Not many will know this, but the middle section of Bridleways was originally two farmhouse cottages dating back to the late 1800’s, these now encompass the kitchen and breakfast room on the ground floor and four single rooms above.

Why refurbish? It looks good as it is doesn't it?

Whilst discussing the idea and vision of the refurbishment with our guests, some have queried why we wanted to refurbish the breakfast room as it “looks ok as it is” and on the surface, it probably did, but when you looked closer (certainly around the garden side of the room), the Artex had blown in several places and was coming away from the walls.

Another issue was sound proofing to the bedrooms above. Having originally been farmhouse cottages there are three main supporting beams across the room widthways, and multiple small beams running across in the opposite direction. Whilst this gave the room character, guests could hear early breakfast arrival conversations as there was no cavity or soundproofing between the ground and first floor. 

Also, in the summer months we like to offer guests the opportunity to have an alfresco breakfast in the garden, which could only be accessed by walking around the entire exterior of the building or cutting through the kitchen which wasn't the best experience for our guests and from a health and safety point of view was far from ideal.

We had also purchased a large television for evening use in the breakfast room for the Euros, Wimbledon, and other major sporting events and this was carried in nightly and set-up during these events. The television was placed on a restaurant table which wasn’t ideal as it reduced the capacity as a large table was lost each time.

We often realised that we didn't have enough tables!

Then there were the operational issues caused by the number of tables and their configuration. The existing furniture when we purchased Bridleways, whilst of very good quality, consisted of three large extendable tables, plus a round table in the centre of the room. During the week when most rooms are single occupancy and many of our guests wanted to eat breakfast within a 90-minute period, this caused us many issues of not having enough tables.

At the weekends where the doubles and family rooms have at least two occupants, many guests wanted breakfast at similar times on Sunday mornings, so only having four tables was again an issue. The existing tables also had fixed legs at each corner which compromised comfort when guests were sitting side by side.

The vision was to create an environment that was contemporary in its appearance with a nod to the old breakfast room and Bridleways heritage by keeping the three main beams and fireplace. We also wanted to create an access directly from the breakfast room into the garden and build a small patio and steps so that guests could easily access the garden for breakfast or just to relax during the summer evenings.

Therefore, to enable the access into the garden we removed the large window at the rear of the room along with the wall below and installed a sliding patio door. We chose a sliding door over opening French doors as we would have lost a table where one of the doors opened , so by ensuring that the fixed piece of glass on the sliding door was nearest to the wall, this enabled us to utilise the space and not lose a table.

A sound idea, and a different look and feel

From a practical point of view we wanted to fill in the recesses in between the three large beams with a soundproof cavity to eliminate the noise transfer from the breakfast room to the guest bedrooms above. We used soundproofing plasterboard which is denser than normal plaster and infilled the cavity with soundproofing installation to further reduce the sound going into the guest rooms above. This has proved to be very successful and gives the room a very different look and feel.

With regards to the tables and chairs, our main objective was to create flexibility and increase the number of tables for our guests. On each side of the breakfast room there are two long unobstructed sections of wall which we felt would be ideal for banquette seating that would enable us to push smaller tables together for larger parties or separate them to enable one or two guests to sit at either end of the banquette seating. The new tables are smaller and square with centre supports so there are no table legs restricting access or width. The new configuration has increased the potential number of tables from four to seven.

Other minor considerations were to fit a kitchen unit next to fireplace where the microwave is kept for guest use in the evenings. Previously the microwave was on a low shelf which extended from the brick hearth, the surface is now at a much safer height for handling hot food and drinks. It also provides us with additional cupboard storage space which is always a bonus.

Lighting and storage

Another consideration was lighting. Previously there were only two fittings in the breakfast room and during winter mornings these were not sufficient. Now however we have eight industrial led tube fittings so when they're all switched on enables Bridleways to be seen from Mars! Six would have been sufficient but the beams split the room into four sections and my OCD would not allow one section without light fittings so eight it is.

Underneath the banquette seating Joe has created six storage compartments so that we can store all our restaurant associated items. We know that guests won't see any difference, but for us it will free up a lot of room in the garage!

We couldn't have done it alone...

In terms of suppliers who have contributed to the finished product, again Joe Swindell has been instrumental and has completed all the building, plumbing, electrics and decorating. He also built the banquette seating in his workshop at home before its installation at the end of the project.

Chris Hooper laid the patio and built the steps outside the breakfast room. The banquette seating cushions were made by Crystal Upholstery from Clay Cross, along with the curtains and scatter cushions.

The curtain material and roman blinds were supplied by The Yorkshire Fabric Shop.

