Weddings at Sheepdrove

Good Question! Here at Sheepdrove we understand that every couple is different and that their wedding day should be uniquely their own.

Firstly, Sheepdrove is exclusive-use only so each couple has all of the rooms at their disposal on their special day as well as a set up day prior to wedding.

Space and flexibility are the hallmarks of Sheepdrove. With a choice of cathedral-like spaces licensed for civil ceremonies, bright and airy reception and dining areas both with high vaulted ceilings, stunning stairways, and gallery areas, and two quirkier rooms to fit to your purpose, plus abundant character features in and outside the venue, our organic farm has everything you need for an unforgettable wedding.

Moreover, you can theme the rooms to your heart’s content. Sheepdrove is your blank canvas – you may hang lights and drapery and there are no restrictions on large flower arches or candles.

 A Designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Our site stretches across 2,000 acres of beautiful organic farm land and the building itself is set in four square miles of picture perfect landscaped grounds that include an aromatic herb garden, ancient oak woodland and a long lake with pontoon and boathouse.

Sheepdrove is an eco-friendly green wedding venue and sustainability is at the heart of everything we do. More and more couples are taking a look at what they can do to take care of and be a little kinder to the world we share. Choosing an environmentally aware venue that takes sustainability seriously will cut the carbon footprint of your celebration.

You are welcome to visit Sheepdrove ahead of your wedding day. Weekdays from 9am-5pm are best but you may also book a time that suits you. Please call 01488 674747 or email info@sheepdrove.com to make an appointment.

Sheepdrove has two beautiful licensed rooms for your civil ceremony. Both have high timber vaulted ceilings. The Oak Room is licensed for up to 150 guests and Beech Room is licensed up to 50 guests. You will need to book your ceremony time with the West Berkshire Registration office directly and they will guide you through their costs and procedures. 

You can invite up to 150 guests for your ceremony and up to 170 guests for your reception. 

As an Existing Approved Premises, Sheepdrove is permitted to use any outdoor areas within the grounds of the venue for civil wedding and civil partnership registrations. However, the location for the ceremony must be assessed to be seemly and dignified by the registrar and other requirements for public access and signage must also be met. For licensed civil ceremonies, approved locations include the Flint Amphitheatre in the Herb Garden for intimate weddings, the Wedding Archway in the Tipi Paddock, the Sheep Shed at the Tipi Meadow, the Wedding Archway at the Tipi Meadow, or inside the Big Hats themselves, either in the Tipi Paddock behind the venue or up in the Tipi Meadow at the Sheep Shed.

If your heart is set on an outdoor ceremony in a location and style all your own, we recommend the you book a separate date to legally register your marriage beforehand (similar to the continental marriage process where the legal marriage and the wedding celebration are performed separately) and choose an independent celebrant for a wedding day ceremony that is utterly bespoke and personal to you. For outdoor ceremonies in the Beech Walkway, ancient woodland Nut Wood, or on the Pontoon at The Boathouse, we suggest that you work with an independent celebrant and a wedding planner.

Recommended Celebrants
Alison Carter Springwood Ceremonies
Call 7766 750 446 
www.springwoodceremonies.co.uk

Beth Whaley Celebrant
Call 07908 813390
www.bethwhaleycelebrant.uk

Hummingbird Ceremonies
Please call 07784 837288 or send an email
www.hummingbirdceremonies.co.uk

Miranda Ash
Call 07729 011265 
www.celebrationsforall.com

Recommended Wedding Planners
Forest Edge Tipis
Call 07917 792941
www.forestedgetipis.com

Fusion Events
Call 01488 491354 or 07870 563966  www.fusionliveevents.com

Lucy Ann Events
Call 07501 402407
www.lucyannevents.co.uk

The Beech Room is the perfect ceremony room for a more intimate wedding of up to 50 guests, then  choose from The Courtyard, Herb Garden or Reception Hall for your drinks reception and the Lower or Upper Dining Room for your wedding breakfast.  The Rook’s Nest offers a uniquely quirky bridal prep room and the combination of The Reception Hall, Gallery and Library provide the ideal setting for your evening celebration. 

