Working in Whitby

On the flight back from Nairobi on September 7th, I started looking for work to earn the money for our next big trip starting in June 2024. Our intention was to stay at home and work locally. We were quite looking forward to a winter spent walking on the beach, visiting the cinema around the corner, and watching the sand racing. However, best-laid plans and all that …

During a whistlestop tour of the UK catching up with friends and family in Surrey, Cornwall, Devon, and Lincoln, we had no joy from the job applications we put in for positions in Mablethorpe. We needed a rethink. So, we started looking for winter work on a campsite. It wasn’t ideal as most winter seasons end in March which would leave us with a two- or three-month gap before our trip. However, I saw a job advertised in Whitby and put an application in. We got a positive response straight away from Chris, the owner, asking us to have a phone interview. Ahead of the phone call, I did some research on his site, York House Caravan Park. As I was reading, something was ringing a bell. I had a thought that our friends, Imelda and Phil, who we worked with briefly in the South of France for Venue, had some connection with York House. So, I messaged Imelda and it turned out that they still work there! The job we had applied for was to replace them when they went off on their winter travels!! What a coincidence!!

After that, things moved quickly. Imelda and Phil sang our praises to Chris. By the time we had our interview with him, it was a done deal and he offered us the job on the spot. The position had been advertised to end at the end of March. When we told him we were available until the end of May, Chris said he was happy for us to stay on until then. Perfect!! We had a start date of October 6th with an invitation to arrive a couple of days earlier to get set up. Imelda and Phil weren't leaving until October 31st, so we would have a good handover period.

So, after an unexpectedly short stay at home, we were heading for Whitby in Bertha! It’s a place I have visited several times, mainly during my childhood. Mark has been once before. We went with my Mum and Dad a few years ago. It’s a lovely seaside town with a long and interesting history. We were looking forward to exploring more of the place.

We had our big awning with us as we would be staying in Bertha for a few weeks before moving into the apartment that goes with the job.

The photos attached to this footprint are of our setup and York House Caravan Park. The site has 81 privately owned static caravans, around 40 hardstanding touring pitches, many grass camping pitches, 8 camping pods, and a bar and restaurant. There is also a six-room hotel. All of the hotel rooms are let out to contractors for the next couple of years.Read more