Our new table and chairs were supplied by Warner Contract Furniture who also supplied us with the same faux leather so that Crystal Upholstery could cover the banquette seating cushions.

We're so pleased with how it's turned out and would like to say a huge thank you to everyone involved, we are delighted with the finished product and our guests cannot believe the transformation, maybe you should come and see it for yourself? Book your stay at Bridleways.

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So, Tracey, when did you start working with Bridleways?

The first time I became aware of Bridleways was a couple of years ago, when Emyr asked me about using my landscape images as wall coverings in the rooms when he was renovating. For me, the wallpapers were something I was quite interested in, so I gave him permission to use the images, as much as anything because I was curious to see how they would look. He wanted to use the landscape images so there was something quite appealing to me about that. 

What did you enjoy about photographing the rooms this time?

Well, for one thing, I was curious to see the wallpapers in person, but I enjoy doing jobs like this because you’re presented with a job and it’s good to just have the time to work on it. It’s a challenge too, really, working with the layout of the rooms and the angles.

As a photographer it’s a bit of a puzzle to solve, especially the bathrooms; they’re small, they go around corners, and the light bounces around everywhere and I always enjoy that kind of shoot. The showcase rooms with my images in look absolutely fantastic too, so in a way that was one of the best bits for me, it’s amazing to see the work on the wall.

You’ve taken photos all over the world, does it feel special to photograph Nottinghamshire?

As much as I love to travel, genuinely one of the proudest things for me is that people come to me to ask for photos of the local area. Like last week, Trent Bridge was 150 years old and people came to me to ask for an image [Ed. You’re surely not that old Tracey!] the same way Emyr came to me for the wall images. 

The fact that people come to me to promote Nottinghamshire, like the tourism centre in Nottingham, makes me proud because I am seen by a lot of people as the go-to person for pictures to promote Nottingham and Nottinghamshire, and everything it’s got to offer. I think the way I photograph it is to showcase it at its best, when it’s beautiful to me. I’m immensely proud of that. 

I was in the breakfast room this week actually, and there was a couple in there. I was photographing the breakfast while they were trying to eat theirs, so I made a bit of small talk, you know, to make them feel at ease! They said they were in the room with the Newstead Abbey picture on the wall, and so I told them that was my picture. They thought it was absolutely brilliant and they seemed so happy to have met the person who took it. 

It’s little things like that, it cements for me that I’m not just a faceless photographer doing a job, and it says something about what Emyr and Tracey do at Bridleways and the relationships they have with me and how they look after their guests and create the friendly atmosphere for them.

Was supporting another small local business important to you?

Absolutely, it always is. I enjoy my work and get dozens of enquiries for pictures, from big companies or for something corporate, but when someone comes to me from a small business, especially if I feel that they have a similar ethos to me, like Emyr and Tracey do, it’s very important to me. 

My landscape photos mean so much to me too, so in this case, from day one, it kind of became like a partnership, so there was a sense of paying it forward a little bit, there’s definitely a partnership that develops between small businesses. That’s why Emyr came to me to take these latest images, because of that, and it only exists between small businesses.

My last question then, Tracey, what got you started in photography?

Oh, blimey! It sounds like a cliche really, but I first picked up a camera when I was eight years old. My first job when I left school was in a processing lab, back in the days before digital, when professional photographers would bring their film into a lab. So I learnt all about colour balance and exposure and I used to take a lot of pictures around that time. I went on a gap year in my early twenties and that developed a love of travel for me, and I think those two things go hand in hand, and taking the camera with me reignited something in me.

If I’m travelling, or working locally, for me it’s about the light and about getting out there. My aim in pictures is always to try and have someone else see what I felt when I took the picture and for it to speak for itself, it’s very subjective and everybody sees something different in it, and that’s where my journey started!

If you’d like to see more of Tracey’s beautiful work, come and see us at Bridleways, follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, or visit Tracey’s website.

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Hi Sharon, could you introduce yourself and say a little about what you do at Bridleways?

Hi, I’m Sharon Kelly, I’ve worked here with Emyr and Tracey for three years as well as for the previous owners. I started off as housekeeper but then Emyr was crazy enough to ask me to start doing breakfasts so now I’m the breakfast chef from Tuesday to Thursday, and I love it, I absolutely love it! It’s the people that I work with, the standard of the place, it’s just really nice to work for lovely people, it’s homely, it’s personal, and they want to get the best out of you.

