Bosses at Keswick’s new £6 million Premier Inn are starting to recruit staff.
The 71-bedroom hotel, being built on High Hill, is on track to open before Christmas, creating around 25 to 30 permanent and flexible jobs.
Kicking off the recruitment process, a meet the employer day will be held today where the management team will be available to meet the community and talk about the employment opportunities on offer at the first Premier Inn to be built in the Lake District.
The company is recruiting for a range of positions at the hotel including front of house, kitchen, night-time, and supervisor roles and is keen for as many Keswick residents to join the business as possible.
“One of our core values in Premier Inn is that there should be no barriers to entry into our business and no limits to what can be achieved when working for us,” said Karl Hetherington, the manager of Premier Inn Keswick.
“My own story shows what is possible as I joined 10 years ago as a receptionist and am now taking on responsibility for managing my third Premier Inn hotel in Cumbria.
“I am now looking for a team of hospitality ambassadors to help me launch our new Premier Inn in the heart of the Lakes at Keswick. It’s an amazing opportunity to open one of our new flagship hotels.
“Our meet the employer day is a chance for us to talk about all the things we do as a business as well as the jobs we are recruiting for.
The meet the employer day is being held at Keswick Rugby Club, Crow Park Road, between 9am and 2pm.
Construction of the 71-bedroom Keswick Premier Inn started in October 2021.
A 3,300-signature petition opposed the hotel. Keswick Town Council voted unanimously against it before the Lake District National Park Authority’s development control committee agreed by eight votes to two to allow it.
Last month the Reminder reported that doubts had been cast over whether Whitbread, which operates Premier Inn, would be able to find enough local staff to allow the £6 million hotel to open its doors before Christmas.
Keswick Town Council warned that the hotel will be lucky to find staff who live in the town as established local employers such as Marston’s and Wetherspoon were already struggling to recruit people.
