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Notley Abbey Ceremonies & Receptions

Wedding Ceremonies

Notley Abbey boasts several stunning spaces, with options both inside the historic country house and out in the stunning country gardens, that are licensed for civil wedding and partnership ceremonies. The local registry office is in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire. There are also several charming local churches surrounding the area should you wish to book a church wedding instead.

Wedding Ceremonies in The Abbot's Hall

The original ‘main room’ in the Buckinghamshire country house of the Abbot, the Abbot’s Hall, has remained essentially unchanged over the last eight hundred years. It boasts high ceilings, oak beams, oak floors, huge windows providing lots of natural light, and a stunning feature fireplace dating back to the days of Henry V. It can hold up to 100 guests for your luxurious wedding ceremony. Once your wedding ceremony has come to an end, you and your guests can enjoy post-nuptial celebrations at the front of the beautiful country house – which will also give your wedding photographer the ultimate opportunity to capture some memorable images of you all with Notley Abbey as your backdrop.

Large Wedding Ceremonies in The Monks' Refectory

With features dating back to 1162, the Monks’ Refectory is a truly spectacular stone barn wedding ceremony venue.

It can host up to 172 guests for an elegant, romantic ceremony and enjoys views of both the cloister gardens and the front lawns, including the River Thame. The Monks’ Refectory is an absolutely stunning, chandelier-lit room and once your wedding ceremony is over, weather permitting, enjoy reception drinks and canapés on the lawn in the Cloisters Garden.

Outdoor Wedding Ceremonies in The Walled Garden

The Walled Garden sits on the site of the old Abbey itself – in fact parts of the walls that make up the Walled Garden are in fact parts of the ruins of the Abbey, which was dissolved by Henry VIII after the formation of the Church of England. The ‘nook’ in the wall in which the registrars and register sit allow you and your guests to enjoy a truly al fresco wedding ceremony. Choose to walk down a carpet aisle or keep your wedding ceremony a little more rustic by approaching your ceremony on the perfectly manicured lawn. The Walled Garden is a very special space in which to host your luxurious wedding ceremony in Buckinghamshire. Guest capacity for an outdoor wedding ceremony at Notley Abbey is up to 172 but there’s always room to further invite evening guests to celebrate with you once your elegant banquet has come to an end.

Receptions

Intimate Wedding Receptions in The Abbot's Hall

As the main entertaining room of the Abbots themselves and, later, Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh’s sitting room, the Abbot’s Hall, within this wonderful country house has a long history of entertaining and banqueting. This historic space has capacity for an intimate sit-down banquet for 60. Firelight and candlelight make this Buckinghamshire wedding reception a truly medieval banqueting experience for you and your guests.

The Monks' Refectory - A Luxurious Entertaining Space

Following in the footsteps of the Augustinian Monks who ate their meals in this beautiful, grand old stone barn, you and up to 172 of your friends and family can banquet together in historic splendour that simply can’t be understood without being seen. A Grand piano sits within the alcove and plenty of light is let in via the dual aspect doors that stretch from floor to ceiling at at either end of the room. Four elegant crystal chandeliers hang from the rafters of this spectacular wedding reception room in Buckinghamshire and when it comes to ‘making an entrance’, newlywed couples can walk from the main house directly in to The Monks’ Refectory via the romantic Cloisters Garden walk.

Wedding Reception Food and Drink

Notley Abbey, our historic country house wedding venue in Buckinghamshire, benefits from the experience of Bijou’s hugely experienced brigade of banqueting chefs. Catering for banquets is a very specialist branch of the hospitality industry and requires specific practices and processes throughout. Bijou’s Chefs are full-time specialists who only work in our specialist banqueting kitchens. Our menus and modern kitchens are designed with luxury wedding banqueting in mind and in the knowledge that each hand-chosen dish needs to be served in large numbers, at top quality, in very short spaces of time. Of course we also maintain relationships with our suppliers in order to serve what we serve at the best possible price.

Evening Wedding Reception Festivities at Notley Abbey

Notley Abbey offers the option of keeping your party together, barn-wedding style, in the Monks’ Refectory after your elegant wedding banquet – in which case a wine and beer bar can be set up and your musical entertainment can plug in to our in-house audio-visual systems – or of enjoying more of a house party structure, with music and dancing in the Abbot’s Hall, with the Hall and Drawing Room providing additional space where your guests relax and mingle. We can help you make the best decision for your wedding reception depending on your guest numbers and choice of wedding reception entertainment.

Bride Groom fireworks display Notley Abbey

Fireworks at Notley Abbey

A Fireworks display is possible at Notley Abbey, subject to the usual permissions. Speak to us directly if you wish to entertain your evening wedding reception guests with a fireworks display so that we can discuss the essentials with you.

Late Licence

Notley Abbey in Buckinghamshire benefits from a late licence for serving alcohol and for entertainment, so you can extend your wedding reception party into the small hours without disturbing anyone.

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