South Ayrshire Council gives Ayr Racecourse plans the green light

By: Iain Ferguson

AMBITIOUS plans to turn Ayr Racecourse into not only one of the top racecourses in Europe but also one of the most prestigious leisure destinations in the country have been approved by South Ayrshire Council.

The multi-million pound development includes a conference centre, cinema, new bar, restaurant, housing and retail units - and work could start as early as the autumn.

Councillors unanimously agreed that the exciting and ambitious plans would be of huge economic and social benefit to the town as well as putting Ayr on the map both as one of the premier horseracing venues in Scotland – and in Europe.

Speaking after approval was granted yesterday, Chair of the Regulatory Panel on South Ayrshire Council, Councillor Nan McFarlane said: “I’m absolutely delighted these plans have been approved. South Ayrshire Council has worked hard with Ayr Racecourse to agree a modern, dynamic and landmark building.”


During the meeting, councillors were shown plans and drawings of the proposed development (see above and below) that also includes a racing academy, museum, hotel and casino.


Councillor McFarlane continued: “The new building will have a sweeping front, with curves designed to mimic the sea. New car parking, covered walkways and landscaping will provide guests with a real sense of arrival, making a visit to the races and Ayr a truly memorable occasion.”

Councillor Hugh Hunter, Leader of South Ayrshire Council said: “I warmly welcome the news that this proposal has been approved. Ayr Racecourse is important to Ayr, and I am pleased that a conference centre is a key development among the many exciting projects planned.

“There are clear economic and social benefits that go with Ayr being positively promoted as a conference town. I am keen to see this happen and to maximise that potential for all residents in South Ayrshire.”

Ayr Racecourse chairman Alan Macdonald commented: “This is great news, not only for Ayr Racecourse but for the racing industry as a whole.

“Richard Johnstone and I bought the course almost five years ago and have already spent millions upgrading facilities. Now this planning approval means we can finish what we have started and firmly establish Ayr as one of the best in Europe.”

Last month a new £4.5 million Grandstand Sports Bar and a new Owners Bar were opened at the course and on non-race days Ayr Racecourse is building a reputation as a top conference centre, and will host the Scottish Conservative Party conference later this month.

Ayr is now also known as a concert venue, and rock legends Status Quo will headline Burns Rock At The Racecourse there on Sunday May 24.

www.ayr-racecourse.co.uk

www.south-ayrshire.gov.uk

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Ayr Racecourse announces John Smith’s to sponsor Ayr Gold Cup

By: Iain Ferguson

JOHN SMITH'S is to sponsor the Ayr Gold Cup Festival, Scotland’s top horse racing event of the flat season which includes the richest sprint handicap in Europe - the Ayr Gold Cup.

The drinks brand, synonymous with the sport through their long standing sponsorship of the Grand National at Aintree, will be the main sponsors for the three-day Festival in September, replacing the Tote who had sponsored the race since 2001.

The first John Smith’s Ayr Gold Cup will be run on Saturday 20 September, the third and final day of the 2008 John Smith’s Ayr Gold Cup Festival.

Announcing the sponsorship deal, Scottish & Newcastle regional sales director Alasdair Moore said: “We are delighted John Smith’s will be the new sponsors of the Ayr Gold Cup. The race is famous throughout Europe, and this is a tremendous opportunity for us.”


Ayr Racecourse chairman Alan Macdonald (pictured above) said: “I am thrilled to welcome John Smith’s - one of the most famous names in racing - to be the new sponsor of the Ayr Gold Cup Festival. The biggest race of the Festival is the Ayr Gold Cup itself, and the John Smith’s sponsorship is set to increase the prize money on offer for the big races on the Friday and Saturday.

“The John Smith’s Ayr Silver Cup run on Friday, which is Ladies Day, will be run for a total prize fund of £50,000 - a tremendous sum considering this is a consolation race. The main race of the Festival, the John Smith’s Ayr Gold Cup, will now have a fantastic £150,000 prize fund, which will ensure that this will be a target for all the top trainers.

“Since we took over Ayr Racecourse, John Smith’s have been a great supporter, and have played a significant role in the course’s resurgence. My thanks go to Scottish & Newcastle for this further commitment.”

The Ayr Gold Cup was first run in 1804 and won by Chancellor, also the winner the following year. The first Ayr Gold Cup to be staged on the current Ayr track was in 1907, and was won by Mr. R. Waldie Griffith’s Charis, a five year-old trained by R. Sherwood.

