• First in-person awards since 2019
• Monday 26 September, JW Marriott Grosvenor House London
• Menu created by The Social Company founder Jason Atherton
• Entries open for AA Sustainable Award, AA Housekeeper of the Year and AA Accessible Award
The AA is delighted to announce that the AA Hospitality Awards 2022 will be held on Monday 26 September at JW Marriott Grosvenor House London, in the first in-person ceremony in three years.
Recognising the excellence of hotels, restaurants and their teams across the UK, the AA Hospitality Awards is one of the industry’s most prestigious and highly anticipated events. Spanning 15 categories, the Awards will name the best hotels, restaurants, and spas across the UK, and celebrate individuals with awards such as the Lifetime Achievement Award, Chefs’ Chef Award and more.
New to this year is the AA Accessible Award, sponsored by Blue Badge Access Awards, the global initiative that celebrates thoughtful and stylish inclusive design across the world, and the only awards scheme that focuses exclusively on accessibility. Robin Sheppard, Co-founder of the Blue Badge Access Awards and President of Bespoke Hotels, won the AA Lifetime Achievement Award in 2019.
The winner of the Chefs’ Chef Award 2019, Jason Atherton, founder of The Social Company, will be creating the menu for the Awards, catering for the 1,000 attendees, including key industry figures from world famous chefs and prominent hoteliers, to restauranteurs and hospitality experts.
The AA Hospitality Awards are currently accepting nominations from AA-Rated establishments for the AA Accessible Award, as well as the AA Sustainable Award, recognising clear commitment to sustainability, and the AA Housekeeper of the Year, awarding outstanding commitment and performance from a Housekeeper who goes above and beyond the call of duty. Nominations can be submitted here.
Jason Atherton said: “As per tradition, the previous winner of the AA Chefs’ Chef Award is always asked to cook; the pandemic delayed this for two years but it is now time to return to how things were and I can’t wait. I am so excited to finally be able to get together with everyone and share some of my favourite dishes as part of such a special occasion.”
Robin Sheppard, Co-founder of the Blue Badge Access Awards said: “We are so excited to be part of this year’s AA Hospitality Awards, especially as this will be the first ‘in-person’ ceremony in two years. We believe the AA Awards align with our fundamental and core beliefs and are proud to announce that this year we will be sponsoring the AA Accessible Award. As the co-founder of the Blue Badge Access Awards, alongside Fiona Jarvis, we have made it our mission to advocate for inclusivity in the hospitality sector and make the hotel experience more joyful and inclusive for both disabled and non-disabled guests.
We believe the AA Awards will encourage hospitality industry bosses to better recognise accessibility in hospitality, and cannot wait to see the high-calibre of submissions put forward for this year’s AA Accessible Award. Our ultimate goal is to replace reference to DDA compliant rooms and re-title them as ‘Liberty’ rooms.”
Simon Numphud, Managing Director at AA Media said: “We are beyond thrilled to be able to celebrate the greatest hospitality establishments in the UK and Northern Ireland in person this September, after two years of hiatus. We are delighted that Jason is creating the menu as the food will be tremendous, and we are excited to be introducing the AA Accessible Award. The AA Hospitality Awards are a key date for the industry, and we are proud to reward and recognise the hard work and passion of so many teams behind these incredible businesses.”
