Whitbread gets the go ahead for Bognor Regis seafront hotel

17 November 2023

Whitbread Plc, the UK’s leading hospitality group and owner of Premier Inn, has been granted planning permission for a 116-bedroom hotel on Bognor Regis seafront by Arun District Council.  

The new hotel will be developed on the Bognor Regis Esplanade, on the site of the old fire station, and encompasses part of the Regis Centre car park.

With planning permission secured, Whitbread will deliver its planned £13m investment into Bognor Regis to deliver its second Premier Inn in the popular seaside resort.  The company expects to create around 30 new year-round jobs at the new hotel on opening.

Louise Woodruff, property acquisitions manager for Whitbread, said:

“We’re fortunate at Premier Inn to have a customer base made up equally of business and leisure customers.  The wide appeal of Premier Inn helps to drive the high year-round occupancy we experience across our network and informs the investment case for new locations like Bognor Regis seafront.  The planning consent gives us the go-ahead to bring forward our multi-million pound investment in Bognor town centre, create new jobs and help to support the local economy through the year-round spending of our guests.  It is fantastic news for us and the town.”

An economic impact assessment submitted as part of Whitbread’s planning application calculated that guests of the 116-bedroom hotel will spend in the order of £2.8 million/year in the Bognor Regis economy.

The approved hotel was designed to reference the historic Regency style of buildings in the town, reflecting the rich history of Bognor Regis in a contemporary and sustainable way. The building will orient towards the seafront with a café terrace along the Esplanade with customers accessing the hotel via Clarence Road.  

Reflecting Whitbread’s commitment to becoming a net zero business by 2050, the hotel will be powered by energy generated from renewable sources with air source heat pumps, heat recovery units and solar panels on site.

Whitbread currently operates a network of 849 Premier Inn hotels in the UK, offering its customers a choice of more than 83,500 bedrooms.  The business believes there is potential for 125,000 UK Premier Inn rooms in time and is keen to grow its presence in coastal locations like Bognor Regis as it expands.