Two women from separate Bristol businesses managed by Focus Hotels have been honoured for going ‘above and beyond’ in support of the hospitality industry.

Adele Britton and Madeleine Dampier both won awards in the fourth ‘Night of the Stars’ event, which is organised by the Bristol Hoteliers Association (BHA).

Adele, a maintenance assistant at the Hampton by Hilton Bristol City Centre, won the Employee of the Year – Heart of House award while Madeleine, a finance apprentice at the DoubleTree by Hilton Bristol City Centre, was named the ‘Rising Star’ of the year.

Both received their accolades at a glittering gala hosted by the BHA to recognise and reward those who have excelled in their work during what has been one of the most challenging periods ever for the hospitality sector.

Adele has been with the Hampton by Hilton for four-and-a-half years and admits that she puts her “heart and soul” into her work.

She completed a painting and decorating apprenticeship at another hotel before joining Hampton by Hilton, where her duties include plumbing and electrical repairs, decorating and some customer service roles.

The 24-year-old said: “I felt so proud when I won the award, it really meant a lot to me as I really pour my heart and soul into my work and for that to be noticed was really special to me, especially working back of house where it’s not so easy to get recognition for hard work.”

“I enjoy lots of things about my work. My amazing colleagues are like a second family, and I also love helping our guests who maybe in distress or just in need of assistance, and I love making their day better and making them smile.”

Greg Csikos, General Manager of the Hampton by Hilton Bristol City Centre, said: “In a year where everybody has been covering different roles from their normal “day jobs”, Adele winning this award really shows how amazing she has been.

“She has not only worked hard to ensure the general upkeep of our building, but also supported other departments at times of need. Adele is a real team-player with a positive attitude; she is an essential part of our hotel’s operation and is absolutely the heart of our back of house team.

“I’m very happy to have her in my team and we are all proud of her for winning this deserved award.”

Madeleine started her career just before the pandemic began, spending four days per week at the DoubleTree by Hilton and one day at college.

Imran Ali, General Manager of DoubleTree by Hilton Bristol City Centre, said: “Maddie has cross-trained in the hotel reception to enable her to understand the front-end of the hotel’s operation in order to take a complete and holistic approach towards what she does.

“She volunteered to help the reception team when they were short staffed, and did it with enthusiasm and a smile, and takes steps to assist any other department when the need arises.

“Maddie has proved herself to be a true asset to her team and our hotel and we are delighted that she has deservedly won the rising star award. I’m sure her star is only going to rise higher as her career continues.”

Lynn Hood, Chief Operating Officer of Focus Hotels, said: “We are very proud of Adele and Madeleine for receiving these well-deserved awards.

“The work ethic and positive attitude, during what has been an extremely challenging period, demonstrated daily by these two women epitomises the ethos of Focus Hotels.

“We believe that our people are our greatest assets and pride ourselves on putting people first and providing members of our teams with the opportunities to develop and progress their careers.

“Having two of our staff recognised in the Bristol awards tells us that we are doing something right, as well as saying something strong about the calibre of people who work in our hotels, providing the best possible levels of service for our guests.”