First phase of multi-million pound Darlington hotel investment underway

A multi-million pound investment at Blackwell Grange Hotel has reached its first milestone, with the opening of the new Bruhenny Suite.

The Darlington hotel’s five-year remodelling and refurbishment plan is now underway, with the opening of a half a million-pound Bruhenny Suite marking the first step.

The Bruhenny Suite has undergone a complete transformation and now presents a fireplace, said to be ideal as a wedding ceremony feature; a new upstairs bar and new, modern interiors.

Dawn Raine, general manager at Blackwell since 2005, said: “We couldn’t be happier with how the work has gone on the Bruhenny Suite - the final look has exceeded all of our expectations.

“The feature fireplace is beautiful, and with six new roof lights the space is now bathed in natural light which makes it feel so bright and airy. I’m sure we’re going to have a lot of happy guests attending weddings, events and meetings.”

The complete refurbishment of the feature Blackwell Lounge and main reception has also been completed, restoring the country house style.

The focus of this initial phase of refurbishment is the public areas of the hotel, including the main reception and lounge, three function suites and four bars.

The Bruhenny Suite interiors were the work of Simon Bartlett, managing director at Simon Bartlett Interiors, who explained: “The hotel is a magnificent building which is steeped in history and with that in mind, we have steered away from a modernistic approach and have instead looked at the classic features to revert this back to its former splendour.”

The renovation work of the Bruhenny Suite was trusted to the designers at Darlington’s Niven Architects, who have extensive experience within the leisure and hospitality sectors.

Director Simon Crowe, said: “The refurbishment of the new Bruhenny Suite has seen the room transform into a light, spacious and high-quality wedding and conference venue which will re-establish Blackwell Grange Hotel as a ‘destination’ in Darlington.

“The Bruhenny Bar provides a sophisticated blend of contemporary and traditional styles to create a wonderful secluded addition to the suite.”

Refurbishment of the public areas is set to continue, with the transformation of main hotel bar already in motion.

It will be named the Blackwell Bar and reopened on Friday March 23. On March 26, work will begin on what was known as the Parlour, which will become the Elk Room, Miss Allan Bar and the Havelock Bar. These are set for completion on April 19, 2018.

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