Hothorpe Hall adds eco-friendly venue with bank support

12 August 2015

An historic Midlands stately home has opened a contrastingly modern development to complement its existing wedding and corporate events venue, with £1.9m funding from Yorkshire Bank.

Hothorpe Hall, based in Theddingworth on the border of Leicestershire and Northamptonshire, has unveiled its eco-friendly development, The Woodlands, which sits alongside the 215-year-old Georgian mansion, in the venue’s 12 acres of land.

Hothorpe Hall is a well-established location in the Midlands for weddings and corporate events. The new eco-friendly development provides an additional 23 bedrooms and event space for up to 100 people, adding to the venue’s existing 55 bedrooms and ten meeting rooms. The Woodlands also includes a bar, dining room and luxury treehouse space.

The inspiration for The Woodlands arose from the need for more bedrooms, but financial projections determined an entirely new venue could lead to further growth for the business. The development is smaller than Hothorpe Hall providing a more intimate setting for events.

Nicola Firth, Managing Director of Hothorpe Hall and The Woodlands, states they have further plans for the site.

She said: “We want to add more facilities to the new development once we feel the investment has paid off. We are thinking of constructing a hot tub, sauna, children’s adventure play area and indoor games room. There has been a real demand for the festival-feel Woodlands area so far. We had 28 weddings booked before we even opened!”

The official opening took place in July and was attended by Richard Wallace, Head of Regional Business and Private Banking at Yorkshire Bank, who cut the ribbon to launch the development. Former BBC Great British Bake Off winner, Frances Quinn, also attended and prepared a specially commissioned woodland cake.

The business consulted with the Environmental Agency and Welland Rivers Trust when constructing the lodges which harvest rain water and are highly insulated to reduce energy waste.

The funding for the development was arranged by Steve Woods, relationship manager at Yorkshire Bank.

Nicola said: “The bank has been incredibly supportive of our business and a joy to work with. We’ve developed a great relationship and they really feel like part of the team.”

Simon Moore, Head of Yorkshire Bank’s Business and Private Banking Centre in Northampton, said: “It is great to be supporting a renowned venue in the Midlands that is really diversifying its offer and embracing the growth that comes with it.

“As economic conditions continue to improve, Yorkshire Bank remains focused on supporting the growth ambitions of businesses in the Midlands.”