee approved the proposals, designed and developed by Whitbread together with The Parks Trust, at its virtual meeting on Tuesday, 7 May 2020.
Jamie Baker, Development Manager at Whitbread, said: “A brand new, purpose-planned and purpose-built Premier Inn will make a massive contribution to the facilities and attractiveness of Willen Lake.

“The designs for both the hotel and family restaurant really connect with the lake, providing striking views and what will be a fantastic place to meet, eat, drink and relax. Getting the green light to invest into and improve this part of Milton Keynes is more important now than ever, and I’m pleased the council has supported our vision and proposed investment.”

Ben Allot, Head of Property at The Parks Trust, added: “Willen Lake is managed by The Parks Trust. We have been working hard to improve the visitor experience at what is one of Milton Keynes’ most popular leisure destinations.
“The new Premier Inn hotel and restaurant will attract new visitors and will be an important contribution to the city’s visitor economy. The rental income from this venture goes directly back into the charity to support its important work, caring for Milton Keynes’ parks.

“This work is financed by the trust’s endowment fund, which enables the charity to make investments which provide the income to maintain and improve the parks.”
Whitbread coordinated a dedicated design team to create the plans. The proposed new four-storey hotel will be a latest-generation Premier Inn, featuring a bespoke design to reflect the site’s setting, and a number of family bedrooms to cater for those visiting Willen Lake, Gulliver’s World or other nearby attractions.

Meanwhile, the neighbouring restaurant will boast a light and bright glass frontage, and an outside seating area. It will be a single-storey building with double-height windows to the front, overlooking the lake.

In addition, there will be a dedicated customer car park with 157 spaces.

Whitbread added that following the award of planning consent, it expects to review “its current position on the existing Willen Lake hotel, where the Premier Inn (‘Premier Inn Milton Keynes East Willen Lake’) is, alongside a Greene King pub and restaurant”. The company added: “Part of the reason for submitting the proposals for the new hotel is to enable Premier Inn to modernise its accommodation in this sought-after location, including being able to offer more family rooms, as well as to have a Whitbread-brand food and beverage offer.”

ABOUT THE CHAIN

 

Whitbread is the owner of Premier Inn, the UK’s biggest hotel brand, and with a growing presence in Germany offering quality accommodation at affordable prices.