BATH’S ROYAL CRESCENT HOTEL AND SPA ACHIEVES FIRST GREEN KEY AWARD

Green Key presents international environmental award to UK Hotel 

Green Key England is delighted to announce that the iconic Royal Crescent Hotel and Spa in Bath has been accredited with the international Green Key Award for the first time, recognising its high environmental standards. 

The Grade I listed Georgian building, in the heart of the UNESCO world heritage city, is the first hotel in the South West to achieve the award. 

Bath was founded by the Romans as a thermal spa, but in the 18th century, under George III, it developed into an elegant town with neoclassical Palladian buildings. The Royal Crescent Hotel and Spa occupies the centre two houses of The Royal Crescent, an iconic building which is among the greatest examples of Georgian architecture found in the United Kingdom. 

It recently welcomed three rescue hedgehogs - Beatrix, Jane and Daphne – to its acre of peaceful gardens. 

The historic venue is the second boutique hotel in England to hold the Green Key and joins more than 3,200 Green Key awarded establishments across 65 countries. 

To achieve the stringent criteria - set by the global Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE) and backed by the World Tourism Organisation and the UN Environment Programme - the hotel appointed sustainability consultancy mission: net zero and formed an internal Green Team. 

 General Manager, Lorraine Jarvie said:

“We are delighted to have been awarded The Green Key accreditation and this is testament to the hard work of our dedicated Green Team.  As a hospitality business, we inevitably impact the environment and our local community and therefore, we have a responsibility to mitigate our impact. Gaining this award was our number one goal to demonstrate to our guests, staff and to the wider hospitality industry, that we take sustainability and our CSR programme very seriously and that we will continue to do so.” 

Simon Catterick from mission: net zero said:

“With socially responsible investors using Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) criteria to measure the sustainability and ethical impact of a business, we were delighted to be invited by global hotel & hospitality experts, Colliers International to assist Royal Crescent Hotel and Spa earn the prestigious Green Key certification. 

The Green Key scheme is acknowledged worldwide as an indicator of excellence in the field of environmental responsibility and sustainable operation as well as acting as an independent hallmark of ‘green quality’ in the hospitality sector. 

 Independent, Green Key certification will ensure the high environmental standards expected by owner, Topland Group, one of the world’s largest privately owned property and investment groups, are maintained through rigorous documentation and assessment of various criteria including energy, waste, and water management, and social elements including employee welfare and guest experiences. Together with demonstrating active community engagement and developing an authentic local supply chain. 

Guests are promised that by opting to stay with Royal Crescent Hotel and Spa they are helping to make a difference on an environmental level giving the business a competitive advantage with a certified grading that sets it apart from other five-star hotels and spas in the South West without any accredited green credentials.”

In England, the Green Key scheme is managed by environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy. 

Chief Executive Allison Ogden-Newton OBE said:

“We are delighted to award this iconic hotel Green Key certification for the first time after a rigorous judging process.  

 This historic Green Key establishment has proven that luxury and sustainability can go hand-in-hand, meaning guests do not have to compromise in order to curb their impact on the planet.“

Each Green Key venue is assessed against standards such as staff involvement, guest information and sustainable management of energy, waste, water, cleaning and food and drinks. Through making greener choices, each hotel is able to significantly reduce their environmental impact, reducing the consumption of energy and water and improve their guests’ experience.  

Green Key is one of the leading eco-labels recognised by Google Travel as part of their newly announced ‘Sustainability labelling’ within their Google-powered booking engine.