Shustoke Barn sits in a quiet fold of north Warwickshire farmland just outside Coleshill, and the first thing you notice is how little fuss it makes about itself. The building is an 18th-century red-brick barn that has been restored rather than reinvented — flagstones underfoot, a vaulted timber roof overhead, and a long copper-topped bar running down one side that seems to catch the light all afternoon. It belongs to Cripps & Co, a small family of barn venues with a particular eye for food and atmosphere, and the hand shows in the details: the open kitchen at one end, the gothic doors that fold back onto the courtyard, the olive trees and fire pits waiting outside for the hour when the evening turns cool.
Food is very much part of the pitch here, and it is cooked in-house rather than farmed out. The kitchen is known for its barbecues and French rotisseries, prepared in full view of the room, with a wine list chosen by the group’s own buyer to go alongside. The barn seats 140 for a ceremony and for dinner, and opens up to around 200 once evening guests arrive, which makes it one of those rare places that feels intimate at 4pm and properly full at 10pm without either version feeling like a compromise.
For the night itself, the venue points couples towards Blyth Hall, a Grade I listed manor about 5 minutes away with 13 bedrooms sleeping up to 30, so the closest family can carry on over breakfast the next morning. The setting is thoroughly rural, yet Birmingham, Coventry and the motorway network are all close enough that guests travelling in rarely grumble about the journey.
Where the band plays
This is a one-room venue in the best sense: the barn that holds your ceremony is the barn you eat in and the barn you dance in, with the tables cleared and the space reshaped around the bar end while you are outside with a drink. Bands usually set up at that end, close to the bar and away from the doors, so the dancefloor forms naturally in the middle of the room rather than in a corner. The timber roof and brick walls give a warm, generous sound — loud enough to feel like an event, never harsh — and there is a permanently installed sound system in the barn that a band can often make use of for vocals and playback, which is worth raising early so your musicians know what to expect.
How the evening runs
The barn holds a late licence to 1am, which is more generous than most rural venues manage and changes the shape of the night considerably. It gives you room for two full live sets with a gap in between for the cake, the speeches to settle and a second wind at the bar, and still leaves time for a DJ or a playlist to take the room to the end. The courtyard doubles as the spot where people drift out between sets, so the music never has to stop for the sake of anyone needing air. Load-in is straightforward through the courtyard side, and there is space to park a van close to the doors while the kit goes in.
Bands available in Warwickshire and perfectly at home in a venue like this.
More live music in Warwickshire.
- Wedding Bands in Warwickshire
- Events Bands in Warwickshire
- Warwickshire Tribute Acts
- Warwickshire Wedding DJs
- Warwickshire Corporate Entertainment
Worth reading before you book: Sound Limiters Explained. More questions answered on our England & Wales FAQs.