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About

On Hitched.co.uk since 2022

Last update: May 2024

Villiers Barn is a picturesque Wedding Venue located in Thorpe-le-Soken, Essex. The barn is set in an idyllic location, with acres of beautiful gardens, tranquil lakes, and incredible countryside views, making it perfect for a rural wedding.

Facilities and Capacity

The Grade II listed seven-bay barn is rich in history and has been beautifully restored, combining traditional features and modern style.
The former coach house has been transformed into a gorgeous get-ready suite, and it's situated between the courtyard and swimming pool. At Villiers Barn, ceremonies will take place in the property's designated indoor ceremony space. The room features large windows, white walls, light wood flooring, and ceiling beams, creating a light and airy event space. Receptions are held in the main barn venue with wooden structures, ornate chandeliers, and large glass sliding double doors. If you're looking to have the fairytale-inspired wedding you've always envisioned, this venue is for you!

Services Offered

The experienced team is passionate about their work and is committed to ensuring you have the happiest day, tailored to you as a couple and full of personal touches. Villers Barn offers bespoke packages to meet all your requirements. The in-house catering team is a family-owned business that comes with 25 years of experience managing hundreds of weddings a year. They will ensure the smooth running of your day, providing a combination of top-class food and service. What's more, the venue is just four minutes from the award-winning Lifehouse Spa & Hotel. They have 89 bedrooms and will provide a discounted rate for any guests attending a wedding at Villiers Barn.

Awards

We are very proud to have won numerous wedding awards since opening in the last 2.5 years, which is a credit to the hard work and passion our team put into every wedding, making each couple's wedding vision become a reality!

  • Hitched Wedding Awards 2022 & 2023 & 2024
  • The Wedding Industry Awards : Regionally Highly Commended Barn Venue of the Year 2022
  • The Wedding Industry Awards : Regionally Highly Commended Barn Venue of the Year 2023
  • The Wedding Industry Awards : Regionally Highly Commended Best Newcomer 2023

Frequently asked questions

Venue type:

In the country
Historic
Barn
Outdoor license

Ceremony options:

Civil ceremony licence

Dining options:

Seated meal facilities
Corkage option
Alcohol licence
Buffet meal facilities
In-house catering

Evening entertainment:

Dance floor
Entertainment licence
Live band facilities
Evening reception facilities
DJ facilities
Outdoor fireworks permitted

Overnight accommodation:

Overnight accommodation for wedding couple

Venue staff assistance:

Wedding coordinator

Venue leisure facilities:

Swimming pool

Other features:

Exclusive use
Accessible facilities
Car parking
Confetti permitted
Pet-friendly
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Do you have any questions?

Request pricing

Reviews for Villiers Barn

5.0 out of 5 rating
Hitched Wedding Awards 2024 Winner
5.0 out of 5 rating
103 reviews
100% recommend it
  • Quality of the service
    5 out of 5 rating
  • Response time
    5 out of 5 rating
  • Professionalism
    5 out of 5 rating
  • Value for money
    5 out of 5 rating
  • Flexibility
    5 out of 5 rating
H
Harriette B. Sent on 08/08/2022
5 out of 5 rating

First class

I don’t think the words I’m trying to find even exist in the dictionary, to describe this truly breathtaking, spectacular, unique, initiate venue - VILLIERS BARN is out of this world and that’s all down to Juliet & Barry, the Venue owners & directors & their son Jonathan who offer a 7-star, first class service. All three are extremely passionate about their business & they go above and beyond from the moment we viewed, booked & then had our wedding (last Thursday), no job was too big for them.

We viewed VILLIERS during its renovation & as soon as we drove up the lane, there was something so very special about where we had just arrived, historic, traditional - but different from any other typical barn wedding venue I’d seen online / been to as a guest. VILLIERS holds something special & unique.