Last year’s race was won by Advanced, trained by Kevin Ryan and ridden by Jamie Spencer and over the three days crowds of 22,630 flocked to the course, the highest attendance for more than 30 years.

www.ayr-racecourse.co.uk

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Ayr Racecourse and Western House Hotel
win Business Excellence Award

By: Iain Ferguson

AYR Racecourse and Western House Hotel were awarded the Business Excellence Award in the manufacturing and service category at the annual Ayrshire Chamber of Commerce Dinner held in the Princess Royal Suite at the racecourse last Friday.


[Pictured left to right: Des Browne, Secretary of State for Defence; William Gorol, General Manager, Ayr Racecourse and Jim McGeechan, Chairman Ayrshire Business Excellence Awards. CLICK ON IMAGE TO VIEW / DOWNLOAD FULL-SIZE VERSION.]

The award, presented by Business Excellence Ayrshire managing director Jim McGeehan to Ayr Racecourse general manager William Gorol, caps an amazing turnaround in the fortunes of the business.

In June 2003 Ayr Racecourse was bought by Alan Macdonald, owner of the Dawn Group, and Richard Johnstone, managing director of healthcare provider Thorntoun, in a £10 million deal.

The course and its buildings were in need of a major investment in order to re-establish Ayr as Scotland’s premier racecourse.

Since then there have been massive improvements to the course and its facilities, with many more in the pipeline. One of the most significant changes was the £4.5 million transformation of Western House from the HQ of the Western Meeting Club to a four-star hotel.


In under three years the Western House Hotel (pictured above) has established itself as one of Scotland’s quality wedding venues, and won a string of awards including the Scottish Wedding Hotel of the Year in both 2007 and 2008 and the coveted VisitScotland Thistle Award for Customer Care – Serviced Accommodation 2007.

Other improvements include the opening of the Princess Royal Exhibition, Banqueting and Conference centre in 2005 - Ayrshire’s first ever dedicated venue of its kind.

And next month the £4.5 million Ayrshire Suite will open on the ground floor of the Princess Royal Stand. This will provide a 2500 capacity Grandstand sports bar on racedays and state of the art conference and banqueting facilities on non-race days.

Among the first events to be held there will be the 2008 Scottish Conservative Party conference in May.

Over the past year the racecourse has also staged its first ever rock concert – Rock At The Racecourse featuring The Saw Doctors and Deacon Blue, and in May this year Burns Rock At The Racecourse takes place with Status Quo and special guests From The Jam.

The legendary Saints and Sinners race night will also be staged at Ayr for the first time ever in June after organisers decided to move from Hamilton in order to raise even more money for the charities it supports.

The Racecourse itself has scooped the Racegoers Club Racecourse of the Year Award for Scotland and the North East for four successive years from 2004-2007.

Now more than 80 full-time staff are employed at the Racecourse and Western House, with the number reaching around 700 on major racedays.


[Pictured: Ayr Racecourse general manager William Gorol.]

Ayr Racecourse general manager William Gorol said: “It is a great privilege to receive this award on behalf of the team. Alan Macdonald and Richard Johnstone had a vision for the racecourse, and they are already well on their way to achieving that.

”Not only is Ayr Racecourse one of the top courses in the UK, but in Western House Hotel and the Princess Royal Centre we have two marvellous facilities that combine to make Ayr a much more attractive destination for conferences and tourism.”

www.ayr-racecourse.co.uk

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Ayr Racecourse wins top award for the fourth year running

AYR Racecourse has made it four in a row by being voted Racecourse of the Year 2007 for Scotland and the North East by The Racegoers Club.


Ayr also won the award in 2004, 2005 and 2006, which underlines the track’s status as not only Scotland’s premier racecourse but also one of the top courses in the UK.

The award comes as Ayr prepares to open even more new facilities in 2008. Work has begun on a £3.5 million Grandstand Bar which will cater for up to 3,000 people on racedays, and an Owners Bar incorporating a restaurant and with access to a betting shop. Not only will the latter be open to owners and trainers, but also those who wish to take out Owners Club Membership.

The honour from The Racegoers Club is particularly pleasing for those associated with Ayr, as the Club has 6,500 members who are all avid racegoers. Ayr has previously won the award 13 times since 1990.

Ayr Racecourse general manager William Gorol said: “I was delighted to receive this news. It is proof that the improvements we are making are appreciated by members of the Racegoers Club, who are in my eyes aficionados of the sport.

“To win this award four times in a row is especially pleasing, and I’d like to thank everyone who voted for us.”

ATTENDANCES at Ayr Racecourse rose during the 2007 flat season by 7% with an average of 3,934 per meeting.

The flagship flat meeting of the season, the totesport Ayr Gold Cup Festival, recorded its highest three-day attendance (22,000) for more than 30 years.

