Shropshire barn wedding venue lands prestigious regional title for fourth time

The Hundred House at Norton, near Bridgnorth, won the Best Wedding Barn Venue in the West Midlands category at The Wedding Industry Awards 2023 (TWIA) and now goes on to challenge for the national title at an event to be held in London in January.

It is the fourth TWIA regional award success for the family-run Hundred House, following on from three wins prior to the Covid pandemic and a large part of the judging criteria was made up of feedback and votes from couples who married at the venue.

Weddings at the Hundred House, located between Telford and Bridgnorth, are held in the 17th century tithe barn at the rear of the successful country pub, restaurant and hotel and is fully licensed for all civil marriage ceremonies. The client-voted TWIA were launched in 2011 to recognise and reward excellence within the UK weddings industry.

Stuart Phillips, of the Hundred House, said: “This is amazing news for us and we are absolutely delighted. The Wedding Industry Awards are the highlight of the year and everyone connected with the wedding industry wants to win one – they are the ‘Oscars’ of the industry.

“It’s the first time we have entered for three years and despite some mega tough competition from other stunning wedding venues across the West Midlands, we have won through again. It’s fantastic!

“After winning three times previously, we took the decision not to enter after 2019 out of respect for the more than 120 couples who were forced to postpone their weddings due to Covid. It just didn’t seem right, but we felt the 2023 awards presented the ideal opportunity to get involved again.

“We were up against extremely stiff competition of the highest quality which included big budget venues, some with a much higher price tag than us, but our idyllic wedding venue once again came up trumps - showing we can hold our own with anyone nationally.

“The judging process is primarily down to feedback and votes from couples who have experienced their wedding with us, which makes the win extra special for our team. Other factors in the decision making focus on the critique on our website, social media platforms and literature.

“We are very proud of our ongoing success, which is due to our excellent wedding and kitchen team as well as our beautiful oak tithe barn and gardens.

“Our team never relax the quality of service they provide, the care and attention they put into every moment and detail is what makes it special.

"We have so many people in the team that are family, quite literally, brothers and sisters, couples, mums and daughters, cousins and so on. It’s a close-knit team with a lot of experience and this is what makes the difference. A wedding is one of the most important days in a couple’s life and everything must go exactly as it should, making it a really special experience."

The national finals will be taking place on Wednesday, January 25.