Doing the breakfasts, I do get to meet some of the guests, it’s lovely to get chatting with people from all different areas. I was born and bred in Clipstone and live a 10-minute walk away, my dad worked down the pit and my mum was a housewife, and I’ve always lived in Clipstone so I know the place like the back of my hand. It’s useful if guests want to know how to get to places nearby. It’s always nice to meet people who used to live round here too and have come back to visit. 

What about working during the pandemic?

Working during coronavirus has been different, it’s been hard but not a big challenge. It’s been quieter but it’s not made a difference to me in the sense of being worried about coming to work because everything is in place. There’s always hand sanitiser, gloves and face masks available and they all make you feel that you’re in a safe environment. 

I think we’ve just made the changes we needed to, and it comes naturally; keeping your distance with people, but making guests feel at ease, knowing that things are in place to protect us and the guests. We’ve always had good standards of hygiene anyway, everything was 100% so it’s not like we’ve had to go up three gears! It’s just that we’ve put things in place on top of that, like when people are departing, everything gets taken out of their rooms, even if it’s not been used, everything else gets sanitised.

The restaurant has not been able to open as normal, but guests have been able to get room service and grab and go food, especially for people on their way out to work. We cater for everyone, whatever their needs are. Emyr will do his utmost to make sure that’s sorted out, he’ll move anything to get them what they want! We talk to guests about their experience and we’re constantly trying to improve things for them, so they get what they want, and what they’re paying for!

How do you feel about Bridleways opening up to holiday makers again?

We’ve been quite busy anyway but it’ll be nice to see holiday makers back, and be a bit busier, and for them to come and enjoy Bridleways and the area again. I’m looking forward to seeing people being on holiday and enjoying themselves again, I mean they’ve earned it, a good break away, so it’ll be nice to see them and the families back again, I look forward to that.

Things did change during the full lockdown but then when things opened up and guests who were staying through work could come, we were quite busy, and it’s good that people have read the reviews and seen what we do, and been able to stay, and what a place to stay when you’re working! 

Tell me a bit about yourself...

Well, I love spending time with my family, my son’s 25 and my daughter is 22 so we hardly get to see them but during coronavirus we’ve been able to spend a bit more time with them when we can, having family meals etc. We love going out with the dogs and walking, we love travelling, so that’s one thing I’m looking forward to doing when we can again!

I’m proud to be a part of Bridleways, we all get on so well and we want to do the best we can. The whole team’s the same, we’re lucky to have each other, we really are. It’s a privilege it really is. It’s such a lovely place to be, indoors and out, it’s just so relaxed and chilled out, it’s got a lovely feeling. The guests get such a warm welcome and they pick up on that, I think it’s one of the reasons they like to come back. If I was a holiday maker I’d definitely come here!

Book your stay at Bridleways, we'd love to meet you!

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I have to say I'm not as happy on camera as I am looking after guests, you'll have to let me know if you think it shows in my first screen appearance! The last year and a bit has been really challenging  for all of us, we've been through a lot, but there's light at the end of the tunnel and it's positives like being asked to do this, and being able to do what we can to keep you and our team here safe, that makes it all worth it.

I hope you enjoy watching this from the amazing people at Visit England, and I hope to see many of you again, in person, very soon.

Emyr Jones, 30 April 2021

When I was contacted to be put forward for the COVID Business Recovery Stories I was very thankful that Visit Nottinghamshire had thought of Bridleways as an appropriate business. It obviously helps keeping in touch with the team at Visit Notts as they were aware of what we were doing to maintain and source new business throughout the pandemic. I was then contacted by Visit England and made aware that there would be an interview process to select and validate that the businesses put forward had a worthy story.

The interview was conducted by Vicky Parr at Visit England and Alex Smith at Tomorrow’s Tourism who were leading the project on behalf of Visit England. The interview was conducted over teams and whilst I was not particularly looking forward to it, the interview went well, and we discussed the various topics that the filming would cover and our responses to the challenges that COVID put before us. There were a few days lapse for the outcome as to whether we had been finally selected as one of ten businesses in England, and once confirmed, that momentarily felt very special. The dread of being on camera shortly followed...

Alex was excellent in guiding me throughout the process which included a rehearsal where Richard Hammond joined us. Alex structured and led the interview and Richard was responsible for the filming, drone footage and anything technical.

In the run up to the day itself we all had to ensure that the property and individuals involved were all COVID compliant and social distancing etc. was maintained at all times as the recording was live at Bridleways. Following the rehearsal, we agreed the running order of the questions / interview which I read several times prior to day as there was no script and no safety net!

