Shire Hotels has sold the Oaks hotel in Reedley, Lancashire, that formerly doubled as its headquarters.
New owner, North West hotel operator Stefan Sikorski, acquired the freehold off an asking price of £3m
Oaks hotel occupies an elevated, 3.35-acre site just off the Colne Road that is mid-way between Burnley town centre and junction 12 of the M65.
The main building – a Victorian mansion – was built by in the late 19th century by Abraham Altham, a prominent Manchester tea and coffee merchant.
The business offers 51 en-suite double or twin bedrooms (with four four-poster rooms), the 60-seat Quills restaurant, the 120-seat Archives bar, the Authors bar-lounge and the library lounge.
There are five function rooms including the Garden Room (which can accommodate 110 people theatre-style and benefits from a seasonal marquee), two rooms that can each hold 40 people theatre-style, and two boardrooms for eight and 12 guests
The health and leisure club, which has 350 members, provides a swimming pool, spa, steam room, sauna, solarium and gym.
One annexe, the Garden wing, contains eight former bedrooms that Shire used as its head office and the site comes complete with a lodge house with two apartments, each with two bedrooms.
The Manchester and Leeds offices of Christie + Co handled the sale of the property for Shire Hotels, which has now moved into the Blackburn headquarters of its parent, brewer Daniel Thwaites, and intends to focus on modern, four-star properties.
By Angela Frewin