Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Tourism Awards to be held this Thursday: Meet the finalists
By Livia Gregor 18th Mar 2026
The Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent Tourism Awards will take place tomorrow (19 March) at Statfold Country Park in Tamworth.
The awards celebrate hotels, visitor attractions and hospitality venues across the region.
Many of the winners go on to represent Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent at the national VisitEngland Awards for Excellence which are taking place in June.
Staffordshire County Council said: "Sponsored by the University of Staffordshire, the awards received a record 155 entries from across the region.
"This number has been whittled down to 51 to help decide the shortlist of finalists in the 20 categories."
Eagle House, in Eccleshall, has been nominated for the Regenerative Tourism Award, the Self Catering Accommodation of the Year Award and the Small Serviced Accommodation of the Year Award.
The B&B is beautifully decorated with a range of quaint decor, bold patterns and vintage chic.
It is difficult to believe that the building was once Eccleshall's poor house.
Eagle House has a long and interesting history, and the stories of its previous residents have been carefully collated by owners Helen Faulkner and Andy Guest.
Much of the furniture comes from the Katharine House Hospice shop in Eccleshall.
Helen said: "I love to find old things and then give it a new life or paint it and put my own style on it."
The couple started the business five years ago after Helen left her job as a nurse and Andy as a nuclear physicist.
Speaking about reaching the final Helen said: "I think we're the smallest business in any of the awards.
"It's amazing that in three categories, we're finalists.
"We're all pretty proud of that.
"You can go a long way if you're really passionate about the place that you live and your building, and because it's your home, you just love it differently.
"It's not really a business, it's our life.
"I like to think that, hopefully that comes across to guests, that we're very passionate about it."
Not far away, The Little George on Castle Street in Eccleshall, is also nominated for the Small Serviced Accommodation of the Year Award as well as Pub of the Year.
The coffeehouse, bar and hotel aims to provide a haven for the community, where local people can come to socialise and relax.
One of the owners, Zoe Wallace said: "It's home from home and a very community centric venue.
"It's lovely to have the business recognised, and not just the business, but the team, because it's the team that makes the business.
"The standard of customer service and the quality of our team and how much they actually care about the people that come in through our doors every day is second to none."
The Little George reopened its doors in 2017, after being refurbished, and has been welcoming customers ever since.
Asked why the awards are beneficial to small businesses Zoe said:
"It's about helping people know that we exist.
"Staffordshire is very central.
"It's the heart of the nation's playground, and it's an opportunity for people to find out that we're here."
Described by Conference Centre Manager Rebbecca Dale as "Stafford's best kept secret", the Beaconside Conference and Events Centre has also been nominated in this year's awards
Located in a former Staffordshire University building, the centre boasts an impressive selection of conference, meeting, training, and exhibition spaces.
The venue regularly hosts conferences for over 800 people including large scale corporate events for the NHS.
Rebbecca said it is "super exciting" for the centre to be nominated for Business Events Venue of the Year and she "could not be more chuffed.
"It's just lovely to be recognised and to be shortlisted in great company as well."
Other businesses in the category include Bet 365 Stadium and Uttoxeter Racecourse.
To see the full list of categories and finalists, click here.
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