A 'LOSS-MAKING' New Forest hotel will close to make way for holiday accommodation with staff told their jobs will “cease to exist” after Christmas.

Operators of the Lyndhurst Park Hotel announced they plan to close the 59-bedroom hotel in the New Year and a period of consultation with staff is currently underway.

Despite efforts to find alternative positions, the company said they can't rule out the possibility of redundancies.

The three-star hotel on the High Street was bought by St James's Hotel Group after the collapse of the parent company Forestdale in March this year.

The hotel, which employs 13 full-time staff plus eight casual staff, has been making losses and an offer has been made to purchase the four acre site for redevelopment.

“Unfortunately, the hotel has continued to lose money this year. It is an old building in a poor state of repair which would require huge amounts of further investment to bring it up-to-date and give it a viable future as a hotel, “said Nicholas Crawley, managing director of St James's Hotel Group.

“We have, therefore, accepted an offer for the purchase of the site which is likely to result in the total redevelopment of the site and the opening of some new type of serviced holiday accommodation.

“We have already informed all staff that their current positions will cease to exist and we are working with them to find alternative roles within the group where possible.

“The hotel benefits from a loyal staff and we will do all we can to support them in their search for alternative employment, although we can't rule out the possibility of some redundancies.”

Mr Crawley added: “In terms of future bookings, we have now contacted all customers affected by the decision and we are liaising with them to move their events to other hotels within the St James's Hotel Group in nearby Burley and Winchester in the hope of causing customers as little disruption as possible.

“While it is sad to see the demise of this landmark hotel, it enjoys a prominent location at the entrance to the New Forest and we believe that the redevelopment of the site will bring major benefits to the town.”

St James's Hotel Group has unconditionally exchanged contracts with the purchaser and completion is expected early next year.