Park Resorts was a holiday park operator with 48 holiday parks located across the United Kingdom. Holiday parks were mainly located at or near the seaside, primarily on the south and east coasts of

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, but also extending to

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

, the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the largest and second-most populous island of England. Referred to as 'The Island' by residents, the Isle of ...

, and the

Lake District The Lake District, also known as the Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region in North West England. A popular holiday destination, it is famous for its lakes, forests, and mountains (or ''fells''), and its associations with William Wordswor ...

. Income was generated from rentals of static holiday caravans and touring pitches, alongside caravan and holiday home sales and on-site retail. Park Resorts employed over 3,500 people during the peak holiday season, including the support team at their head office in

Hemel Hempstead Hemel Hempstead () is a town in the Dacorum district in Hertfordshire, England, northwest of London, which is part of the Greater London Urban Area. The population at the 2011 census was 97,500. Developed after the Second World War as a ne ...

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...

. Park Resorts had over 16,000 caravan or holiday home owners and over 1 million holidaymakers visited their parks each year. In 2015, Park Resorts merged with

Parkdean Holidays Parkdean Resorts is a holiday park operator in the United Kingdom. It was formed in November 2015 through the merger of Parkdean Holidays and Park Resorts. As of 2022 it operates 66 holiday parks across England, Scotland, and Wales, and is the ...

, another UK holiday park operator, to form

Parkdean Resorts Parkdean Resorts is a holiday park operator in the United Kingdom. It was formed in November 2015 through the merger of Parkdean Holidays and Park Resorts. As of 2022 it operates 66 holiday parks across England, Scotland, and Wales, and is the ...

. The new company now operates 71 holiday parks across the UK after acquiring Vauxhall Holiday Park in

Great Yarmouth Great Yarmouth (), often called Yarmouth, is a seaside town and unparished area in, and the main administrative centre of, the Borough of Great Yarmouth in Norfolk, England; it straddles the River Yare and is located east of Norwich. A pop ...

. Park Resorts and Parkdean operated separately throughout 2016 before launching a new website and rebranding all the parks as

History

Park Resorts was created in March 2001 when CBPE (

Close Brothers Close Brothers Group plc is a UK merchant banking group, providing lending, deposit taking, wealth management and securities trading. The company is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index. History Close ...

Private Equity), in partnership with a

management buyout A management buyout (MBO) is a form of acquisition in which a company's existing managers acquire a large part, or all, of the company, whether from a parent company or individual. Management-, and/or leveraged buyout became noted phenomena of 1 ...

team of three led by David Vaughan, purchased twelve Haven freehold caravan parks from Bourne Leisure Ltd. The deal was finalised in May 2001 at a reported cost of £46 million. In December 2004 Park Resorts was sold to Capital for £165 million, and its activities were merged with the GB Holiday Parks business (itself bought by ABN AMRO for £105 million just one month previously) to form the second-largest caravan park operator in the UK. The name 'Park Resorts' was retained as the company name and brand title. In March 2007, the business was acquired in a highly leveraged buy-out backed by

GI Partners GI Partners is a leading upper middle market private equity firm based in San Francisco, California. Description Founded in 2001, GI Partners is a private investment firm with over 100 employees with offices in San Francisco, New York, Chicago ...

for £440 million. In the same year, the three founding directors left the business and Martin Grant joined from

Roadchef Roadchef is a company which operates 21 motorway service areas in the United Kingdom. It is the third-largest motorway service area operator in the country, behind Moto and Welcome Break and followed by Extra. History Roadchef was founded in J ...

as Chief Executive and a further three sites were acquired this year, with a number of GB Holiday Parks sites upgraded as well. In April 2008, GI injected £15 million capital into the Parks Resorts business. In December 2008, in increasingly difficult trading conditions, GI reinstated the original three directors, with David Vaughan resuming as chief executive. By 2009, the financial position had improved. During the 2009 season, Andy Edge, the marketing director at Park Resorts, went and bought Breydon Water, Great Yarmouth and Lower Hyde, Isle of Wight as part of the

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...

television series ''The Undercover Boss''. In an interview after the show Mr Edge told how the show has generated a very positive response from both customers and staff. In September 2009, Martin Grant, the former chief executive, and his colleagues Colin Bramhall and Richard Hunt, won a case of unfair dismissal against GI Partners on the grounds of a "flagrant breach of dismissal procedures" and were awarded £45,000 in compensation. In October 2009, a restructuring of the group's £325 million debt facilities was agreed with the main creditor banks which also included a new £25 million senior debt facility to allow a five-year investment programme to proceed. Two further parks were brought under the operation and branding of the group for the 2010 season, the Bryanston Kenmore sites at Southview,