On the day itself we were fortunate that we had some key workers and guests who required accommodation in relation in their work which meant that on the morning itself I was busy preparing room service and “grab & go” breakfasts which took my mind off the pending interview. Whilst I was doing breakfast, Alex and Richard were outside shooting some camera footage and drone images in preparation.

Then my time had arrived. I was dreading the interview as whilst I am passionate about our industry and have been for over 30 years, my preference is to quietly and modestly get on with delivering great service whilst not attracting too much attention. I also however fully understand that when opportunities like the filming, winning various awards etc. come along, firstly they cannot be turned down as they are great PR and secondly that being pushed outside your comfort zone at times is good for me personally.

The feedback from the filming team on the day was positive and since sharing the film with colleagues, friends and family, they too have praised the final outcome. For me though, watching myself back in the film was a little cringeworthy, but I gather that this feeling is fairly normal! My hope however is that for the many businesses within the hospitality industry that have been hugely impacted by COVID, this series of films and interviews will validate the emotional roller coaster that everyone has been on throughout the pandemic and the sharing of initiatives, ideas etc. will help enable some to use these within their own business.

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We've always kept our accommodation to a high standard, for current guests and of course in readiness for when lockdown ends and we can welcome holiday makers again!

If you read our Coronavirus blog from last year you'll know that we've done a lot to keep everyone safe and to keep the guesthouse open for guests in what's definitely been a challenging year for us all.  Today I wanted to share some of the things that maybe you didn't know about.

Back in 2020 we looked at our entire operation and risk assessed the processes that were in place, this helped us to understand the areas of high risk so we could take action to adapt what we did to ensure staff and visitors could be kept safe. Starting in the restaurant, we realised that we'd have to make some big changes; we closed the eating area to allow for social distancing but our guests still had to eat, we're a B&B after all!

Our ‘Grab’n’Go’ option was quickly introduced for breakfasts and a microwave installed in the breakfast room for our guests to use.  We also put fridges into guest rooms so visitors could bring their own food and added local takeaway menus which our guests loved, and which supported other local businesses.

"What you might not know is that we started to offer our guests extra services, such as doing their food shopping or providing the occasional meal which we safely delivered to our long term guests."

Next we got involved in the VisitEngland ‘We’re Good to Go’ and AA ‘COVID Confident’ schemes, and most recently the World Travel & Tourism Council's 'Safe Travels' accreditation. We promoted these on our website and social media, and made sure information was added to the folders in our guest bedrooms to help our valued visitors feel confident about our approach to safely.

"If you've been to Bridleways or even just followed our social media, you'll know that that masks are worn and hand sanitiser and signage is used throughout the guesthouse to give guests even more reassurance."

In the first lockdown one long stay guest was legally allowed to stay as they’d been displaced from their home. This really opened up more options for us to help people who were in similar situations and of course keep us going during lockdown.

Looking after guests who are having insurance work done on their homes and giving them a lovely, temporary home from home, is now part of what we do, but during 2020 it really was critical to the business’s survival. We've also worked hard to improve our online booking systems, something which our guests really value in an increasingly digital world.

The last thing to mention, but by no means the least important, is that we sought outside professional help with our social media and web development. This was to make sure that we were telling as many of our friends, previous and future guests, all about our availability and what we were doing to keep people safe. We know from all the great comments and website visits we get that many of you really appreciate communicating with us in this way, and we enjoy it too!

 "How we treat people and look after them is important; little touches make all the difference. If someone’s coming back late we close the curtains, put a night light on and a bottle of cold water in the fridge. We know that our guests really appreciate this and it's what makes Bridleways such a popular choice for guests, whether they are locals or visitors from further afield."

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Let's start in January, when things were a bit more 'normal'. We got the year underway by starting the refurbishment of our double rooms and en-suites. If you've been to visit this year you'll also know that we put in some great up-cycled furniture from The Furniture Paint Queen plus some brand new flooring from United Carpets.

Mattison Beds made sure our guests had gorgeous new places to sleep and Tracey from Whitefoot Photography adorned our bedroom walls with her stunning photographs which are an absolute must-see!

Our biggest thank you goes to Joe Swindell whose electrical, plastering, decorating and carpentry skills continue to support us and pulled everything together to turn our initial vision into reality.

The hard work continued in January as we re-covered the upholstery in Skylark, thanks to Crystal Upholstery from Clay Cross. It was all more than worth it when we won the booking.com Guest Review Award with a score of 9.7 out of 10.

February and March saw us complete the refurbishment of room 7, replace and paint all the boards around the base of our caravans and achieve an AA 4 Star Gold Award. The COVID-19 lockdown hit after that but we kept working into April, refurbishing room 9.

