Alrewas Hayes is a Queen Anne house of the early 18th century, Grade II listed, standing in 100 acres of gardens, parkland, woodland and private lakes on the edge of Fradley village between Lichfield and Burton upon Trent. The estate is believed to be the stretch of Staffordshire woodland recorded in the Domesday survey, and the Williams family have been here for five generations; Toby Williams, who grew up exploring those woods, now runs the place with his wife Bonnie as both a family home and a venue. That matters more than it sounds. The house has been renovated and reimagined over the past decade, but it has not been stripped of its character, and the hospitality has the unhurried confidence of people who genuinely enjoy having a houseful.
What makes Alrewas Hayes unusual is its range. Small, intimate weddings are entirely possible — the Orangery, itself part of the listed house, is licensed for smaller civil ceremonies and floods with light — and so are enormous ones, because the Great Barn is licensed for large ceremonies and will hold anywhere from 220 to 650 guests. The Courtyard handles outdoor drinks and non-legal blessings in the warmer months, the Lakeside Marquee is a blank-canvas space for 60 to 220 looking out over the water, and Williams Bar mixes its own cocktails for the parts of the day in between. Whichever combination you choose, the estate is exclusively yours for the day or the whole weekend.
The food is taken seriously, cooked in a purpose-built fine dining kitchen and ranging from a five-course dinner to informal sharing platters of whatever is freshest, and the production side is unusually strong for a country estate — lighting, sound, projection and wireless microphones are all handled in house. There are 11 bedrooms across the Main House, the Lodge and the Coach House, including two suites in the house itself with oak beams, garden views and an original fireplace, so the wedding party can stay put and come down to breakfast rather than scattering to hotels.
Where the band plays
The Great Barn is where the evening belongs, and it is a genuinely striking room — something like an aircraft hangar from outside and sleek and contemporary within, with its own private walkway in, a permanent bar and its own bathrooms. Crucially for live music, it has a custom-built stage and a dancefloor already in place, which spares you hiring either and means a band walks into a set-up designed for them rather than improvising in a corner. It is a big space, so a larger line-up with horns and backing vocals earns its keep here in a way it would not in a small room. If you are taking the Lakeside Marquee instead, it is a blank canvas, so power, flooring and staging all need specifying — the estate’s production team can advise.
How the evening runs
Because the estate is yours exclusively and the accommodation is on site, the evening has a relaxed shape to it: ceremony, drinks in the Courtyard or by the lake, dinner, then everyone moves through to the barn for the dancing with nobody watching the clock for a taxi. Confirm the music finish time with the team when you book, as it varies with the space you take and the sort of event you are planning, and pass it straight on to your band so their sets are built to end on it rather than being cut short.
Bands available in Staffordshire and perfectly at home in a venue like this.
More live music in Staffordshire.
- Wedding Bands in Staffordshire
- Events Bands in Staffordshire
- Staffordshire Tribute Acts
- Staffordshire Wedding DJs
- Staffordshire Corporate Entertainment
Worth reading before you book: Sound Limiters Explained. More questions answered on our England & Wales FAQs.