Skegness Skegness ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the East Lindsey District of Lincolnshire, England. On the Lincolnshire coast of the North Sea, the town is east of Lincoln and north-east of Boston. With a population of 19,579 as of 2011, i ...

and at Manor Park, Hunstanton, bringing the total to 42. The director's report for the year ended 31 March 2011 detailed a 6% increase in turnover for the year to £158.8 million and an operating loss of £9.6 million but forecasted the company should return to profit in future years. The company was dependent on the parent, Dome Holdings Ltd, to keep it a going concern.Park Resorts Ltd, Directors' Report and Financial Statements, 31 March 2011 In 2011, the company introduced the

strapline Advertising slogans are short phrases used in advertising campaigns to generate publicity and unify a company's marketing strategy. The phrases may be used to attract attention to a distinctive product feature or reinforce a company's brand. Etym ...

, ''Creating Amazing Memories'', to appear below the logo of Park Resorts on all publicity material, letterheads and signages. In October 2011, Park Resorts was ranked 244 (2010 = 215) in the annual ''Sunday Times HSBC Top Track 250'' league table based on Britain's biggest mid-market private companies by latest sales. In February 2012, Park Resorts was ranked 49 in ''The Sunday Times Deloitte Buyout Track 100'' league table based on Britain's mid-market private-equity-backed companies with the fastest-growing profits over the last two years. In July 2013, Park Resorts secured new lead shareholders,

Electra Partners Unbound Group, formerly Electra Private Equity, is a British-based online company specialising in clothing and specialist footwear. Listed on the London Stock Exchange until 2022, it is listed on the Alternative Investment Market. History The ...

, and appointed a new CEO. The company also refinanced its debt package, freeing up significant capital to invest in its parks over the next four years. David Vaughan became Park Resorts' chairman, following 12 years as founder and CEO, and David Boden joined the company as CEO, having held senior board level positions at

Rank Group Plc The Rank Group is a gambling company based in the United Kingdom. Rank was involved in the cinema and motion picture industry until 2006, and continues to use the Gongman logo originally used by the Rank Organisation's film distribution subsi ...

and Hippodrome Casinos Ltd. In September 2013, the Park Resorts management team and Electra Partners led the acquisition of South Lakeland Parks, a holiday parks operator with nine parks in the English Lake District and

Morecambe Bay Morecambe Bay is a large estuary in northwest England, just to the south of the Lake District National Park. It is the largest expanse of intertidal mudflats and sand in the United Kingdom, covering a total area of . In 1974, the second larges ...

area. Park Resorts entered into a contract to manage South Lakelands parks at the time of the transaction. Operating together, the two businesses created the largest holiday parks operator in the UK with 48 properties. In July 2014, Electra Partners acquired Southview and Manor Park holiday parks in partnership with Park Resorts, which had been managing both parks since 2010. In April 2015, Park Resorts acquired Summerfields Holiday Park near Great Yarmouth and in May 2015, Alan Parker CBE was appointed Chairman of the Group. In 2015 Parkdean and Park Resorts merged to create

. The new company had head offices in

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...

and

and continued to operate under two brands "Parkdean" and "Park Resorts" during 2016. The merger created the largest holiday park operator in the UK, with 71 holiday parks, 1.8 million customers, 22,200 caravan owners, 35,400 pitches and sold 400,000 domestic holidays across their estate. The following sites were in operation in 2011:Park Resorts, 2011 holiday brochure Devon * Bideford Bay (near

Clovelly Clovelly () is a privately-owned harbour village in the Torridge district of Devon, England. The settlement and surrounding land belongs to John Rous who inherited it from his mother in 1983. He belongs to the Hamlyn family who have managed th ...

) ‡ Isle of Wight * Thorness Bay (near

Cowes Cowes () is an English seaport town and civil parish on the Isle of Wight. Cowes is located on the west bank of the estuary of the River Medina, facing the smaller town of East Cowes on the east bank. The two towns are linked by the Cowes Floa ...

) * Lower Hyde (

Shanklin Shanklin () is a seaside resort and civil parishes in England, civil parish on the Isle of Wight, England, located on Sandown Bay. Shanklin is the southernmost of three settlements which occupy the bay, and is close to Lake, Isle of Wight, Lake ...

) * Landguard (

) * Nodes Point (near

Bembridge Bembridge is a village and civil parish located on the easternmost point of the Isle of Wight. It had a population of 3,848 according to the 2001 census of the United Kingdom, leading to the implausible claim by some residents that Bembridge ...

