If you’re looking for an intimate wedding on a budget but still want the feel of a big, expensive, classic do, I would suggest you couldn’t find a more perfect venue in the north west. We booked here after attending their annual wedding fair, and after seeing the venue dressed, speaking to the lovely staff, and sampling some cake in the café, we thought it was too good to be true for the price they charge. What’s the catch? Honestly in our experience there absolutely isn’t one. Get ready for a long review – I wanted to do this place the justice it deserves, so I hope this is helpful for other couples considering Haworth.
I wanted to feel I’d had a more unique experience than booking a hotel type venue that does multiple weddings every week, and the fact Haworth only offers one wedding per week and has a small team – none of whom are professional wedding planners, they’re gallery staff - made it feel like I’d found an undiscovered gem. The house is beautiful if Victorian charm is your thing, and the views of the hills from the small but pretty park are charming. There are lots of lovely photos opportunities around the park and garden and we are really thrilled with all our photos (big up Nick English photography).
The gallery staff, both in the run up to our day and on it, were incredible. All so friendly and happy, and that really made us feel like we’d booked a very special and personal place so it greatly added to the whole experience for us. We certainly did not feel like ‘just another couple’, we felt like they really cared about our day and it was genuinely important to them that we had the best day. Our chief person on the day, Paddy, was brilliant and although our registrars were running late he remained very professional and kept everyone informed and relaxed, totally removing any stress there might otherwise have been. I can’t thank him enough.
Although the gallery remains open to the public on your day (but the café will be closed if you book the full package, which we did), for us we hardly noticed any other visitors and it didn’t impact us at all: it felt as if it was our private place.
The room used for the ceremony is intimate and very elegant, and comes decorated free of charge with some lovely white arts and crafts style faux flower displays that are really tasteful. We paid a small amount extra to hire the white flower arch and white carpet for the aisle, from their venue dressing company. It seats up to 50 guests. Standing on the dais is a lovely setting and there’s a beautiful fireplace behind the registrar, and as a backdrop to your signing photos.
This same room gets flipped to become the wedding breakfast (dining) room later in the day, with long tables used if you have a larger party like we did. It feels very cosy and I really liked the fact guests were seated across three long tables rather than round tables as it’s more unusual and it brings people together. The top table was raised on the dais behind the flower arch so felt intimate and slightly private. A great place to give speeches from.
Simon the chef, who usually runs the café, was absolutely amazing. From day one when we discussed food choices and set up with him we knew we were in safe hands: incredibly efficient, but also very thoughtful. A seasoned pro, he clearly knew his onions and what would work for our guests and was full of great suggestions and tips. He was willing to adapt to our needs and cater to a few extra requests without hesitation. I really appreciated being able to offer my guests two choices for starter/pudding, and three choices for main. On the day he and his kitchen team (including all the serving staff) absolutely delivered a faultless – and I do not use that word lightly! – menu of incredible food. It was presented immaculately, and the taste matched the presentation. I can’t speak highly enough of it. If you need any persuasion about the food you’ll be served I recommend visiting Haworth’s café for lunch one day and you’ll see what I mean. The young serving team were all great too: they all had a smile on their face the whole time in what must be a very high pressure scenario, and they were really professional. The whole affair was truly seamless and faultless.
The room which is usually the café was where the DJ set up and the dancing happened, and the period features in this room are stunning. It’s a relatively small space but that was a huge selling point for us because we knew the dance floor would always feel full of people and energy. It was another bonus for us that the bar itself was located in a separate room again, as this meant guests could still have small talk and a sit down away from the noise of the dancing room. This set up was absolutely spot on. We also really appreciated that Simon the chef also offered in advance to stock up on any particular drink requests for the bar, on the proviso that anything extra he’d bought in that wasn’t sold we’d buy back at cost price. This meant we could tailor a bit more to our guests, with some local bottled beer and also a particular spirit.
Lee the DJ is included in the price of the full package we booked and Simon the chef (who takes over all the evening do) arranges this: all I can say is that he was absolutely brilliant. We had a chat with him a few weeks prior and discussed our music preferences and that we could send him Spotify playlists that he could take inspiration from. He was incredibly nice and on the night he absolutely delivered and played pure tunes, with a smile on his face and some good banter. He judged the audience perfectly and the atmosphere was amazing.
The evening food is also included in the price and we opted for classic pizza and chips: it was delicious.
So what else can I say? If you’ve made it this far though my review I’m guessing it’s because you’re really thinking of booking this place, or at least visiting it to see for yourself. Please do that. I cannot imagine you’ll be disappointed. I am so grateful we found Haworth. I love that we can visit whenever we like, and see the staff and eat in the café too: how many wedding venues can you visit again and again? It feels like they’re part of the family now. Thank you everyone at Haworth for making our day just perfect for us.

