Coventry mum hits out at 'extortionate' price tag for ice cream at Coombe Abbey Park

A Coventry mum said she was 'taken aback' by some of the prices being charged at Coombe Abbey Park. She described the prices of ice cream cones as 'extortionate.'

Coombe Abbey Park has been a popular visitor spot for many years and has even been awarded the Tripadvisor Travellers Choice Award. In May 2018, No Ordinary Hospitality Management was appointed to take over the on-site catering by Coventry City Council.

Emma McCafferty visited Coombe Abbey Park on Tuesday, April 2. Her young son asked for an ice cream but the mum-of-one was 'shocked' to learn the cost. Photos show that a single cone with no flake starts at £3.95 while a double cone with flake costs £5.70.

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Speaking to CoventryLive, Emma, 37, said: “I just went for an afternoon at Coombe Abbey Park. I went with my son and he could see that the other children had ice creams so wanted one!

“We were in the queue and once you are in the queue you have committed to buying one, then you get to the point where you can see the prices on the wall and it was just really extortionate prices.”

Emma reluctantly forked out £7.90 so as not to upset her young son, saying: “I was taken aback by how much they were actually charging for ice cream and I only have one child but say if you have two or three children, it is quite a hefty price for a treat.”

Emma said she visited Skegness last weekend and was able to buy three ice creams for just £7.50. “I was really shocked to then to see those prices at Coombe Abbey,” the mum-of-one said.

She added: “People are saying support local businesses and trying to get people to spend money within Coventry but they do not have to charge that much, they would still make a profit. I think people need an advance warning.

“If I had an advance warning I would not have brought one or even got in the queue, I would have made some excuse not to buy one so just a warning to other people, either take a lot of extra cash with you or avoid it!”

A spokesman for No Ordinary Hospitality Management told CoventryLive: “Items from the kiosk start at £2.50 and all prices are clearly displayed on the board. We work as hard as we possibly can to offer refreshments and treats to suit all budgets but we have had to increase the prices of these particular ice creams due to a 26 per cent rise in the cost of ingredients and a 10 per cent rise in staffing costs.

“We are in regular contact with our suppliers and our ice cream prices are in line with other outlets which have fixed costs.”

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