Drayton Manor: Wet British summer sees profit dip ahead of iconic ride’s replacement

Theme park Drayton Manor suffered a drop in its profit following a year plagued by high costs, soggy weather and dwindling visitor numbers – but there’s hope a new-look roller coaster could change its fortunes.

The Staffordshire attraction revamped its iconic Shockwave ride for the first time in the more than two decades since it opened, adding four new inversions, a unique zero-gravity roll and a double corkscrew structure.

Launched in April under its new name, The Wave, the roller coaster is now also open to younger visitors thanks to its new 1.2-metre height restriction.

It also opened a new water ride in Thomas Land – its Thomas the Tank Engine-themed section – geared towards providing more child-friendly rides.

The introduction of these new attractions follows a challenging year for the park, with rain at peak times putting off visitors and high running costs hurting the company’s bottom line.

Drayton Manor saw its pre-tax profit fall from £3.6m to £2m in the 12 months ending September 30, 2023, with ongoing high energy costs playing a significant role.

Its turnover also dipped by £1m to £29m despite a new extended events calendar which the park said was “well received” by customers.

Drayton Manor hit by wet weather and rising costs

In a strategic report published on Companies House, the business behind Drayton Manor, Looping Group, said: “Trading for the current financial year has been impacted by the rising cost of living, inflation and energy prices in the UK.”

According to Looping Group, the wet and cold weather during Drayton Manor’s peak times resulted in “a reduction in revenue and an increase in many costs compared to the prior year”.

The firm went on to state that they didn’t have government financial support, which reduced business rates and the VAT rate applicable to revenue, unlike the prior financial year.

It added: “The business did receive the government subsidy relating to energy prices between October 2022 and March 2023 however we still saw a significant increase in prices compared to prices.”