A Grantham couple due to get married in October said they have been “left in the dark” after their hotel venue was contracted by the government to house families who have assisted the British Armed Forces in Afghanistan.
This isn’t the first hotel in Grantham to be affected after The Urban Hotel cancelled bookings and weddings for at least the next six months after it was contracted to take in Afghanistan refugees.
The couple, who wish to remain anonymous, told The Lincolnite that several of their guests were contacted by booking.com to cancel their stay at Stoke Rochford Hotel in Grantham without any explanation.
The bride and groom enquired with the hotel and said they were given very mixed messages. When they finally got through to someone on the front desk on the phone, they said they were told the hotel was being renovated. Then someone else from the hotel said the British Forces from Afghanistan were staying there before they were later told that rooms were being used for refugees.
The couple claim they were told around four or five weeks ago that they could have a now reduced number of 19 rooms for their guests, but wouldn’t have any access to the remaining of around 80.
Bedrooms at the Stoke Rochford Hotel in Granhtam have been kept aside for families who have assisted with the British Armed forces during their time in Afghanistan. | Photo: R S Mortiss
An email sent to the couple last month by a Senior Wedding and Events Coordinator at the hotel, which has been seen by The Lincolnite, said: “I have received notice today (August 12) from my manager that some of our accommodation has been requisitioned by the government, meaning we are unable to provide accommodation in the courtyard accommodation block.
“Please note this does not include accommodation in the Main House. This requisition takes affect from tomorrow (August 13) until further notice.
“The bedrooms are for families who have assisted with the British Armed Forces during their time in Afghanistan helping with the ongoing violence there.
“As explained above, this has been a sudden announcement to ourselves and sadly as it has been acquisitoned by the Home Office it is out of our control.
“This will not impact your wedding day at all and we are in the process of reallocating as many rooms as possible into the Main House and personally getting in touch with any guests that may have to be moved.”
The couple are not looking to cancel the wedding, but just want proper communications and answers, especially after paying the hotel over £6,000 for their happy day, which had already been postponed once already due to the coronavirus pandemic.
After struggling to get replies from the hotel over the last four weeks, the couple said they finally had a response from the General Manager on Tuesday, September 14 saying he was looking into it. However, since the initial email with the announcement, they feel like they have been ignored.
The situation at the Stoke Rochford Hotel appears to have caused a lot of confusion and frustration for people with weddings and other bookings. | Photo: R S Mortiss
The couple said: “We are still not getting much communication and are not sleeping. We are meant to be looking forward to it, which we were before this happened.
“We feel incredibly stressed and left completely in the dark and hung out to try. As far as we know the wedding is still going ahead, but our guests can’t all stay at the hotel.
“A key aspect of this communication is the hotel claiming it’s out of their control – something I am very dubious about because from what I understand venues have to apply to the government to take on refugees, and are rewarded with significant financial compensation for doing so.
“I would like to make it clear that we think it is absolutely the right thing for hotels to offer help to refugees – that’s not the part we have issue with. It’s the complete lack of communication we’ve had since from the venue to make sure our day can still go ahead.”
They added: “We don’t feel like we have a choice (not to have the wedding there). If we were to get a refund we won’t be able to get anywhere else short notice. We feel quite trapped and tied into it.”
The couple also don’t know who their best point of contact is after finding out from a third party that their wedding co-ordinator has left her role, which had not been communicated to them.
It has also been alleged by other people that several phone calls and emails regarding weddings have been ignored, and comments from brides made on the hotel’s social media have been removed, or users blocked/banned without explanation.
Stoke Rochford Hotel in Grantham. | Photo: R S Mortiss
The Lincolnite contacted Stoke Rochford Hotel for a response, but had no reply by the time of publication.
Spotted an error? Please notify us by selecting that text and pressing Ctrl+Enter.
The Lincolnite welcomes your views. All comments are reactively-moderated and must obey the house rules. Please stay on topic and be respectful of other readers.
The Lincolnite welcomes your views. All comments are reactively-moderated and must obey the house rules. Please stay on topic and be respectful of other readers.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s cabinet reshuffle has seen a Lincolnshire MP sacked from his role as a minister.
Matt Warman has been the member of parliament for Boston and Skegness since May 2015, and was given the role of parliamentary under-secretary of state for digital infrastructure in July 2019.
Mr Warman served in that role for just over two years before the PM announced his reshuffle on Wednesday, in a bid to “build back better” from the coronavirus pandemic.
Part of his role was to expand broadband options for people across the country, as part of a government goal to have 4G coverage in 95% of the UK by 2025.
