NORTH Yorkshire theme park Flamingo Land is investing in its first "bricks and mortar" holiday accommodation after reporting a rise in revenues to £25.4 million.

The family run resort, which also features a zoo and holiday village complex, revealed a 12.7 per cent increase in turnover from 2014 as it posted operating profits of £2.26 million for the year ending March 31, 2015.

Directors at the business, based at Kirby Misperton, have attributed "another good year of trading" to captial expenditure across the entire site.

While investment on new rides and attractions stood at £2.84 million for the year, down from £5.31 million in 2014, the group stepped up expenditure on its holiday village complex, with £610,000 spent on improvements including £170,000 on developing a new bar, and a £1.06 million refresh of its caravan hire fleet.

In addition the business invested £160,000 on enhancing its rhino enclosure.

Reporting annual results this month, director said increased turnover has allowed the company to continue with the "established policy" of ensuring that the park is well maintained.

Chief executive Gordon Gibb said: "In these times of Tesco's downturn and reducing levels of consumer confidence in big corporate business, Flamingo Land's family business reputation has come into its own.

"Plcs such as Merlin, who dominate 80 per cent of the visitor attractions market, will always be run for the benefit of its shareholders.

"At Flamingo Land we are free to make the decisions we feel are right and to put our guests to the top of our priority list when it comes to decision making.

"We are more interested in providing outstanding day and holiday experiences than using a calculator to make decisions for us.

"When it comes to customer service, sometimes not turning a profit is the right thing to do, language a CEO of a plc would never and could never use."

Bosses at the business, which employs 550 staff in peak summer, and 100 full time year round employees, identified risks at the resort as being the "competitive leisure industry and the need to maintain a high standard of rides and attractions to satisfy customer demand", however they felt the "substantial levels of investment the company carried out in recent years will enable the company to continue to trade profitably".

This year is set to see further investment in Flamingo Land's holiday accommodation offering, with the first holiday cottage building, as well as early plans for a new summer live show, set to be the largest of any theme park in the country.

Mr Gibb told The Press: "We invest in the product every single year, year after year, even if it might be difficult for cash flow reasons; it's the company's ethos that we always do something different every year, which further sells the idea of a holiday home here.

"Of late the expenditure has been going into the holiday resort and infrastructure rather than simply additional rides.

"This year we will be reinvesting in our holiday accommodation. We are investing in bricks and mortar for the first time. The estate is made up of four farms. The brick buildings stock we have got we are converting into holiday accommodation.

"We are also investing in a giraffe presentation area and VIP feeding area."

Expenditure in the latest set of results of Flamingo Land also included donations of £1,000 to local causes and £16,806 to a wildlife conservation project in Tanzania as well as a political donation of £25,000 to the Conservative party.