Weston Hall stands in the village of Weston, a few miles east of Stafford, and it wears its age lightly. This is a listed Elizabethan house, and the period detail is the real thing rather than a decorator’s idea of it — open stone fireplaces, heavy oak beams and original mullioned windows that throw very good light across a room in the late afternoon. Around the hall are 20 acres of grounds and gardens, which is enough to feel properly rural and enough to lose the road entirely from your photographs, while the M6 is only about 5 miles away and the main line runs through Stafford. Guests travelling from a distance will thank you.
Inside, the day moves through a handful of rooms, each with its own character. The Shrewsbury Suite is the favourite for ceremonies, with its stone fireplace, mullioned windows and chandeliers, and it has its own bar and built-in sound system. The Westminster Suite is the main event: bright and airy, two stone fireplaces, exposed beams, a private bar, a dance floor and the room’s own sound system. The Conservatory works for something more intimate or as a buffet room, the Cellar makes a snug cocktail bar, and the Terrace with its outdoor bar is where everyone ends up on a warm evening.
They only ever hold one wedding a day, and there is an exclusive hire option that hands you the country house and grounds outright, with the freedom to build the day around barbecues, alfresco buffets and fire pits rather than a fixed running order. Catering is done in house and leans on classical cooking with local ingredients. There are 8 bedrooms including the honeymoon suite, which is generally included, and capacities sit at around 110 for a ceremony or a seated meal and up to 150 standing.
Where the band plays
The Westminster Suite is the dancing room, and it is well set up for live music: a proper dance floor, a bar in the same space so nobody drifts off, and a built-in sound system for the gaps between sets. Bands and discos are both accommodated here, and at these numbers — somewhere between 110 and 150 guests — a four or five-piece with a strong front line tends to be the sweet spot. The beams and stone soak up just enough top end to keep things warm rather than harsh.
How the evening runs
Because the ceremony, the meal and the party each have their own room, a band can get in and sound check while your guests are elsewhere in the house or out on the terrace, which is much less disruptive than it sounds on paper. Evenings here can go on: a bar extension to 1am appears in some of Weston Hall’s packages, so if you want a late one it is worth agreeing the finish for your own date when you book, and confirming with the venue what time music itself has to stop. Ask about the terrace doors too — they are the easiest way in with equipment, and a useful escape valve when the room gets warm.
Bands available in Staffordshire and perfectly at home in a venue like this.
More live music in Staffordshire.
- Staffordshire Wedding Bands
- Staffordshire Events Bands
- Tribute Acts in Staffordshire
- Wedding DJs in Staffordshire
- Corporate Entertainment in Staffordshire
Worth reading before you book: Sound Limiters Explained. More questions answered on our England & Wales FAQs.