A KNUTSFORD hotel is celebrating after its group was named the best in the country at a national awards ceremony.

Staff at Cottons Hotel & Spa in Manchester Road, is one of six hotels that formed Thwaites Hotels, which was presented with the AA Hotel Group of the Year 2016/17 at a ceremony in London on Tuesday, September 26.

It is the second time that the Thwaites-owned hotels have won the award.

Steve Ogden, general manager at Cottons Hotel and Spa, said: “We are so proud to achieve this award. The AA is renowned for setting high standards of quality and to be recognised by them as being the best in the country is no small feat.

“We are passionate about superb hospitality and work hard to provide the warmest of welcomes, attention to detail and amazing guest experiences.

“It’s fantastic to see that work recognised by the AA – and that wouldn’t have been possible without the great people we have working here. We will be making sure we take time to thank each and every one of them.”

To help decide the winner, judges looked at the attention to detail made by the hotel group along with the commitment and approach to future development.

Stephen Wilkinson, Area Manager at AA hotel and hospitality services, said: "Thwaites Hotels consistently deliver an enjoyable guest experience across their hotels with staff providing a warm and friendly welcome.

“This success is down to their belief in investing time and effort into training the team. Investment across the hotels continues which has seen the quality and provision meet the demands of the modern traveller."

Cottons is one of six hotels in the UK including Thorpe Park Hotel & Spa in Leeds; North Lakes Hotel & Spa, Penrith; Solent Hotel & Spa, near Southampton; Aztec Hotel & Spa, Bristol; and Kettering Park Hotel & Spa, Northamptonshire.

They were recently brought under the Thwaites brand, with the company’s Inns of Character, after previously being known as Shire Hotels.