It’s that time of year when we’re excited to share some of the latest updates from across the Brend Collection. Over the past six months, our incredible teams across our nine hotels have celebrated some fantastic achievements, from well-deserved promotions and career milestones to new arrivals, personal celebrations, and long-service anniversaries.
Our people are at the heart of everything we do, and we’re incredibly proud of the dedication, passion, and commitment shown by our teams every day. This is just a glimpse of the wonderful news from across the Brend Collection.
For more updates, be sure to follow the social media pages of our hotels, restaurants, spas, and leisure facilities.
Supporting
Our Communities
We’re incredibly proud to announce our new partnership with Children’s Hospice South West, a charity that provides vital care and support for children with life-limiting conditions and their families.
Across the Brend Collection, our teams have been busy finding creative and exciting ways to support our chosen charity, with each of our nine hotels getting involved in fundraising activities throughout the year. From the Tour de Brend Hotels, a 190-mile bike ride visiting all nine of our hotels, and our Race Across Cornwall, where teams from Carlyon Bay Hotel and The Royal Duchy raced against each other between our hotels, to charity golf days, special lunch events, bottomless brunches, bingo nights and much more, our teams and guests have come together to help make a real difference and raise vital funds for Children’s Hospice South West.
We can’t wait to share more of our fundraising journey with you.
Long Service
Celebrations
Among this year’s Long Service Awards are some truly remarkable milestones, as we celebrate eight members of the Brend Collection team who have dedicated an incredible 25, 30 & 35 years to the collection.
Reaching 25 years of service is an outstanding achievement, and we are delighted to recognise Kristian Lee from Carlyon Bay Hotel, Sandra Handford from The Park Hotel, Laura Sanders from Saunton Sands Hotel and Sheryl Manuel from The Belmont Hotel.
We are also incredibly proud to celebrate four members of the team who have reached the exceptional milestone of 30 years’ service: Stephen Grant from The Imperial Hotel, Timothy Beauchamp from The Belmont Hotel, Eileen Margret Zecchini from Head Office and 35 years for Clare Haynes from The Victoria Hotel
Between them, these eight colleagues represent an incredible 225 years of service to the Brend Collection. Over the decades, they have each played their part in shaping our hotels, supporting their colleagues and delivering the warm hospitality and service that our guests have come to know us for.
A huge thank you to everyone celebrating these milestones for your continued dedication, hard work, and contribution to the Brend Collection.
Welcoming New Team Members
We’re delighted to welcome several new faces to our teams across Devon and Cornwall.
A warm welcome to Lucy, who has joined our Head Office team from The Imperial Hotel.
At Saunton Sands Hotel, we’re pleased to welcome Sophie Skinner as our new Membership Manager at Source Spa Saunton. We’re excited to see the positive impact Sophie will have on our membership community and fitness offering, and we wish her every success in her new role.
We’ve also welcomed back Gabe to Beachside Grill as Sous Chef, who returned to the team in March.
Following her successful apprenticeship at The Imperial Hotel, where she achieved distinctions, we’re delighted to welcome Lakota as Commis Pastry Chef at Saunton Sands Hotel.
At the Royal Duchy Hotel, we’re thrilled to welcome Paul as our new Head Chef. Paul joined the team in June, and we can’t wait to see the creativity and passion he brings to the kitchen.
The Barnstaple Hotel also welcomed back Blake Bourne, who has returned as Assistant Manager.
Promotions
& New Roles
We’re incredibly proud to celebrate a number of well-deserved promotions and new roles across the Brend Collection, recognising the hard work, dedication, and commitment of our fantastic teams.
At Saunton Sands Hotel, congratulations to Rowan Straton on her promotion to Pastry Junior Sous Chef, a fantastic achievement that reflects her passion, talent, and dedication. We’re also delighted to welcome Rhys Macey into his new role as Assistant Restaurant Manager following his move from Beachside Grill, and we wish him every success in his new position.
At The Barnstaple Hotel, we’re celebrating Jeven Eriksen’s promotion to Deputy Hotel Manager, Ryan Worth’s move to Senior Assistant Manager, and Matthew, Roni, and Ryan Felkin’s progression from General Assistants to Assistant Managers. These promotions are a wonderful reflection of their continued hard work and development.
At the Royal Duchy Hotel, congratulations to Vicky from Housekeeping, who has been promoted to Housekeeping Supervisor. We wish her every success in her new role.
Personal Celebrations
Our teams have also celebrated some wonderful personal milestones over the past six months.
At Saunton Sands Hotel, we’re delighted to share the arrival of two beautiful new additions.
Sian Johnson from our Guest Relations team welcomed her baby boy, Evan, on 31st January 2026. Everyone at Saunton Sands Hotel would like to send their heartfelt congratulations to Sian and her family and wish them all the happiness as they enjoy this special time together.
We also celebrated the wonderful news that Topaz Allen welcomed her baby boy, Rio, on 3rd December 2025. Congratulations to Topaz and her family – we wish them many happy memories together.
At the Royal Duchy Hotel, Daisy, our Food & Beverage Assistant, married her wonderful husband Pete at the hotel in April. We wish them a lifetime of happiness together.
At The Barnstaple Hotel, Marisa welcomed her baby boy, Joseph, in May. Congratulations to Marisa and her family.
At The Park Hotel, Charmaine married her partner Lee on 13th June 2026. It was a beautiful sunshine-filled weekend, and we wish them both a lifetime of happiness together.
A huge well done to Stephen Ward from Saunton Sands Hotel, who has completed his incredible charity cycle across Italy to raise funds for Pancreatic Cancer UK! Stephen crossed the finish line on one of the hottest days of the year. "It was an adventure, and the camaraderie among all the other cyclists was great. Thank you to everyone who donated and for all your kind words." - Stephen
Apprenticeship
Achievements
We’re incredibly proud of the continued learning and development across the Brend Collection.
Congratulations to Millie at the Royal Duchy Hotel, who recently completed her NVQ.
At The Park Hotel, Kyle and Jake successfully completed their HIT training courses. Kyle achieved a fantastic double distinction, while Jake achieved an impressive triple distinction in their Level 3 Hospitality Supervisor qualification. A brilliant achievement – well done both!
Thank you to all of our incredible team members across the Brend Collection for your continued hard work, passion, and dedication. We’re incredibly proud of everything you achieve and look forward to celebrating many more milestones together.