VILLIERS was the first & only venue we viewed - we knew it was the one for us. We went back to see progress & it just kept getting better and better. I can’t praise the venue, the setting, the owners & staff enough.
We had an Amalfi (Italian) Coast themed wedding, the barn is simply stunning & speaks for itself - our theme fitted in perfectly, but as would any other theme over the last year I’ve seen villiers host many weddings & no two weddings have been the same it’s incredible - versatile VILLIERS! 👏🏽

Every time we viewed VILLIERS after booking, I felt so choked in the ceremony room, the barn, by the lake as I just knew this was the only place I see myself getting married to my fiancé, our wedding day was perfect & we have had fabulous comments from family and friends - saying it was the best venue & best wedding they’d ever been to, spectacular settings & top class service and so well organised.

To Juliet, Barry & Jonathan and their wonderful staff - your passion shines through & we can’t thank you enough for having us & making our day perfect, I’m so sad our wedding day is over - but the memories we’ve created will last forever & will play out like a film in our minds.

I can’t recommend VILLIERS BARN enough, if you want the best wedding, then book the best venue.

Thank you all again,

Harriette & Charlie Blackshaw-Clare 🤍🍋💙
Georgia
Georgia S. Sent on 10/07/2024
5 out of 5 rating

The best of the best

Where do I start with Villiers Barn? They gave us the most amazing day and we can’t thank them enough. Their beautiful barn, coupled with the stunning ceremony room, has a clean, modern feel in a building draped in history. Set amongst beautiful grounds with ample photo backdrops, it’s the perfect setting for a beautiful wedding day. Other than the venue itself, the staff are the most friendly and helpful people you’ll meet and couldn’t do enough for us in the run up to the day and during our day, they truly know weddings inside and out.
As soon as we stepped inside the barn the first time we knew it was the venue for us, and we never looked back.
The biggest thank you to the whole team at Villiers Barn, for giving us the best wedding day!
Gemma
Gemma S. Sent on 08/07/2024
5 out of 5 rating

The best day ever celebrating at Villiers Barn!

We had our wedding at Villiers Barn in May and it was nothing short of incredible, we are so glad we went ahead with them to celebrate our big day.

Villiers Barn ended up being the first and only we toured when selecting our venue, we couldn’t find fault in anything offered which showcased their willingness to provide such a special wedding day, that we decided to secure our date.

Throughout the whole process, the entire Villiers Barn Team were incredibly accommodating, friendly and willing to answer all of our questions whether it be 18- months before or 2 days before the wedding date, it felt very personable.

On the morning of the wedding, Juliet, Jonathan and the entire VB Team were so helpful in setting up the venue decorations, everything looked perfect and was efficiently organised and they made sure to check in with us both to ensure we were happy. They couldn’t do enough to make sure we had the absolute best day, and we certainly had that.

The food was also delicious which can be a rarity in the wedding industry which was important to us as foodies, and they were very flexible with catering to dietary requirements of us and our guests. We had an incredible day and night, our guests had an amazing time and that is very reflective of this family’s lovely venue and hospitality shown throughout.

This is an absolutely beautiful barn venue with lovely grounds which are very well kept and make for gorgeous photos. They are very knowledgeable about weddings, and their expertise ensures everything runs smoothly (they are magic!).

We HIGHLY recommend Villiers Barn for your choice of wedding venue, everything was faultless and we appreciate them going above and beyond for us and our wedding party & guests.

Thank you VB!!
Gemma and Alex Martin xx
Jade
Jade L. Sent on 06/07/2024
5 out of 5 rating

Our perfect day!!

Where do we start! From start to finish Villiers barn have been incredible! We booked Villiers barn back in August 2022 and from the very moment of viewing the venue, we instantly fell in love and knew that we would be getting married here! (In fact, we actually didn’t view any other venues because it was so perfect in so many ways for us) Communication was fantastic and every question and query was never too much! Juliet, Jonathan and the team were truly incredible in the run up to the wedding and they were truly outstanding on the day too! Everything was perfect on our big day and nothing was too much for the team! (We got married 25.05.24)
Our day ran seamlessly and there were zero worries for us as everything was taken care of by Juliet, Jonathan, Rebecca and the team.

