Devon holiday park toasts a triple triumph of awards
Staff and the family owners at Hele Valley Holiday Park in Ifracombe are celebrating after learning that they can now boast a hat-trick of awards to launch the 2017 season.
The Dovey family’s triple triumph was completed recently when they were presented with the David Bellamy Conservation Award at its top gold level.
Professor Bellamy said that Sandra and David Dovey and their daughter Rachael Tearall had shown themselves to be true friends of the countryside.
Their raft of conservation initiatives at Hele Valley, he said, made the park a haven for wildlife and a valuable source of natural discovery for holiday guests.
David Bellamy highlighted the 25-acre park’s nature walk, also used by local schools, the creation of many wildlife habitats, and the planting of hundreds of native trees and shrubs.
He also applauded the family’s decision to install a clean energy biomass boiler which is fuelled by wood chippings and supplies hot water and heating in its toilet block.
It is the tenth year in succession that the park has scooped the prestigious green honour.
David Bellamy’s accolade comes on top of Hele Valley’s recent success in the Southwest Tourism Awards when it was named as a silver winner in the holiday parks category.
The family were congratulated by judges when they received the award at a glittering prize ceremony in Bristol, attended by 450 tourism and business chiefs.
The third distinction being highlighted by the park was its winning of a gold accolade last year in the leisure and tourism category of the Britain in Bloom competition.
Rachael Tearall says that the three awards are important as they highlight different aspects of the park which visitors most value:
“We have a special appeal to holidaymakers who enjoy natural and unspoiled surroundings, and David Bellamy’s award underlines this crucial element of Hele Valley,” said Rachael.
“Our Southwest Tourism silver recognises not just the high standards of our facilities, but also the quality of hospitality we provide and the friendly atmosphere.
“Our guests also often pay tribute to our fantastic floral displays, and it was wonderful to receive recognition for these from the Britain in Bloom judges.
“Everyone at the park is delighted that we can now kick-start the tourism year with these awards, and to help put the publicity spotlight on Ilfracombe as a whole,” she added.
Rachael said that 2016 was one of the busiest on record for the park which, in 2017, is marking its 45th year under the ownership of the Dovey family.
The park provides luxury caravan holiday homes and lodges to rent and to own, plus cottages and pitches for touring caravans, motorhomes and tents.
This year, Hele Valley will also be providing top-end glamping pods for visitors to hire, and which include a full-size bed, heating, kitchen and shower areas.
There is more information about the park at www.helevalley.co.uk
