Harrison's school deal
Harrison Catering has won the contract to cater at the new Mossbourne Community Academy in Hackney Downs, east London, which will open its doors on 13 September. Turnover will be £90,000 in the first year but will rise as the school roll expands from 210 pupils this September to the target of 1,200. Harrison's plans to provide healthy, home-cooked meals, using fresh ingredients in place of snacks and fast food, have been endorsed by the River Café's co-owners, Rose Gray and Ruth Rogers, who are acting as advisers to the school. The contract caterer expects turnover to grow by 37% this year.
Progress at Thistle
Occupancy, room rate and revenue per available room (revpar) across hotel group Thistle saw slight increases in the 12 months to 30 June. The company, which was taken private by majority shareholder BIL International in March 2003, reported a 0.9 percentage point increase in occupancy to 73.7%, with average room rate up by 2.8% to £65.11, leading to an increase in revpar of 4% to £47.99. Turnover for the hotel group was also up by 4% to £291.7m.
Bills dispute settled
A dispute has been settled between the Radisson SAS Portman hotel in central London and a guest, Ghazi Al-Saqabi, over payment of more than £200,000-worth of bills (Caterer, 5 June 2003). In a statement the hotel said the two parties had resolved the matter "to their mutual satisfaction", and added: "The terms are confidential."