Stuart Procter leaves the Stafford Collection

Stuart Procter has stepped down from his role as chief operating officer of the Stafford Collection.

He leaves after nine years at the group, having returned to take over the management of the Stafford in 2015 after spending five years creating Hotel Football in Manchester with Ryan Giggs and Gary Neville.

The news was distributed by the board of directors of the Stafford Hotel Limited, who said Procter was leaving with immediate effect.

He said: "It has been an absolute privilege to have been part of such an extraordinary team of talented people, and I would like to thank my team for contributing to the success of the Stafford Collection and wish them all much continued success."

Procter had originally been general manager at the hotel from 2006 to 2011, taking on the role at the age of 29 having worked closely with Terry Holmes.

He returned in 2015 to reinvigorate the hotel, introducing a new revenue management system and overhauling the sales and marketing function (including the introduction of a New York-based PR team).

During his tenure Procter oversaw a significant refurbishment of the hotel, the relaunch of the American Bar and the launch of the Game Bird restaurant with chef Ben Tish.

Procter was promoted to chief operating officer of the Stafford Collection in 2019, overseeing the five-red-AA-star, 107-bedroom Stafford London hotel in St James's, the 26-bedroom, four-red-AA-star Northcote hotel in Langho, Lancashire, and Norma, a restaurant in Charlotte Street, Fitzrovia, that opened that year.

According to the latest accounts filed at Companies House by parent company BHL Global, the Stafford Collection turned over £29.3m in 2022 with occupancy of 73% and an average room rate of £471.