Hoburne Blue Anchor Spring Life Magazine

Hoburne life

Welcome back to Hoburne, and I hope like us, you are looking forward to a fantastic 2023 season.

It certainly feels like it’s been a long, cold, and dark winter, but spring is in the air, and we have been spoilt with glorious sunshine this February half term. This is our first issue of the owner’s magazine for 2023, and there is plenty to update you on what’s been happening on the park over winter and what’s to come later this year.

This winter has been wet and cold, and our grounds team has been working tremendously in all conditions to keep on top of the park, which hasn’t been an easy task.

Despite that, longer days are coming, trees are blossoming, and Easter eggs are already in the supermarkets!

This magazine is very much for our owners, and we want to hear from you. If you have something you wish to share with the magazine, then let us know. Grab a coffee and enjoy reading!

MEDAL Feefo’s Gold Trusted Service Award

We are delighted to have been awarded Feefo’s Gold Trusted Service Award in recognition of online reviews from holidaymakers recognising our excellence in customer service. Feefo established the Awards in 2014 to recognise brands that truly reflect a business's dedication to providing outstanding customer service by analysing feedback from real customers. The Gold Trusted Service Award is an accolade based purely on verified and genuine customer reviews, and therefore a true reflection of our commitment to providing exceptional customer service.

user-circle Owners’ portal

It has been just over a year since we launched our owner’s portal. We hope you have found it easy to use and navigate. If you have not yet signed up to the portal, please speak to the reception team on park.

VECTOR-SQUARE Vinyl Solutions

We are delighted to be partnering with Vinyl Solutions for all our decking services moving forward. This strategic partnership will see Vinyl Solutions become the sole supplier for all decking services. Vinyl Solutions will service, supply, and install its range of premium quality decking products across all our holiday parks. It makes perfect sense for us to be working with Vinyl Solutions, geographically they sit in a good location to service our business efficiently and effectively, they have a proven track record of delivering great products and excellent customer service, but above all their business values align perfectly with ours with professionalism and integrity at the forefront of their operation.

SMILE-BEAM 2023 owner events

We have an exciting programme of exclusive owner events and functions for 2023. The calendar of dates for your diaries is available from the Sales and Ownership Office, pop in and pick up your copy. We look forward to welcoming you all at the first event of the season.

wrench Maintenance price list

We have a new maintenance price list available for 2023. To collect a copy, please pop into the ownership office.

CHECK Hoburne Managed Letting Scheme

Did you know your holiday home could be earning you money when you are not there? Simply letting your holiday home for the times you are not there could give you an income that goes towards your site fees.

A hassle-free service. We have a wealth of experience when it comes to letting holiday homes and our experienced teams are there every step of the way, looking after both your holiday home and your letting income. To take advantage of this service please contact the park and ask for more information.

Shapes New private letting agreement

All owners that privately let their holiday homes will need to sign and return the new agreement, along with copies of all safety documents to reception before any passes can be issued. The new prices for entertainment passes are as follows:

Up to 7 Nights £50 up to 6 guests / £60 7–8 guests

1 Night £25 up to 6 guests / £30 7–8 guests

Serves 4 people

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 40 minutes

Moroccan Harira

This is a healthy vegetarian version of the classic Moroccan soup with plenty of cumin, turmeric and cinnamon, each offering different health benefits, plus it’s low in fat and calories too.

Ingredients

Angle-Right 1-2 tbsp rapeseed oil

Angle-Right 2 large onions , finely chopped

Angle-Right 4 garlic cloves , chopped

Angle-Right 2 tsp turmeric

Angle-Right 2 tsp cumin

Angle-Right 1/2 tsp cinnamon

Angle-Right 2 red chillies , deseeded and sliced

Angle-Right 500g tin chopped tomatoes

Method for the Moroccan Harira:

Angle-Right 1.7 litre reduced-salt vegetable bouillon

Angle-Right 175g dried green lentils

Angle-Right 2 carrots , chopped into small pieces

Angle-Right 1 sweet potato, peeled and diced

Angle-Right 5 celery sticks , chopped into small pieces

Angle-Right 2 /3 small pack coriander, few sprigs reserved, the rest chopped

Angle-Right 1 lemon, cut into 4 wedges, to serve

1. Heat the oil in a large non-stick pan over a medium heat.

2. Fry the onions and garlic until starting to soften.

3. Add in the turmeric, cumin, cinnamon, and chillies.

4. Pour in the passata and stock and stir together.

5. Add the lentils, chopped carrots, diced sweet potato and celery, and bring to the boil.

6. Cover the pan and leave to simmer for 30 minutes.

7. Cook uncovered for a further 5-10 minutes until the vegetables and lentils are tender.

8. Stir in the chopped coriander and serve in bowls with lemon wedges for squeezing over, sprinkle over the reserved coriander.

park updates

Baby-carriage Maternity leave

We have welcomed Hannah back from maternity leave as a part-time admin. Please make sure you give her a warm welcome.

