AECB members to tour Passivhaus hotel under construction at Runswick Bay

The AECB Yorkshire Local Group will take members on to the Cliffemount construction site at Runswick Bay on 23 October to see a 20-room hotel, pub and restaurant being built to the Passivhaus standard.

The AECB describes the scheme as the UK's first Passivhaus certified hotel under construction. The client has been more cautious on its own pages, saying that, if successful, the new Cliffemount would be the first hotel in the UK to achieve Passivhaus accreditation.

The tour runs from 1.30pm to 3pm. Visitors need a hard hat, boots and high-vis, and the AECB directs them to pay-and-display parking at Bank Top Car Park, next to the site.

Bowman Riley Architects, an AECB member practice, designed the hotel for Cliffemount Hotel, which the AECB describes as a family hotel business. In the Passivhaus Trust's report on the scheme, Daniel Postill, associate architect and certified Passive House designer at Bowman Riley, says the main challenges of the project will be "The logistics & access, given that its a cliff top location."

The specification

According to the AECB event page, the superstructure is steel and cavity wall construction, with a stone or render outer leaf and 300mm of mineral wool insulation. The airtightness strategy uses Passive Purple and Smartply airtight OSB.

The roof is finished in natural clay pantiles, with a green roof over the restaurant and green walls elsewhere. The features listed also include an air source heat pump chilled water system.

The Passivhaus Trust lists Zero Energy + Passivhaus Services Ltd as the certifier, Hexa Consulting Engineers as structural engineer and JPA as mechanical and electrical consultant. Stainforth Construction is leading the build and Silverstone Building Consultancy is project manager, the client said.

The client also said that, if successful, Cliffemount would be the only hotel to hold individual Passivhaus accreditations for its pub and restaurant.

The project so far

The client's own timeline shows the former Cliffemount Hotel was bought in July 2022. Bowman Riley said the Fojt family became the new owners that year, and the client's demolition release described them as a Yorkshire family with strong links to Runswick Bay.

Melissa Tomlinson, managing director of Cliffemount, said: "In 2022, our family purchased the former Cliffemount Hotel with a very clear vision of building a sustainable hotel".

A public consultation was held in June 2023, and planning permission was approved in November 2023. The Passivhaus Trust named the planning authority as North York Moors National Park Authority and the developer as Octopi Property. Planning consultant DPP said it secured the permission on behalf of Octopi Property Ltd, coordinated pre-application discussions with the park authority, and that the proposals received overwhelming support from the local community during the application. DPP described the scheme as a three-storey hotel and community facility.

Demolition of the old hotel began on 19 August 2024 as an eight-week process, and the client said the building was demolished in October 2024. Construction started on 24 March 2025, with contractors expected on site for about two years.

Timetable

The programme has moved since consent. In November 2023 the Passivhaus Trust listed expected completion as 2025; at demolition in August 2024 the client said the hotel was coming in 2026; and at the construction start in March 2025 the client predicted an opening in summer 2027.

The AECB tour booking is through TicketSource. The client's current forecast is for Cliffemount to open in summer 2027.