Other successes were the June Saturday meeting, with an increase of around 30% to 6,500, and the July Family Day which rose by around 10% to just under 4,000.

The 2008 season promises even bigger attendances, with Ayr hosting the Saints and Sinners Charity Night next June for the first time. Organisers have moved the meeting from Hamilton in a bid to increase crowd figures and raise even more money for charity.

Scotland’s premier racecourse has seen an upturn in fortunes since it was bought by Ayrshire businessmen Alan Macdonald and Richard Johnstone in June 2003, and the latest attendance figures are another major step forward.
The new owners have already invested more than £20 million in the course, and that will be increased over the winter with a new £3.5 million Sports Bar being built in the Grand Stand in addition to a new Owners Bar catering for owners, trainers and premium rate members.

Ayr Racecourse general manager William Gorol said: “These figures are a huge boost to us all at Ayr. We are striving to give the best possible deal to racegoers in terms of quality of racing and quality of the facilities, and these figures show we are getting the message across.”

www.ayr-racecourse.co.uk

Western House Hotel in Ayrshire Scotland
wins Scottish Thistle Award

THE Western House Hotel at Ayr Racecourse has been given one of the highest accolades in tourism – a coveted VisitScotland Thistle Award.

The four-star hotel, which opened in June 2005, landed the honour in the Serviced Accommodation category at the awards ceremony held at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre last Friday.

CLICK ON IMAGE TO VIEW FULL-SIZE VERSION:


[Picture shows left to right: VisitScotland chief executive Philip Riddle; Western House Hotel restaurant supervisor Alison Mair; receptionist Vicki Hamilton; Ayr Racecourse general manager William Gorol; VisitScotland director, visitor services and quality, Willie Macleod; Western House Hotel new business development manager Mary Simpson; Christmas co-ordinator Marion Patterson; manager Craig Dunlop; reception supervisor Alastair Stewart; front office manager Pam Davies; Minister for Enterprise, Energy & Tourism, Jim Mather MSP; and VisitScotland chairman Peter J Lederer CBE.]

Western House, which was also named Scottish Wedding Hotel of the Year in January, was in a short list of three including the Radisson SAS Hotel, Edinburgh.

In announcing the Ayr hotel as the winner, compere for the night television star Alistair McGowan read out the following comments from the judges:

“From the time the doorman greets you, a special kind of service meets you throughout the Western House Hotel.

“Highly professional staff are experts in judging their customers’ requirements, and operate a constant system of double checking that everything is in order in a subtle and unobtrusive manner.

“Corporate guests, Christmas parties and individual guests are all personally welcomed in a manner appropriate to them, and their needs addressed on an individual basis.

“2007’s target occupancy was exceeded in the first five months of the year, clearly showing that the investment in a personalised approach to customer care paid dividends.”

Ayr Racecourse general manager William Gorol said the Thistle Awards were the Oscars of the hotel industry, and added: ”I am so proud of the team who made this possible. Customer care is the backbone of the success of any business in the hospitality sector and to win a Thistle Award is testimony to the fact that the staff here are getting it right.

“Western House may only have been established as a hotel less than two and a half years ago, but we have staff who are amongst the most experienced and skilled in the business.

“I am fortunate in that I had the golden opportunity to hand pick the team that is the cornerstone of our success. I feel very privileged to be part of that team.”

The four-star, 49 bedroom destination was formerly the meeting place and offices of the Western Meeting Club, owners of Ayr Racecourse until 2003.

When the course was bought from the Club by Alan Macdonald, chairman of the Dawn Group and Richard Johnstone, managing director of Thorntoun Health Care, they decided to restore this near 100 year old mansion to its former glory, and after a £4.5 million makeover Western House Hotel was opened on 3 June 2005.

The elegant Cathedral Ballroom accommodates up to 160 guests for the wedding meal and 250 at the evening reception. And magical romantic gardens with stunning water features provide the perfect backdrop for wedding photographs.

The Scottish Thistle Awards

Created by VisitScotland in 1991, the Scottish Thistle Awards showcase business excellence and quality. As an important event on the tourism calendar, the media attention it generates helps VisitScotland and the sponsors raise the profile of the tourism industry.

VisitScotland's objectives for the Scottish Thistle Awards are:

* Reward excellence in Scotland’s tourism industry in all areas and at all levels

* Promote quality service and products which reflect all that is best in Scotland’s world reputed and foremost industry

* Encourage professionalism, innovation and creative thinking within the industry

Links:

www.ayr-racecourse.co.uk

www.VisitScotland.org

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