�� Owner’s swim

We have an owner’s swim session daily from 8:30am - 9:30am. The fitness suite may also be accessed from 8:30am, with a maximum of three owners allowed. Make sure you have previously filled out a health questionnaire. Our fitness suite bookings begin at 9am, so please ensure you have vacated by then. Please be mindful that during the school holidays, the pool can only be accessed by those who have valid owner passes or are on owners lists or those who have Hoburneissued holiday swimming passes.

sun Solar panels

We are excited to announce solar panels have been installed on the roof of our building. We are thankful for this investment and look forward to seeing the impact it will have on our green footprint.

Mug-Hot Café development

Following last year’s feedback from our owners’ survey, we are thrilled to announced that work has begun on our café. The café will be closed until the end of March while we undertake an extensive makeover which will involve creating a relaxed welcoming experience, a new kitchen refit, plus a brandnew beautiful decking area to make use of our glorious sea views. As well as the new café, there will also be a new menu offering, so expect delicious food, good drinks, and wonderful coffee. For the time being, we will be selling some of the shop essential items from our reception if you need anything.

DRIVERS-LICENSE Loyalty cards

There are still owners who haven’t got their loyalty cards yet. Please give us a ring and we can pop them in the post or email lisa.hague@hoburne.com or pop in to see us in the office.

�� Hoburne Company Conference

 Owner events

Due to the exciting refurbishment of our café, we have been unable to finalise plans for our owners’ events. But as we now have a timeline, we have produced an owners’ event calendar that’s available to collect from reception.

Up coming owners events:

Saturday 18th March

Owners breakfast BBQ, from 10am outside the ownership office

Hoburne recently held its annual company conference and the one-day conference finished with a glitzy gala awards dinner here at Hoburne Park in Dorset. We are very proud to announce that both Lisa Hague and Jerry Ponter were finalists for two awards categories, and our wonderful Receptionist, Rebecca Jackson, won the award for Outstanding Customer Care. Please make sure when you next see the team to congratulate them on being recognised for their hard work and contribution to Hoburne.

✋ Questions/enquiries

If any owners have any concerns or questions about the park, development work, or anything else you wish to raise, please speak to the park team directly. Email courtney.higgins@hoburne.com and she will respond accordingly or pop into the office to see Courtney, and she will be happy to help.

�� Ownership raffle

To support our fundraising efforts, keep your eyes peeled for an ownership raffle. More details will be communicated soon.

Tuesday 11th April

Quiz night from 6pm in the café

Saturday 22nd April

Launch party of our new café, The Bay from 6pm

The live acts included on the calendar are subject to the café refurbishment opening on time.

Hand-holding-heart Charity

Last year, we raised £2,286 for Dorset & Somerset Animal Rescue, along with the donation from Hoburne Group Support. We wish to thank everyone who supported us with our charity efforts throughout the year.

This year we have decided to support Tropiquaria Wildlife Park. Tropiquaria cares for hundreds of animals from around the world, many of them rescue animals. The Covid pandemic meant it lost nine months of income while still having 100% of expenditure needed to look after the animals.

The team voted for this local attraction because we are all animal lovers and want to support its amazing work. We will be holding fundraising events throughout the year to help us reach our pledge of £2,500!

Five questions

Team member

Courtney Higgins, Operations Manager

1. How long have you worked for Hoburne?

a. Just over four years.

2. What has been your biggest achievement since working at Hoburne?

a. Managing the Covid situation across a small park and undertaking various roles while the team were furloughed.

3. Tell us an interesting fact about yourself.

a. I was a competitive Irish dancer for 10 years.

4. When you’re not working, what do you like to do in your spare time?

a. I manage my own small business, walk my dog, and enjoy travelling.

5. Where would you recommend our holiday homeowners to visit locally?

a. Lynton and Lynmouth – it’s just gorgeous there, with quintessential villages and a beautiful drive with stunning scenery.

questions with… Homeowner

Ken and Mo Kent, Anchor View 14

1. How long have you been a Hoburne holiday homeowner?

a. Since April 2019.

2. Why did you pick Hoburne Blue Anchor?

a. My sister-in-law owned on the park, and we went to stay for a weekend, and we really liked it. While there, the sales manager informed us that a front-row pitch with a sea view had become available. We had to make a quick decision and decided that weekend to buy it.

3. What’s your favourite thing to do whilst staying at your holiday home?

a. Using the swimming pool, sauna, and steam room, and just enjoy the view from our holiday home, looking out to the water.

4. What do you love most about being a holiday homeowner?

a. The flexibility of it and being able to pop down there, it’s like a second home, our little hideaway where we can chill out.

5. What top tip would you give to a new Hoburne holiday homeowner?

a. If you rent it out, be open-minded and do your research.

Competition

Each quarter we ask our owners to share their favourite photos with us. We'll pick our favourites to include in the next issue.

Good luck!

Ourfamily

We know our four-legged friends are very popular among our owners and this page is dedicated to them. As a pet-friendly park, we want to see more photos of your pooches. Email us your photos and we will pick the best ones to feature in our next issue.

Yearning for a reunion photo taken by Joanne Niinemae

Photo taken by Ian Hatfield

Photo taken by Christine Neal