From our first meeting with the staff we knew this was the place for us. We had 2 other places to see and we didn't bother! A hidden gem set in beautiful grounds. The Art Gallery is a former house and you get this feeling as soon as you walk in. All the staff were kind, organised, total professional and experienced - nothing was too much trouble. The day was so relaxed and the feedback we had from family and friends about the location and the food were amazing....totally justified. It is such good value.

My now-husband and I have been together for 8 years before we finally got married. As per "tradition," you get married in the woman's home town. I am very happy to have grown up in Accrington, for Howarth Art Gallery was my 1st choice. I took him there before he agreed, and we spent a good afternoon going around the museum. When we decided, a woman sat us down to go through the paperwork. She agreed to have seats at the front so I wouldn't be having to stand for long. It was a magical day for both of us, and I know I couldn't stop smiling at the beauty of the day and the Gallery.

Absolutely brilliant day. Nothing was too much trouble. Very organized and professional. Plus the venue is stunning

I cannot recommend this venue enough!!!
My husband and I got married here in June 2023. We were looking for a traditional and interesting venue which could still provide the elegance and details we wanted.
We looked for the important things like the rooms, food, staff and surroundings. Genuinely, this venue is a hidden gem. It is a complete bargain for what they offer. Where else would you get all of the grounds, a complete art gallery, no risk of bumping into another bride and the gorgeous rooms for your ceremony and evening? We looked at many other venues and let me tell you, the quotes they give you are ridiculous. They just don’t compare to the Howarth Art Gallery.
If you are looking for a venue to accommodate the guests who actually matter to you (not the extra cousin twice removed who you have not seen in 7 years and wouldn’t recognise) then this is the one for you. They have a good capacity at a phenomenal price. Booking with this venue means you save money and can spend it on the details which matter in your photos - your flowers and extra details which we forget about and over spend on.
The entire team were completely wonderful and went above and beyond. We were told “whatever you want to do, we can make it happen” and they meant it.
The communication from the wonderful ladies was great and always so kind and reassuring.
I cannot put into words how incredible the food was - Simon and his team in the kitchen are artists in the field of food and will go the extra mile to make every single dish perfect. All of our guests commented on how delicious it was and how fantastic the presentation was.

They were so accommodating and provided suggestions for the room decor including Atmosphere who do the chairs, sashes and flower arches and much more. We used LeRainflorist on Blackburn market for our beautiful flowers (amazing prices you can not find anybody better on price or more willing to make it gorgeous), and Henry Christopher Commercial Printers Ltd for our invites and table plan etc. The lady who did our amazing cake was enchanting cakes in Darwen and we had the amazing Elfair Grug play her harp all the way until the reception breakfast. It was genuinely perfect!

I could not thank them enough and am so, so happy we got married here. I look forward to visiting again for an afternoon tea!

My husband and I was looking for a venue where we could host a small cosy wedding our way and that’s what we got, we wanted a very informal wedding and the Howarth was the perfect place you can customise your wedding however you want, the staff are warm and friendly and nothing is to much trouble, the building and grounds are beautiful with lots of character and beautiful views.

This is such a beautiful place to get married. From arranging the date to the day of the wedding, the wedding coordinators and restaurant manager were fantastic. They took care of everything and made our day very special. We booked the all inclusive package and it was excellent value for money. The team at the gallery are true professionals and love what they do. All my guests commented on how the food and service was amazing. Fabulous venue, would highly recommend. The team are amazing!

We had our wedding here in August 2023 and it was just amazing x the guest said the food was fab and the service was amazing.
The staff responded to all our questions and quickly and nothing was to much trouble .
I would definitely recommend this venue and for the price was just 5 stars xxx