) Kent & Sussex * Camber Sands ( Camber Sands) * Romney Sands (

New Romney New Romney is a market town in Kent, England, on the edge of Romney Marsh, an area of flat, rich agricultural land reclaimed from the sea after the harbour began to silt up. New Romney, one of the original Cinque Ports, was once a sea port, w ...

) ‡ * St Margaret's Bay (near

Dover Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...

) ‡ Essex * Waterside at St. Lawrence Bay (near

Maldon Maldon (, locally ) is a town and civil parish on the River Blackwater, Essex, Blackwater estuary in Essex, England. It is the seat of the Maldon District and starting point of the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation. It is known for Maldon Sea ...

) * Coopers Beach (

Mersea Island Mersea Island is an island in Essex, England, in the Blackwater and Colne estuaries to the south-east of Colchester. Its name comes from the Old English word ''meresig'', meaning "island of the pool" and thus is tautological. The island is s ...

) ‡ * Weeley Bridge (near

Clacton-on-Sea Clacton-on-Sea is a seaside town in the Tendring District in the county of Essex, England. It is located on the Tendring Peninsula and is the largest settlement in the Tendring District with a population of 56,874 (2016). The town is situated ...

) * Highfield Grange (

) * Valley Farm (

) ‡ * Naze Marine (

Walton-on-the-Naze Walton-on-the-Naze is a seaside town on the North Sea coast and (as Walton le Soken) a former civil parish, now in the parish of Frinton and Walton, in the Tendring district in Essex, England. It is north of Clacton and south of the port of Ha ...

) East Anglia & Lincolnshire * Kessingland Beach (near

Southwold Southwold is a seaside town and civil parish on the English North Sea coast in the East Suffolk district of Suffolk. It lies at the mouth of the River Blyth within the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The town is a ...

Suffolk) * Breydon Water (near

Norfolk) * California Cliffs (near

Norfolk) ‡ * Manor Park ( Hunstanton Norfolk) * Heacham Beach (near Hunstanton Norfolk) ‡ * Southview (

Lincolnshire) * Summerfields (near

Norfolk) ‡ * Sunnydale (near

Mablethorpe Mablethorpe is a seaside town in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England, part of the civil parish of Mablethorpe and Sutton.OS Explorer map 283:Louth and Mablethorpe: (1:25 000): The population including nearby Sutton-on-Sea was 12, ...

Lincolnshire) Yorkshire * Withernsea (

Withernsea Withernsea is a seaside resort and civil parish in Holderness, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. Its white inland lighthouse, rising around above Hull Road, now houses a museum to 1950s actress Kay Kendall, who was born in the town. The Pr ...

East Riding of Yorkshire) * Skipsea Sands (

Skipsea Skipsea is a village and civil parish on the North Sea coast of the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is situated approximately south of Bridlington and north of Hornsea on the B1242 road at its junction with the B1249 road. The civil par ...

East Riding of Yorkshire) * Barmston Beach (near

Bridlington Bridlington is a coastal town and a civil parish on the Holderness Coast of the North Sea in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is about north of Hull and east of York. The Gypsey Race enters the North Sea at its harbour. The 2011 Cen ...

East Riding of Yorkshire) ‡ * Cayton Bay (near

Scarborough, North Yorkshire Scarborough () is a seaside town in the Borough of Scarborough in North Yorkshire, England. Scarborough is located on the North Sea coastline. Historic counties of England, Historically in the North Riding of Yorkshire, the town lies between 10 ...

) North East England * Crimdon Dene (near

Hartlepool Hartlepool () is a seaside and port town in County Durham, England. It is the largest settlement and administrative centre of the Borough of Hartlepool. With an estimated population of 90,123, it is the second-largest settlement in County ...

County Durham) * Whitley Bay (

Whitley Bay Whitley Bay is a seaside town in the North Tyneside borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It formerly governed as part of Northumberland and has been part of Tyne and Wear since 1974. It is part of the wider Tyneside built-up area, being around eas ...

Tyne & Wear) ‡ * Sandy Bay (

Ashington Ashington is a town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, with a population of 27,864 at the 2011 Census. It was once a centre of the coal mining industry. The town is north of Newcastle upon Tyne, west of the A189 and bordered to the ...

Northumberland) * Church Point (

Newbiggin-by-the-Sea Newbiggin-by-the-Sea is a quaint seaside town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, located on the North Sea coast. The town owes its proud heritage to having once flourished as an important trade route for shipping grain from its port, ...

Northumberland) ‡ * Cresswell Towers (

Druridge Bay Druridge Bay is a long bay on the North Sea in Northumberland, England, stretching from Amble in the north to Cresswell in the south. Druridge Bay Country Park is situated on the bay, and part of the bay (the section near the farmstead of Dru ...