The food was truly incredible! All of our guests said how amazing the food was and we absolutely loved our evening pizza, even providing personal pizza’s for our guests with dietary needs was a great touch!

We absolutely love that a little bit of our day will forever remain at Villiers barn! Jonathan and the team decided to keep our shot wall that my husband made for our wedding and it’s been so lovely seeing it being used by more couples getting married!

I also have to say how incredibly accessible the venue is! Again another thing we loved about the venue when we first viewed was how accessible the grounds are. Our oldest son is disabled and it was very important for us to ensure the toilets were accessible and the ramps and rails were very well thought about in the planning/building.

The grounds are so beautiful and truly breathtaking! You will have the most amazing photos getting married at Villiers barn!

We cannot thank Juliet, Barry, Jonathan and Rebecca enough for making our day so truly special, bringing our vision to life and helping us make the most beautiful memories that will last a lifetime! Our wedding day truly was everything we had ever dreamed of!

We will forever highly recommend Villiers barn to our friends and family and hope that we get to return as guests in the future!
Emma
Emma O. Sent on 06/07/2024
5 out of 5 rating

Thank you from Mr & Mrs Osborn!

We had the most incredible day at Villiers Barn, we would highly recommend this venue to everyone! The venue is just stunning, the ceremony room is set up perfectly, the grounds are so well kept and are perfect for photos, but the barn is the real wow factor! All of our guests kept saying how much they loved the venue and the food.

Juliet, Jonathan, Becky and all of the team are amazing, nothing is too much trouble and they are always on hand to help. They made our day run smoothly from start to finish, everything was just perfect.

We really wish we could do it all over again🥹

Emma & James Osborn
15/06/2024
Lee
Lee P. Sent on 09/06/2024
5 out of 5 rating

Best of the best ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Sounds cheesy I know but Sophie & I honestly had the wedding of our dreams and the entire experience was everything we could have wished for!

The setting of Villiers Barn is honestly something so special and the memories created we will cherish for the rest of our lives!

Juliet, Jonathan, Becky and the ‘surrogate daughter’ (ever so sorry, cannot remember your name) really did go the extra mile throughout with making everything stress free from the moment we met, two years prior to booking our wedding date!

You guys really have created something so special there and you should all be proud of what you have accomplished.

Only downside is we can’t do it all again! 🤣

All the best, love from Mr & Mrs Piggott

💒 13th April 2024 💒
Kelsey
Kelsey B. Sent on 05/06/2024
5 out of 5 rating

The most amazing venue!

I would 100% recommend Villiers Barn!
Its is honestly the most beautiful venue, gorgeous views, lovely honeymoon lodge and most of all the owners and staff are just amazing!
From the day we first visited we knew it was the one! Every email was always answered, every question was never too silly and every little detail they knew!
On the day (10th May) myself and the bridesmaids got ready at the venue and honestly the space made me feel like I could move in there! Kitchen area, amazing space to have the makeup and hair suppliers, lovely room to have your dress reveal and a swimming pool/ outdoor area!
The day run so smoothly thanks to Jonathan , he went above and beyond on the day and every question we asked he had already done it, always one step ahead!
The food is something everyone dreads at a wedding but when we told everyone that we were having bangers and mash they laughed…. Until the day when everyone got their dinner and everyone still goes on about how delicious it was!
Myself, Tom and our daughter Eidie were really made to feel special and part of the family and we’ll be forever grateful for making our day so perfect!
Thank you Barry, Juliet, Jonathan, Becky and all the team for being the best!
All our love
Tom and Kelsey 💜
Abigail
Abigail J. Sent on 27/02/2024
5 out of 5 rating

Stunning venue with an incredible team

Cannot recommend Villiers enough, from our initial enquiry through to our day (and beyond) the whole team are simply fabulous and nothing is too much to ask. The venue itself is beautiful and the food is incredible. We knew as soon as we saw Villiers it would be our wedding venue and there was never a second we doubted that decision. Along with some of their recommended suppliers we had a stress free day where everything had been thought of and ran so smoothly. Words aren’t enough to thank the Villiers team for making our day so special
Clare
Clare L. Sent on 14/01/2024
5 out of 5 rating

The day every little girl dreams of


Sorry this is a long one and has taken a while because how can you sum up your perfect day in a few words?

