THE wedding team at one of Barrow's top hotels have offered to help couples affected by the closure of Chequers.

A number of people have already been in touch with the Abbey House Hotel and Gardens as they try to reorganise their big day.

Now the team has carried out a full assessment of late availability between now and March 2020 and is ready to step in and help, with full packages available from £1,995.

The hotel is also inviting staff who have lost their jobs to get in touch if they wish to discuss potential opportunities.

General manager John Horton said: “It is never nice to see a local business in trouble and the closure of Chequers will be a real loss to the area and to the local economy.

“We certainly take no pleasure in what has happened, however we do recognise there will be a lot of couples feeling very anxious at the moment about their big day.

“We only have very limited availability over the next 12 months, but there are some windows of opportunity for people looking to change their venue with minimal disruption.

“Our wedding packages are very competitively priced, and we do not insist that guest rooms are booked as part of any wedding.

“We have already managed to help a number of couples to get their big day back on track and the team would be happy to support further brides and grooms.”

It was revealed earlier this week that the hotel is faced with administration after racking up debts it could not pay.

Up to 50 couples are thought to have been affected by the news, with 30 members of staff losing their jobs.

“We are always on the lookout for dedicated and hard-working staff and I would invite anybody affected by the untimely closure of Chequers, who is interested in working at the Abbey House Hotel and gardens, to get in touch with their CV and a covering letter which outlines the areas of work they are interested in," said Mr Horton.