Northumberland) ‡ Scotland * Eyemouth (

Eyemouth Eyemouth ( sco, Heymooth) is a small town and civil parish in Berwickshire, in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland. It is east of the main north–south A1 road and north of Berwick-upon-Tweed. The town's name comes from its location at the ...

Scottish Borders) * Sandylands (

Saltcoats Saltcoats ( gd, Baile an t-Salainn) is a town on the west coast of North Ayrshire, Scotland. The name is derived from the town's earliest industry when salt was harvested from the sea water of the Firth of Clyde, carried out in small cottages al ...

Ayrshire) Wales * Ty Mawr (

Abergele Abergele (; ; ) is a market town and community, situated on the north coast of Wales between the holiday resorts of Colwyn Bay and Rhyl, in Conwy County Borough and in the historic county of Denbighshire. Its northern suburb of Pensarn lies on ...

North Wales) * Brynowen (

Aberystwyth Aberystwyth () is a university and seaside town as well as a community in Ceredigion, Wales. Located in the historic county of Cardiganshire, means "the mouth of the Ystwyth". Aberystwyth University has been a major educational location in ...

Wales) * Carmarthen Bay (

Kidwelly Kidwelly ( cy, Cydweli) is a town and community in Carmarthenshire, southwest Wales, approximately northwest of the most populous town in the county, Llanelli. In the 2001 census the community of Kidwelly returned a population of 3,289, inc ...

South Wales) ‡ North West & Lake District * Ocean Edge (

Heysham Heysham ( ) is a coastal town in Lancashire, England, overlooking Morecambe Bay. It is a ferry port, with services to the Isle of Man and Ireland, and the site of two nuclear power stations. Demography Administratively, Heysham is part of th ...

Lancashire) * Regent Bay (

Morecambe Morecambe ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the City of Lancaster district in Lancashire, England. It is in Morecambe Bay on the Irish Sea. Name The first use of the name was by John Whitaker in his ''History of Manchester'' (1771), w ...

Lancashire) * Fallbarrow (

Windermere Windermere (sometimes tautology (language), tautologically called Windermere Lake to distinguish it from the nearby town of Windermere, Cumbria (town), Windermere) is the largest natural lake in England. More than 11 miles (18 km) in leng ...

Cumbria) * Gatebeck ( Endmoor Cumbria) * Hawthorne Sands (

Lancashire) * White Cross Bay (

Cumbria) * Limefitt (

Cumbria) * Todber Valley (

Gisburn Gisburn (formerly Gisburne) is a village and civil parish within the Ribble Valley borough of Lancashire, England. Historically within the West Riding of Yorkshire, it lies northeast of Clitheroe and west of Skipton. The civil parish had a pop ...

Clitheroe) ( ‡ ''denotes parks not offering camping and/or touring facilities'')

Former parks

* Shurland Dale (

Isle of Sheppey The Isle of Sheppey is an island off the northern coast of Kent, England, neighbouring the Thames Estuary, centred from central London. It has an area of . The island forms part of the local government district of Swale. ''Sheppey'' is derived ...

) (Under ownership) * Ashcroft Coast (

) (Under ownership) * Warden Springs (

) (Under ownership) * Martello Beach (Essex) (under ownership) (Sold to Park Holidays)

Branding

Mascots

Park Resorts had three mascots in a group called 'Sparky's Krew', consisting of anthropomorphic good

rabbit Rabbits, also known as bunnies or bunny rabbits, are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also contains the hares) of the order Lagomorpha (which also contains the pikas). ''Oryctolagus cuniculus'' includes the European rabbit speci ...

s 'Sparky' and 'Sparkle' and naughty naardvark 'Naarky'. The characters were seen in a live production at Park Resorts sites called 'Live with the Krew'. In 2016, after the merger and the creation of Parkdean Resorts, Sid the

Seagull Gulls, or colloquially seagulls, are seabirds of the family Laridae in the suborder Lari. They are most closely related to the terns and skimmers and only distantly related to auks, and even more distantly to waders. Until the 21st century, m ...

and Lizzie the

Lizard Lizards are a widespread group of squamate reptiles, with over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most oceanic island chains. The group is paraphyletic since it excludes the snakes and Amphisbaenia alt ...

from Parkdean joined Sparky, Sparkle and Naarky to create the 'Starland Krew'. Younger under 6's can join Pipsqueak the mouse who participates with children in easy challenges among other things. Pipsqueak herself also joins the 'Starland Krew' in productions like "The Magic of Startown". Both mascots had received new outfits and makeovers to make it more suiting.

Notes

References

{{Reflist

External links

Park Resorts Official Site
Companies based in Hemel Hempstead Travel and holiday companies of the United Kingdom Resorts in the United Kingdom