During May we re-varnished all the bedroom and public area doors, fitted new handles too and put up our new bespoke bedroom numbers, featuring the Bridleways logo. Guest June Barker gave us a lovely handmade Crystal Art gift which was a wonderful surprise, followed by another for Tracey’s 50th birthday as my mum arranged a delicious delivery from Launay’s Restaurant in Edwinstowe.

June and July were busy months too as we refurbished room 8 and scooped two awards; the AA COVID Confident Award and the Visit England “Good to Go” COVID Award for all our hard work keeping guests safe.

Later in the summer we fitted a new combi boiler in Kingfisher Caravan and a brand new gas fire in Skylark and in September had all the caravan steps sand blasted and powder coated. Another great award followed, this time the TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice Award. In October, as well as entering Tier 2, we purchased refrigerators for all our bedrooms.

November was a milestone month as we celebrated three years at Bridleways, receiving an amazing number of lovely messages from our friends and guests which made us all feel so happy. We also engaged local small business Napier Creative to assist with our website and social media.

Tier 3, the second national lockdown and a return to Tier 3 followed in December but we stayed positive as we always do, and with everything going on I even found the time to make Tracey breakfast in bed!

So now we’re ready for 2021, what have we got planned?

Well, fumbling for keys will become a distant memory as we’ll be fitting the front door with an electronic tag system, there will also be new central heating in Skylark and the breakfast room will be refurbished too.

When the good weather returns we’ll be inviting Tracey Whitefoot back to take some new photos and updating our website, social media and brochure. We’ll also be redecorating the cottage, so look out for the pictures across social media or better still, come and visit us!

I’d like to end by saying a heartfelt thank you, from us all, to everyone who has supported us this year and to say that we wish you all the very best for a happy and safe New Year.

Emyr & Tracey

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Here's what we are doing to keep you and our team safe

We know that as a guesthouse we’ll always be judged on our cleanliness and it’s something we have always taken great pride in but now more than ever with Coronavirus, it’s something we just won’t compromise on. We also understand that clean doesn’t necessarily mean sanitised, so what we’ve done is to go one step further, cleaning to our normal standard and then sanitising afterwards to make sure the rooms, furniture, surfaces and facilities are safe for the next guest.

Since the beginning of the pandemic we’ve always been very careful. Even before it was required to wear masks and gloves, we’ve done it from day one because when our guests arrive at the property, it makes them feel safe and makes them aware that we’re taking Coronavirus very seriously and are doing everything we can to make sure that it’s a safe place for them to stay.

We’re here to give a warm welcome to our guests and as people arrive for the first time, they’ll now see that we have hand sanitiser and the NHS tracing app QR code in the reception as well as floor markings to help with social distancing.

We also take a mobile number so we can contact people during or after their visit if there are cases locally and of course run through what measures we have put in place to keep them safe. For example, we always replenish the tea and coffee making facilities in every room and throw away the old ones when a guest leaves, we sanitise the door handles regularly throughout the day too. It’s these little things that we think make the difference to people and are steps we can take to maintain a safe environment where people can feel confident we’re doing things correctly so they can relax and enjoy their stay.

With many of the local restaurants being closed during lockdown, one thing we’ve also done is to help our guests find food, for example telling them about the many takeaways who will deliver to us or providing safe, clean places to reheat meals themselves in our restaurant if they need to. We’ve found many guests are very impressed by this and have told us that our approach makes them feel safe, especially key workers who’ve needed to travel and find accommodation during the pandemic. 

 
Our standards of cleanliness are exemplary as a matter of course and whilst we have had no issues with regards to the Coronavirus we have taken the additional steps below to product you and our team members:

Checking-in and Checking-out

Our team will be wearing PPE whilst minimising contact and keeping social distancing measures in place. Hand sanitiser is available in public areas.
 

Public areas and back-of-house

Increased cleaning regimes have been introduced to ensure all hand contact points are thoroughly sanitised on a regular basis.

Bedrooms

Every guest bedroom and holiday home are being sanitised and deep cleaned after every guest departure. Some guest amenities have been reduced / taken out to prevent cross contamination and will be available upon request. Unused items on tea trays, mugs, glasses etc. will all be removed and put through the dishwasher to provide arriving guests with a level of reassurance.

Breakfast

The breakfast room is open daily, but we do ask that guests provide us with a time at which they would like breakfast so that we ensure that social distancing protocols are adhered to. If, however you would prefer either a take-out or room service breakfast, a reduced menu is also available details are within the bedroom directory.  To reserve a time or to clarify any questions you may have, please call us on 01623 635 725.

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