Historic Derbyshire hotel and spa begins new era with message to community

The New Bath Hotel and Spa, with its famous open air pool on New Bath Road, has been welcoming visitors from near and far since 1745, but in the years after its liquidation and subsequent reopening in 2016 there were concerns that some of the local character had been lost.

Sharing that feeling was Sarah Foxon, who was promoted to general manager last autumn after just one month as operations manager, following previous stints at the Izaak Walton and Callow Hall hotels in her hometown of Ashbourne.

She said: “When I was appointed, the owners were looking for someone Derbyshire born and bred, rooted in the local history. They’d employed people from London, Manchester and all over before me, and they didn’t always understand the community.

“When I walked through the door, I was mesmerised by the history of the place, and lots of the building’s old features but there were lots of little touches required. It needed some love.”

Over a busy winter and spring, Sarah restructured the hotel’s staff, including the recruitment of a new head chef and events coordinator – all from within a few miles – began a major refurbishment programme by expanding the lounge bar area, and overhauled the food and drink menu to increase its appeal to local visitors as well as overnight guests.

Sarah said: “From everything I hear about the hotel, this was once the place to be. Everyone came here for lunch, dinner, weddings, parties.

“The thing I’ve enjoyed most about the job is meeting all the people from the area – some who worked here, others who would visit all the time – and hearing their stories, and how they remember it being. People say it used to be the heart of Matlock Bath.”

She added: “We want it to be a real part of the community again. If you’re thinking where to go out for dinner or cream tea, we want you to think of us.”

The invitation is not just to grown-up guests, as the hotel has once again opened its grounds to the neighbouring Holy Trinity Primary School, which will be using the tennis court and other parts of the site for PE lessons, sports days, school fair and outdoor classes.

Jamille Riverol, the newly-arrived events supervisor, said: “The school used to use the facilities many years ago and we want to give that back to local children.”

For the older crowd, Sarah says the past few months have seen an uptick in corporate and conference bookings, spa customers, wedding inquiries, school proms and private parties, and a series of public events are lined up throughout the summer.

Jamille added: “We’ll be having an ‘80s themed pool party in August, with music drinks and food, which will be open to anyone. With the lighter evenings we’ll be having some later night swimming sessions over the summer, then a children’s pool party in September.”

With plans for autumn ghost walks, wine tasting, Christmas markets and a New Year’s Eve casino party, it looks like the business’s new approach is here to stay.

For more information, see newbathhotelandspa.com.

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