Oxneadhall Reviews 

The grounds are amazing and well maintained providing an idyllic setting for photo opportunities. This is let down by the lack of hospitality. We arrived on a wet afternoon and were directed to the parking area, one of the party was an elderly lady who has had hip replacements. We had prearranged a buggy for transport around the site for her which was not made available on arrival. We then proceeded to navigate a steep slope that was wet and muddy to a reception room that was not well stocked and was nowhere near large enough to hold 110 guests so most people had to stand outside in the rain! I then asked about umbrellas and was told that none were available as they had gone missing… how is that a problem for guests?

Despite the lack of planning on the venues part we tried to make the best of the situation and I brought out the two umbrellas in my car as we now needed to proceed take the bride and groom to the banquet hall. I used my umbrellas to shelter the bride and groom and the 2nd for the bridesmaids. During the walk to the hall a member of staff walked straight past us with a venue umbrella and paid no attention to guests getting soaked in the rain.

We had to make requests on several occasions to obtain buggy transport for the disabled person so they could get from one hall to another, whilst the brides dress got dirty and ruined from the walk to the halls.

The food dressed up as gourmet but was not great either. Dessert was the only flavoursome part of the 3 courses. The meat in the mains was dry and the veg were soggy and soft.

The accommodation was great but having paid high 3 digits per head, the overall experience was nothing more than substandard. The staff tried their best to make up for the shortcomings but I would suggest you don’t waste your money on this venue because it’s not worth the glossy brochure they show you. There are plenty of other venues with great facilities and amazing views. Don’t let the special day be an underwhelming experience by booking this place.

Oxnead Hall claims it is a “terrestrial paradise” however unfortunately for my best friends wedding where I was best man, the special day couldn’t have been further away from a paradise and instead a nightmare for what should have been the happiest day of his and his wife’s life. There were a number of failings during the day and this was meant to have been well organised from advanced planning over a 3.5 year lead up. The first and most basic point is that signage is not clear. Signs are left with overgrown verges making it difficult for people to locate the estate. Once on the estate there were no clear signs to direct people to the ceremony or reception. Guests were wondering around speaking to each other to figure out where to go. Checking in for rooms was not clear and staff did not communicate how or where people can check in. A blind was broken so staff held up a sheet to cover the door to stops guests seeing the bride before she walked in. The table plan for the head table was the wrong way around and did not match the table plan at the entrance. The wrong playlist was being played and the bride had to get a bridesmaid to collect a phone and resolve this.

Unfortunately there was then a power cut after the main course. Staff seemed slow to react and just hoped for the best. Guests waited for an hour because staff were confused whether they could serve deserts. Guests tried to buy drinks to be told this was not an option so had to sit in a quiet and gradually darkening room with no food or drink. Eventually deserts were served.

Despite me being one of the emergency contacts for the wedding planner to contact, the wedding planner continually hassled the bride putting her under stress. The bride and groom wanted pictures to be taken and to try and make the most out of an unfortunate situation, but the wedding planner interrupted photos to give updates on the power continuing to be out, eventually grinding the bride down, bringing her to tears on several occasions. Another hour went by and there were not any drinks available. It was decided to go ahead with speeches. Oxnead did subsequently offer to provide an open bar for the remainder of the night which was a nice gesture and should be recognised. The wedding planner was able to source battery powered lights which again should be recognised but it was one of the guests that had to source and provide a speaker for music. All guests were having a good time. The wedding planner then hassled the bride again at 11PM to say all guests had to leave at close and could not stay within the allocated rooms. I went over to hear what was going on and try to assist (as this was my allocated role) but the wedding planner asked the bride to walk away to talk on their own. Oxnead arranged rooms for the Holiday Inn with taxis. Again this should be recognised although it is far from ideal when the bride and groom should be in the bridal suite. A holiday inn doesn’t quite cut it for your wedding night but at least Oxnead tried. The bride was then instructed to wake up all guests that are sleeping within the rooms to tell them they would need to relocate to a holiday inn. Again putting more pressure on the bride who should have no stresses on her wedding day.

At 00:00, the wedding planner instructed for the music to be turned off due to licensing constraints. This meant guests had to stay in the quiet for up to 01:30 for when all taxis would have arrived. Again this had to be communicated by the bride.

There were fundamental issues with a lack of organisation and contingency planning throughout the night. The power outage was out of Oxneads control but had a contingency plan been in place, impact to the event and guests could have been softened. for example the bar could have undertaken paper bills (or mobile card readers) for drinks to allow guests to continue drinking which would also have avoided a revenue impact to Oxnead. The agreed escalation process was not followed. This ultimately ruined the day for the bride. She was too busy being updated on issues to have the time she longed for, to spend with guests. I have also since found out that power outages at Oxnead are common and not rare. There is no excuse for the lack of contingency planning and a back up generator could have been available to avoid the impact to the wedding day.

As my final point, it was disappointing there was no actual care from Oxnead’s owner. We were told the owner did enter the barn but did not check in on the bride or groom and there was no apology. The Oxnead staff also did not know how to react, they all hid in the blacked out kitchen and looked sheepish if they entered the main area. Someone should have taken control from the very start to recognise the issues but outline the plan of action to deliver and keep spirits high.

This is disappointing for a venue labeled as a paradise.