Northumberland luxury bed & breakfast, England
How this holiday makes a difference
Environment
We have restored and renovated a spectacular listed building, the most prominent building in our village, which had fallen into disrepair. We used a team of local tradesmen and specialists to restore it entirely in keeping with the physical and natural landscape in which we are situated.
A comprehensive Environmental Policy & Responsible Visitor Charter is in place, which are included in coffee-table reading materials.
A ‘Green Management File’ is maintained, with a range of information including our Policies, our Green Action Plan (which sets out our future developments with timescales), and monthly meter readings.
We monitor electricity and water consumption on a monthly basis, and plot this against occupancy figures.
We source our energy from Ecotricity, a company which supplies us with energy from 100% renewable sources.
Our Guest Information Book (in all guest rooms) highlights our green aspirations, and invites guests to engage with them - for example, by using energy efficiently whilst staying (turning off lights and radiators when not required) and pursuing car-free activities.
We have specified low-energy lighting within large areas of the house and outside (car park) lighting, and have fitted innovative led lighting in the stairway to provide ultra-low impact low-level lighting.
Thermostatic radiator valves, multiple zoning of the system, and individual room thermostats provides fine control of heating.
We have implemented GTBS’ ‘Bag it and Bin it’ scheme for sanitary waste.
We provide phosphate-free environmentally-friendly luxury toiletries for guests.
We clean without chemicals.
We purchase recycled paper, and carry information about this on our printed materials – which we keep to a minimum by focusing predominantly on online marketing.
We bank with Triodos, an award-winning ethical bank which provides business loans only to projects which meet criteria relating to cultural and environmental development – and which lends only from reserves built up by savers.
We do not use single-portion packaged breakfast food.
We sort and separate our waste, and fill a ‘blue bin’ emptied by the Council, and take other items (eg glass) to the local recycling centre.
Community
We have been involved in the setting up of a Social Enterprise in our village which is providing employment for several local people. We use the services of the business oursleves, and continue to encourage them to look for ways to ‘green’ that business too.
We contribute to Tear Fund, Oxfam and Amnesty by monthly subscription. We have also partnered with an organisation which raised funds for a clean water project in Tanzania, by selling resources which support this project.
We offer facilities which enhance guests’ physical and spiritual wellbeing at St Cuthbert’s House, eg massage and reflexology provided by a local professional.
We take great care in providing high-quality locally-sourced food products – meat, eggs, preserves and bread are all sourced from local suppliers.
We have established our own beehives in our village, and honey from the hives is on the breakfast table!
We stock only beers and soft drinks which are brewed in Northumberland.
We are accredited by the ’Northumberland Food Awards’ scheme.
We provide Fairtrade tea & coffee on our in-room hospitality trays.
We display the work of several local artists and offer it for sale to guests.
We continually add to our ‘No-Car Day’ folder of ideas on our coffee table, and encourage guests to leave the car for at least one day during their stay. We carry extensive information on local walks and cycle hire, and we are great advocates of the Arriva ‘Coast & Castles’ bus service. We have information on a range of walks of differing lengths based around the bus timetable, and we promote this service on our website.
We have attained the ‘Walkers Welcome’ and ‘Cyclists Welcome’ accreditation from VisitBritain.
We carry an extensive range of cycle spares and tools, which is available to guests. (We noted there is nowhere locally to obtain these items and have therefore increased our range.)
Our website carries information about travelling to Northumberland by public transport.
We offer an extensive library of local information for visitors, relating to local attractions, the natural environment, and local wildlife. We also maintain a vibrant wildlife diary, and encourage guests to record their sightings.
We also delight in offering personal advice to guests about local places to visit, when we are able to respond to the particular things they are interested in, whether their focus is on wildlife, the natural landscape, or history.
We are members of the Seahouses Development Trust, and play a key part in organising the Seahouses Festival and have made a substantial contribution to the Festival for several years.
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