ONE of the Ribble Valley's best known hotels is looking forward to a new lease of life.

New owners of Stirk House Hotel, Gisburn, are planning the future after purchasing the business from Stirk House Hotel Limited company which has called a meeting of creditors.

Accountant Mrs Sandra Marshall of Blackburn firm Waterworth, Rudd and Hare, said: "The company which owned the hotel has gone into liquidation, but the hotel itself has been sold and is still continuing in business under a new ownership."

And Mr Malcolm Weaving and his family are the new owners hoping to turn the luck around for the hotel.

Mr Weaving said: "It has an excellent reputation and has all the ingredients to be one of the best hotels in the area and I am going to do my best to see that it is.

Mr Weaving, who has moved into the hotel from his family home in Huddersfield, will shortly be joined by his wife Karen and their 12-year-old son Charlie.

In fact, it was Charlie who indirectly led the couple to buy Stirk House.

Mr Weaving added: "When we looked more closely at the hotel we realised that two of the eight conference rooms were called the Charles Room and the Lister Room, and as my son's name is Charles Lister Weaving, we felt it was a kind of omen!"

Mr Weaving has previously had 30 years experience in the textile trade, but for the last 10 years has been involved in the hotel and catering business.

He said: "When I was in textiles, Weaving was a handy surname to have - perhaps now I should change my name to Malcolm Hotel or something!"

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