RESTORATION and extension work at the Manor of Groves Hotel, High Wych, will make it one of the finest hotels and leisure complexes in the UK, it has been claimed.o

A total of £6.5m is being spent on the hotel. Fifty-seven new bedrooms are being added. There will be two restaurants one for fine dining and one for casual dining a new leisure complex with indoor swimming pool, gym, steam rooms and saunas, and a beauty and treatment centre for the use of members, hotel guests and local residents.

New conference and banqueting facilities will give the hotel, which staged the presentations of the first Harlow Business Awards last year, the ability to stage events for over 400 people.

The existing 18-hole championship golf course will benefit from a refurbished clubhouse and course improvements.

Hotel manager Julian Ayres said: "We're investing in the future. The airport is a honey pot for both UK and international travellers, and companies today expect the very best hotel, conference and leisure facilities.

"That's what the Manor of Groves will offer, while retaining its unique Georgian character and countryside setting."

The new facilities are expected to come on stream from late spring.