New award for Whatley Manor after sustainability success

Whatley Manor, complete with Michelan-starred restaurant The Dining Room, is one of a handful of English establishments to receive a new 'green star'.

The new criteria highlights restaurants at the forefront of the industry when it comes to their sustainable practices, and who work with sustainable producers and suppliers to avoid waste.

Sue Williams, General Manager at Whatley Manor and the Dining Room, said the award news had been a real boost for staff, many of which are on furlough.

She said: "We were over the moon when we found out. It's been a real positive in an otherwise grey time. It goes without saying that it's been a long slog with closures and lockdowns.

"The green star is a new initiative by Michelin and something we do feel very passionate about, so we feel chuffed.

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"It's super positive news and reflects the good work by staff here. We've been on our sustainability for two years now, it's property wise as well as just the restaurant."

Steps have been taken to reduce waste in both the restaurant and wider property.

Staff have altered their supply chains to ensure food arriving on tables has had the least impact when it comes to carbon footprint, there is no single-use plastic in any of the hotel's bedrooms and Whatley Manor's accounts office is now paperless.

Sue added: "We've wanted to be very transparent about all the actions we were taking. And really, it's the old mantra of reduce, reuse recycle.

The kitchen which is now fully upgraded to reduce energy use. The Dining Room also runs on all renewable energy.

"It can be a lot of big steps and hard work - but it's worth it because these are very important changes. Almost all our staff are on furlough just now, and the staff left are spending a lot of time measuring our carbon footprint and thinking how we can branch out even more to improve how we do things."