Before we were engaged we had always talked about getting married at a certain place, even the night we got engaged we were at this venue and sat planning how we would have it if we were to get married, little did I know that I was being proposed to that night. The proposal happened and as we left the place we booked an appointment with their wedding planner, as Michael was not from around the area and hadn’t been to any weddings locally we thought best just have a little look around just incase, I’m not sure how we found Villiers Barn but oh my god are we happy we did!

The minute we set foot into the barn we just fell in love, the warmth, love and passion the team at Villiers have could be felt- we went ahead with our pre booked appointments at other venues but found ourselves comparing where we looked to Villiers, but nowhere did compare. We booked a second viewing more so because I just wanted to return and get that feeling I felt when I first walked in- due to my job and shifts we were unable to attend for a couple of weeks, I emailed Jonathan explaining this with a hope that our chosen date would still be available after the viewing, Jonathan was so accommodating with finding a date which suited my shifts and not only that offered to hold our date at no cost until after we had been.
My parents and my sister in law attended the second viewing with us and to say my mum and sister in law cried when they walked in and as we left my dad’s reaction was ‘I can see you getting married here, the smile on your face when u walked in and the look in your eyes tells me that’ made our already easy choice easier and we confirmed our booking that evening

When booking various suppliers upon telling them our venue they would all comment on how lovely it was there, both my hair and make up artist commenting on the bridal prep area and how they love the space and lay out and out photographer saying it is one of her favourite venues.

As previously mentioned I’m a shift worker and would often find myself planning parts of our wedding either late evening or in the middle of the night on my break- this usually meant the team would get a random time email and much to my surprise I would always get a response within a couple of hours with the email finishing up with them asking me if there was anything they could do to help!

Having a December wedding I wanted to make our wedding a little Christmasy- Villiers were more than accommodating asking if they could have their beautiful Christmas tree up, serving winter pimms and evening adapting their traditional roast for the wedding breakfast to a Christmas dinner- and while I’m talking about the food I’ve had numerous comments from the guests about the standard of the food, how delicious it was and how it catered to all dietary requirements so no-one felt different.

Little did I know Jonathan and my dad had been emailing and between them organised one of the biggest surprises I’ve ever received in my life with an incredible firework display- Thank you for that!

Throughout the day Juilet and Jonathan ensured that Michael and I had time together just the two of us which was very welcomed and appreciated as were all the little reassuring hugs from Juliet she just knew when they were needed!

There is not one thing I would change about our day at Villiers I just wish we could do it all over again- in my dads words ‘the best day of his life’ much to my brothers annoyance!

Thank you Juliet, Jonathan and the rest of the team- you are all incredible

Clare and Michael Lowe
8/12/23
Sarah
Sarah E. Sent on 14/12/2023
5 out of 5 rating

Villiers Barn October wedding

Our wedding day was perfect!
All the staff were friendly, approachable and welcoming.
Nothing was too much trouble.
Leading up to the wedding communication was great. All of my questions were answered promptly. We had a clear time scale, when payments were due and when we had to meet to finalise menu choices and our order of the day. We had a lot going on throughout our wedding day, music, band, magician, sparklers, fireworks, Photo Booth … our day ran so smoothly. The Barn, all facilities and grounds are stunning. Our videos and photos are perfect reflecting on what an amazing day we had. We would just like to do it all over again!
Kim
Kim Sent on 17/11/2023
5 out of 5 rating

Amazing and perfect!