The Boston and Skegness MP took to Twitter to confirm the news, saying it was an “honour” to hold the position.
He said: “Ministers have a huge opportunity to change our great country for the better. It’s been an honour to serve the government as a whip and to improve our broadband, address cyber threats and grow the digital economy.
“I look forward to doing all I can on that, and more, from the backbenches.”
There was also a move for Louth and Horncastle MP Victoria Atkins, who was appointed as minister of state at the ministry of justice, alongside her current role as minister for the Afghan resettlement scheme.
Mr Warman was one of many to lose his job in the reshuffle, including education secretary Gavin Williamson, who was replaced by vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi, and foreign secretary Dominic Raab who was sacked and replaced by Liz Truss.
It is the second major government reshuffle in Boris Johnson’s tenure as Prime Minister, with the last one taking place in February 2020, and the PM is promising his new cabinet will “work tirelessly to unite and level up the whole country”.
The Co-op has partnered with Amazon Prime to allow customers to get their grocery shopping delivered by robots.
The service launched in Glasgow on Thursday, September 16, and is expected to be rolled out across the UK before the end of 2021.
The national supermarket chain is looking to expand online sales from £70m to £200m and has turned to Amazon Prime to try and make this possible, offering same-day deliveries on groceries.
Customers with Amazon Prime subscriptions will be able to shop for Co-op items on the Amazon website, with two-hour scheduled slots each day.
The number of robots delivering groceries is due to rise from 200 to 500 by the end of the year, as part of an additional step from the Amazon collection lockers which were installed outside some Co-op stores in 2012.
The autonomous vehicles are part of a partnership with Starship Technologies, with which the Co-op already deals with to deliver £70m a year of groceries, along with Deliveroo.
The rapid-fire delivery service will offer free deliveries for orders over £40, and a minimum shop of £15, though it is currently not available in Lincolnshire.
The Co-op has faced scrutiny after signing the deal, with many questioning the ethics of online giants Amazon, but say this partnership is about reaching more people quicker.
A spokesperson for the Co-op group said: “We aren’t compromising our ethics and principles and the extension of the partnership is about getting our ethically sourced products into the hands of more people.
“It reflects the support Co-op members have shown for Amazon’s products by using its lockers and click and collect services through hundreds of our stores for a number of years.
“We also see major opportunities in co-operating with one of the world’s biggest tech companies to tackle some of the big issues, from climate change to youth skills and opportunities.”
Co-op group chief executive Steve Murrells said: “The pandemic has accelerated changes in consumer shopping trends and we’re driving forward with exciting plans to provide rapid kerb to kitchen grocery delivery services.
“We are delighted to be working with Amazon. Its reach and leading technology and innovative approach means greater convenience for people in their communities.
“This, combined with our extended partnership with Starship Technologies, marks a significant milestone in our online strategy.”
The Nosey Parker pub in Lincoln loves creating a food challenge and The Lincolnite went to check out one of their latest – the Ultimate Chip Butty.
The Ultimate Chippy Butty is a whole loaf of bread, hollowed and filled with chips, cheese and lashings of gravy. The challenge, which is also suitable for vegetarians, is also served with two jugs of gravy for dipping.
The challenge, which was introduced at the Greene King pub off Tritton Road in August, is priced at £8.99. Should you be successful, unlike us, you get a certificate and your photo on the pub’s Wall of Flame.
Inside the Ultimate Chippy Butty. It’s bigger than it looks! | Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite
Pouring on some extra gravy. | Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite
The Lincolnite reporter Joseph Verney (left) staring at the challenge awaiting him, with the Nosey Parker’s Duty Manager Ronnie Byrne (right). | Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite
When the food arrived, I felt a sense of hope that maybe, if I finished my loaf, I could successfully complete the challenge, but it wasn’t to be. Maybe I just wasn’t bready enough.
After a fairly confident start, with the chips and cheese especially going down a treat, the bread really started to take its toll.
In some ways it may not look like too big a challenge, but to eat that much bread in one sitting proved an even bigger task than expected.
The Ultimate Chip Butty is priced at £8.99.| Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite
Ronnie Byrne, Duty Manager at Nosey Parker, told The Lincolnite: “The new menu came out just over a month ago, and the new challenges have gone down a storm!
“The Ultimate Chip Butty has been one of our best sellers so far, no doubt.
“Everyone thinks it’ll be a walk in the park, but, like The Lincolnite, they’re quickly brought back down to earth! It’s basically a whole loaf of bread and a tonne of chips, cheese, and gravy.
“Anyone who can tackle that is braver than I, and the reporter, as we learned today!”
Whatsapp
