Northamptonshire wedding venue delighted to be named best, against 18,000 others nationally

The owner of a Northamptonshire wedding venue is delighted to have won an award, where they were up against more than 18,000 others nationally.

The Granary at Fawsley, in Daventry, won in the ‘wedding venues’ category at the 2023 Hitched wedding awards.

All venues who are signed up to the leading wedding planning platform were in with a chance of winning.

Based on The Granary at Fawsley’s 27 online storefront reviews left over the past year, which gave them the highest possible five stars, they placed among the best at Hitched’s second annual awards.

Donna Newman, who owns the venue alongside her husband Glenn, said: “It’s amazing, and we won another award with Bridebook the same week.

“There’s so much competition and we’ve worked so hard to rival the big organisations.

“As it was based on people’s reviews, it was all out of our hands and was left to how good people think we are at what we do.”

The venue has been rewarded with a badge on Hitched, which acts as a quality marker for couples looking to tie the knot.

The Granary at Fawsley offers a collection of Grade II listed barns in the heart of the countryside, along with 10 bedrooms.

Donna and Glenn took over in 2012 and the venue was first used as a bed and breakfast, and a tearoom.

It was not until 2014 when they had to apply for a change of use for the barns that the pair properly began offering weddings the following year – and it has been the main part of the business since.

They unfortunately had to close the tearoom in 2018 as when a wedding is booked, the venue is exclusively open to the wedding party and the tea room was shut to the public.

However, putting a focus on weddings has paid off and Donna said: “The best part is the reviews. We find out if we have made their vision a reality, or even better – which is so much pressure.”

The venue only hosts 50 weddings per year, which allows Donna and Glenn to get to know the couples and stay in touch with them.