What a venue, where to start!
From the moment we met the team, we knew this was the venue for us. Relaxed and informal, but we could see that it ran with coordination and ease.
The planning process was easy and final details meeting eased my nerves! Menu has so much choice and had what we needed for all our guests. The day, and evening, was perfect - kept on time without feeling rushed.
Could not recommend this team or the venue enough. All our guests were so amazed by the venue and its ideal location. We're still hearing compliments weeks after the big day!
Thank you to the team for making our day so special
Anna-Louise
Anna-Louise L. Sent on 15/11/2023
5 out of 5 rating

The most incredible day ♥️

We viewed Villiers Barn back in October 2021 and as soon as we viewed the Venue and walked around the lake and saw the ducks my now husband said this is the one ( I have grown up with Aylesbury ducks ever since I was a little girl). Ever since that day Johnathan and Juliet's communication with us was fantastic any questions we had were answered and they replied to us so quickly, Absolutely faultless. Every time we went to the venue we just fell more and more in love with the place and we couldn't wait for our wedding day so our family and friends could celebrate our special day with us.

We got married on 09.09.23 and it was truly magical from the minute I arrived at the bridal suite in the morning with my bridal party, Juliet was there to welcome us all and popped by during the morning to check that everything was okay. The whole day ran faultlessly with Juliet, Johnathan, Miss Alice and the rest of the team. All dietary requirements were accommodated and my gluten-free guest really felt catered for with her own canapes. Everyone commented on how beautiful the venue was and they all commented on how delicious the meal was. The venue, the team and our wedding day was completely incredible. Juliet and her family make you feel so welcome and really make your day everything you have ever dreamed of. I wish we could relive the day again. Villiers and the team hold such a special place in our heart and I will recommend this venue over and over again.

Lots of love and Best wishes from

Anna & James Marven xx
Robyn
Robyn Sent on 05/11/2023
5 out of 5 rating

What dreams are made of!!

What an incredible venue Villiers Barn is, truly! My husband and I were truly blown away by how much we fell in love with the venue. Villiers was the first place we viewed in our searches and we didn’t really know what to expect, but upon being greeted the moment we arrived by Juliet we instantly seen how much love and passion she had for the venue. It was something we didn’t see from anywhere else and well nothing was able to compare to Villiers, we started with the best & we got the best!

We noticed during our searches that Villiers was offering more than just a stunning venue, the owners and the staff who worked there was on a different league. We felt valued and made to feel as if we weren’t just a number or another couple looking for a wedding venue, but rather we were friends. All communication we held with Juliet and her family was amazing, no question was too small or silly. Also when all your suppliers have nothing but amazing words to say about the venue and staff you know you’ve picked a pretty special place.

The actual venue is truly breath taking. You NEED to view it in person because (I mean this in the best way) pictures really don’t do it justice! The bridal preparation cottage was just perfect, it’s a great size and made for a very peaceful morning for my mum, bridesmaids and myself which is exactly what you need! The honeymoon cabin was truly gorgeous and was the perfect place to spend our first night & morning as husband & wife. I could honestly go on and on… but even if you’re unsure I highly recommend going to view Villiers Barn, because it will not disappoint!

I highly recommend doing food tasting because it allowed us to not only spend more time at the venue, but we were able to treat it as a little date night for the 2 of us to celebrate that we were getting married in the stunning place that was Villiers (plus the food is incredible!!!). On the big day itself our guests raved on how good the food was, we had some very fussy eaters and they loved that they were able to eat wedding food supplied by the venue for the first time haha! Huge thank you to Villiers for being so accommodating for the fussy eaters, along with those who had special dietary requirements, ourselves included!

We feel so lucky and grateful to have found Villiers Barn in our searches, we’ve got only the happiest of memories with the venue and the staff! It’s sad to think that our time with them has come to an end! We can only hope that our paths cross again some way or another!

You made our wedding dreams a reality, our only wish is that we would love to re-live the day all over again.

Thank you, thank you, thank you!!