Yes. You can hold an outside ceremony, celebration and reception in the Tipi Meadow  with our partners the award winning,  family run and Sheepdrove based Forest Edge Tipis.  Please call 07917 792941 or send an email / www.forestedgetipis.com

If you want to sleep under the stars we suggest you contact our recommended Bell Tent supplier Moonflower Events

Call 07780615200  or send an email www.moonflowerevents.com 

Yes. We welcome Celebrant-Led Ceremonies and Renewal of Vows.

We feature independent and humanist celebrants in our listing of wedding suppliers. Wedding celebrants lead bespoke, personal and meaningful commitment ceremonies that celebrate each couple’s love. A wedding celebrant can also marry you anywhere at Sheepdrove, beside the lake, at the Boathouse, in the woodland, the herb garden, the meadow, or the tipis. 

All celebrants are trained in creating non-religious, semi-religious, new age or holistic ceremonies. When couples are from a mixed faith background, a celebrant can help to create a unique ceremony that incorporates elements from both traditions.

Humanism is founded on shared values rooted in our common humanity and our shared human needs, transcending particular cultural and religious traditions and respecting the rights and equal dignity of all human beings.

In England and Wales, celebrants cannot currently conduct legally-binding wedding ceremonies. Couples will need to have a legal civil ceremony before or after their celebrant-led wedding, but this can be done in less than 10 minutes at the register office.

We provide chairs at no extra charge throughout your celebration, for both ceremony and dining.

We have excellent acoustics and there are several options for music. 

Live music – harpist or acoustic guitar – is especially popular and very effective during the ceremony due to our concert standard acoustics.

We also have a PA system for the wedding ceremony that you are welcome to use for your ceremony music and background music throughout the day – simply plug in your own iPod. 

We ask that our couples’ book either a live band or DJ or both for the evening reception. 

PA system for your Oak Ceremony Room  

Mobile sound system for Reception Hall, Beech Room Ceremony Room & Dining Hall  

Wireless microphone for speeches in Dining Hall  

Yes, there are lovely bedrooms in our onsite accommodation Woodend as well several other options in the venue itself including our first floor Beech Room and the Rooks Nest up in the tower. Let’s discuss this at your planning meeting.

There is a wealth of indoor and outdoor settings to choose from for both group photos and intimate couple shots. You are welcome to arrange a pre-wedding shoot or bring you photographer for a site visit ahead of the great day itself.

There are landscaped grounds with blossom trees in spring that berry in autumn and winter, meadows filled with wildflowers in summer, the grassy walkway through a sculptural wooden arch down to the long lake, the rushy long lake itself and of course our aromatic herb garden with its winding gravel paths, flint amphitheatre and thyme clock.

Our venue is exclusively yours to share with your loved ones on your wedding day with access the day prior to your celebrations for you to prepare the rooms and create your dream day. Inside, beyond the bright and brilliant high ceiling spaces of the Oak Room, Dining Hall and Courtyard Hall, quirky backdrops abound – the spiral staircase in the Dining Hall, the Gallery overlooking the Courtyard Hall, and the Rook’s Nest atop the Entrance Tour which is a favourite spot for couples to peep out the window and wave to guests in the Courtyard.

The Dining Hall opens out on to the Physic Garden at the back and the central Courtyard in front. The Courtyard may be transformed as the sun sets with fire pits and our beautifully illuminated trees. Here at Sheepdrove we have some of the darkest skies in the North Wessex Downs and you can see as many as 3,000 stars – perfect for a starlit wedding.

Below are some of the exterior characterful features for you and your guests to enjoy –

• Physic Garden
• Thyme Clock
• Flint Amphitheatre
• Wooden Archway Sculpture
• Gypsy Caravan
• The Long Lake
• The Pontoon
• The Boathouse
• The Courtyard

Sheepdrove has ample allocated parking. There are thirtyfive spaces (and an electric car charging point) in our main car park and our overflow carpark has space for one hundred cars. Your guests can leave their cars overnight to give them more choice on how late to stay and whether they decide to have a drink. If guest do leave and collect their car the following morning, please note that all cars are left at their owners’ risk.

Coaches can park in our overflow car park; there is space to drop off guests at the driveway ahead of the overflow car park.

Please use our main driveway that winds down through the trees to the main entrance – a lovely photo opportunity as well as being very practical for easy access.

Our beautiful setting includes an ancient wood, a long lake and extensive grounds so we ask that all parents be advised that we are a child friendly rather than child proof venue and that children must be be supervised at all times.