Winning the Recruitment Game: A case study on how Hire Intelligence helped The Belfry improve specialist hires
When The Belfry, named in the Top 30 Best Places to Work in Hospitality in 2025 by The Caterer and named Best Employer Award at the 2024 Springboard Awards, approached Hire Intelligence to help address their recruitment challenges, we were confident that our partnership could deliver the results they needed. Like many businesses in the hospitality sector, they were struggling to fill key seasonal and specialised roles, including chefs, spa therapists, and greenkeepers. By leveraging the Hire Intelligence platform, alongside Darryl Bate and James Rodricks’ industry expertise, The Belfry was able to streamline their recruitment process and overcome these long-standing hurdles.
Before working with us, The Belfry had a strong focus on employee retention and boasted a low turnover rate, but volume recruitment during peak seasons remained a challenge. Relying heavily on traditional job boards without clear insights into their effectiveness, and underutilising social media for recruitment, they found the process slow and inefficient. Manual headhunting for skilled positions was another time-consuming task, often yielding few results. They needed a solution to optimise and modernise their recruitment efforts.
As Kirsten Price, People Director at The Belfry, explained, “Our recruitment strategy was falling short when it came to high-demand seasons and specialised roles. We needed a more streamlined approach that allowed us to focus on quality candidates without wasting time on irrelevant applications. Hire Intelligence offered the perfect solution.”
What set us apart was the comprehensive nature of our services, which combined access to multiple job boards, integrated social media campaigns, and detailed analytics for managing recruitment budgets and tracking success. The ease of integration with their existing Applicant Tracking System (ATS), Harri, along with our tailored approach and ongoing support, were key factors in their decision.
“The integration was seamless,” said Maia Breedon, People Manager at The Belfry. “The Hire Intelligence platform synced perfectly with our ATS, and the ongoing support from Darryl and James has been invaluable. The weekly calls with our account manager made sure we were always aligned with our recruitment goals, and the wider campaigns they introduced have been game-changers in reaching the right candidates.”
From June 2024 to June 2025, The Belfry received 28,204 applications, and thanks to the platform’s automated filtering and screening processes, this was reduced to 25,868 qualified candidates. It’s advanced filtering system ensured that only candidates with the correct right-to-work status and relevant skills made it through to the next stage. This precision allowed their team to focus on high-potential candidates, leading to 178 successful hires, filling roles such as Chef de Partie, spa therapists, and Assistant Restaurant Manager.
As Kirsten noted, “One of the biggest improvements has been the quality of candidates. We’ve seen successful hires in roles that were traditionally difficult to fill. Hire Intelligence’s platform has saved us time, and the automated filtering has been a real game-changer. It’s allowed our hiring managers to focus on what matters – finding the right people.”
In addition to the filtering system, Hire Intelligence’s geo-targeted social media campaigns significantly boosted The Belfry’s recruitment strategy. The campaigns generated strong click-through rates, delivering a cost-effective pool of highly targeted candidates. “We were impressed by how quickly and effectively the social media campaigns brought in relevant applicants,” Maia added. “It’s not something we’d utilised to its full potential before, but with Darryl and James’ help, we now see it as an essential part of our strategy.”
Overall, The Belfry have expressed immense satisfaction with Hire Intelligence. “The platform is not only easy to use, but it’s also proven to be highly cost-effective. The ongoing support from the Hire Intelligence team has ensured that our recruitment strategy remains dynamic and adaptable,” Kirsten said.
The Belfry is now using Hire Intelligence for a large-scale recruitment drive which is showcasing the power of the technology through the results it’s providing and we’re confident we will continue exceeding expectations. “We’ve built a strong partnership with Darryl and James, and we’re excited to see how the platform continues to evolve and help us in the future,” Kirsten concluded.
At Hire Intelligence, we’re proud to be a crucial part of The Belfry’s recruitment strategy. We look forward to continuing our partnership, providing innovative solutions to meet their future recruitment needs.