Robyn & George
LuxuriousBlueStationery269
Laura H. Sent on 02/11/2023
5 out of 5 rating

The Best Wedding Venue in Essex, by far!

We got married here at Villiers in August 2023 (having booked back in September 2020). Juliet and her team were fantastic throughout the entire experience.

Obviously, we had a lot of time to plan, but anytime I emailed or contacted the VB team with queries or for clarification on finer details, I always got a quick response, usually same day, but at most 2 days. The team clearly work incredibly hard for all their couples and this is evident through their care and attention to detail. No ask was too much, and actually Juliet was really helpful with a few suggestions too, which made our day run smoothly.

We visited the venue a couple of times throughout our planning stages and were always welcomed with a very warm smile. This venue has a lovely personal feel to it.

The morning of the wedding was wonderful, having the bride and bridesmaids being able to get ready at the venue with our chosen suppliers was an absolute god send, and something that made the morning feel all the more special and actually quite relaxing. The pool area is well maintained and makes for some really lovely "getting ready" photos. We didn't have time for a swim, but we did dip our toes in and have a little glass of prosecco with the sun shining.

There is ample parking at the venue and the option to drop off table decorations etc the day before if necessary- these are stored in a locked, waterproof outbuilding, safe. Again, little things like this made the morning of the wedding run so smoothly and less stress!

We opted to do our own music for the ceremony, rather than a DJ, and this was all co-ordinated with the venue beforehand by simply sharing a Spotify playlist with them the week before- again, stress free! We left the rest to the team and it was faultless. The sound system here is really good, and the music playing in the courtyard after is an added bonus, creating a lovely ambience during the drinks reception.

The food was delicious! We had quite a large amount of guests that had various dietary requirements and allergies. I was concerned this would be an issue (wherever we booked) but the team at VB were super helpful and made amendments to our menu choices where necessary and they really did do a great job! We opted for the bruschetta starter, sausages and mash for main and the cheesecake for dessert. All delicious and received great feedback from our guests!

For the evening we booked DJ Scott Dewing, who is a recommended supplier at VB and he was absolutely fantastic! I have left him a separate review, but worth mentioning here that you will not be disappointed in booking him!

We stayed in the lake lodge the night of the wedding and this really is just another beautiful extension to the already amazing setting. Highly recommend booking this for the evening of your wedding day- it feels very secluded and intimate.

All the staff at Villiers are very friendly and on hand to help with anything. Everywhere is immaculate and you can tell the owners take great pride in the presentation of their venue. You really are made to feel special here, not just another wedding.

Juliet and her team deserve all the success for many years to come!

All the best,
Mr & Mrs Howard - 27th Aug 2023
Charlotte
Charlotte A. Sent on 31/10/2023
5 out of 5 rating

A day worth waiting for

We had to reschedule our wedding multiple times due to Covid and couldn’t have asked for more support from Jonathan, Juliet and the team. They had everything under control and all our preferences noted down so that even two years down the line, we could still have the day we had meticulously planned.

In the weeks leading up to the wedding Becky became my go to person, answering my last minute questions, checking in and working with my venue stylist. Nothing was too much trouble.

I couldn’t have asked for a better team on the day, adjusting things to accommodate for the ever unreliable British weather and making sure both ourselves and our guests were looked after.

When planning our day we said to make sure our guests didn’t want for anything and that is exactly what the team did for us. Every little detail had been considered, every request was responded to and we had the most perfect day.

Barry, Juliet, Jonathan and Becky - you are an asset to the industry and your personal approach does not go unnoticed! It was our privilege to host our wedding at your beautiful venue and we’d do it again in a heartbeat! Thank you so much
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Hitched Wedding Awards 2024 Winner
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Villiers Barn Real Weddings

Elisha & Daniel
40 photos · 30/04/2022

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Grove Farm, Tan Lane, Thorpe-Le-Soken CO16 9PT Thorpe-le-Soken (Essex)
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