THE owner of Carlisle’s Crown & Mitre Hotel has seen profits rise, and is hoping that the weak pound will further boost its bottom line.

Peel Hotels made £592,807 before tax in the 28 weeks to August 14, up 19.2 per cent from £497,429 in the same period last year.

Operating profit was 9.1 per cent higher while turnover climbed 1.8 per cent to £9.12m.

Revenue per available room (revpar) – a key performance indicator for the hospitality sector – increased by 2.9 per cent. Net debt decreased by £732,854.

Chairman Robert Peel said: “Our challenge is to control our overall costs of doing business in line with modest overall turnover growth.

“Revpar growth is key to increasing our profits and we have made solid progress in this area.

"It is difficult to be certain post Brexit but a low pound certainly should encourage incoming volume as well as serving as an incentive for British residents to spend more leisure time at home.

“Net debt continues to fall with the consequential reduction of finance costs. We look forward to another year of progress.”

Peel Hotels operates nine hotels in England and Scotland. The accounts reveal that it spent spent £421,216 over the period on refurbishments and capital projects, most of it on restructuring bedrooms at the Crown & Mitre.