Strawberry Field announced as a winner in the i Newspaper Staycation Awards

The world famous Strawberry Field, immortalised by The Beatles, opened its iconic red gates for good in September 2019 and already, it has been recognised for its first award. The new site was announced as the winner of the ‘Tourist Attraction of the Year’ category in the i Newspaper Staycation awards at a ceremony in London this week.

The centre is a welcome addition to Beatles tourism in the city, with responsible tourism at its heart. It is now home to a brand new visitor experience, complete with visitor exhibition, café, shop and gardens and a Steps to Work programme, which aims to help young adults with learning difficulties and other barriers to employment into work.

The i Newspaper announced that the first ever Staycation Awards would take place in 2019 after recognising the growing demand for top-class staycation holidays. The awards launched a nationwide search of the country’s best-loved holiday hotspots of 2019 and recognised a number of categories, including ‘Tourist Attraction of the Year’. The awards were also keen to highlight those businesses who are taking a proactive approach to ensure accessibility for all and long-term sustainability.

Strawberry Field received a number of public nominations, which were supported by their own application. From over 1000 nominations, Strawberry Field was selected by a panel of judges in the final 4 for ‘Tourist Attraction of the Year’. They were up against National Coal Mining Museum for England, The Historic Dockyard Chatham and Warner Bros. Studio Tour London - The Making of Harry Potter.

The Salvation Army's Strawberry Field, Mission Director, Major Kathy Versfeld, said:

“We are truly humbled to be nominated for this award, it is an amazing achievement for us to even be considered, never mind to be selected as a finalist and then win! The Salvation Army is doing great work at Strawberry Field and it is an honour to be recognised in our infancy.

Huge thanks to the i Newspaper for hosting the awards and thank you to the other nominees for providing a strong competition in our category. We humbly receive this award on behalf of the many people who supported The Salvation Army's new vision for Strawberry Field. A massive thank you to the public who nominated our project and to the judges for choosing us as the winners. The gates are open, come and let us take you down to Strawberry Field - there is a warm welcome waiting for you.”

The awards took place on 21st November in the St Pancras Renaissance Hotel, where host, Matt Baker announced the winners.