West Midlands golf and leisure complex The Belfry has a new boss at the helm to oversee a huge £30 million refurbishment.

Lynn Hood will be at the forefront of a new era for the golf, hotel and conference centre in Wishaw, near Tamworth.

Work on the major facelift will begin early next year after The Belfry was bought in August by American investment firm KSL Capital Partners, who appointed The De Vere Group to manage the property.

The Belfry, which includes The Brabazon golf course, has hosted the Ryder Cup golf tournament four times, the last time in 2002.

Lynn, who takes over from previous long-serving MD Nigel Gray, said: “It is a very exciting project because The Belfry has the perfect partner in KSL who are experienced in taking over a number of established resorts and restoring them to their former glory and their expertise will prove extremely beneficial.

“We are working on the development plans and we will have detailed drawings to show to our extensive customer base quite soon.

“We expect to start the refurbishment in January with the golfing retail aspect of the business and the welcome areas through to Sam’s Bar.

“It was apparent from the moment I walked through the doors that there is a great deal of pride felt here both from customers and from the team.

"The fact we have many people who have worked here a long time underlines their commitment and love for their work.”

The 42-year-old, whose husband, Robert, and 19-month-old daughter Florence have joined her in the Midlands, has an array of experience in the hospitality industry after starting her career 20 years ago with Walt Disney in America.

Lynn has been general manager at Glasgow’s Malmaison and the City Inn where she was promoted to operations director and the board of directors.

During her six years with City Inn, she looked after a portfolio of hotels across the UK and was responsible for the opening of two four-star deluxe City Inn hotels in Manchester and Leeds.

Lynn joined The Belfry from Hotel Prosperity Limited which provided advice on all aspects of hotel operations.