Southend Barns

Setting

Open since June 2012, Southend Barns is a family-run wedding venue located on what was once a working farm. Located in the beautiful West Sussex Countryside, Southend Barns has been lovingly restored with rustic charm and romantic touches. Built and run to be as eco-friendly as possible, the wedding barns have been carefully restored to create the perfect setting for a romantic civil ceremony and wedding reception.

Ceremony

Fully licensed for all civil ceremonies and partnerships, Southend Barns offers two ceremony space options, which can be finalized on the day of your wedding.

The Dairy Barn is their indoor ceremony space. It has a serene ambience and simple but romantic styling to complement all wedding day themes. The Dairy Barn is a beautiful space for a ceremony, featuring a sweeping aisle and wooden beams with a crisp and neutral colour palette, perfect for adding your own wedding day style.

The Secret Garden is their outdoor ceremony space. It is a fantastic way to create a unique wedding inspired by nature, adding a sunlit sparkle to daytime ceremonies. Nestled in a peaceful spot between their beautiful fields and the flint walls of the Dairy Barn, the outdoor wedding ceremony garden is lined with elegant concrete benches and surrounded by beautiful borders. The sweeping 50-foot aisle leads to a sheltered pagoda where vows will be exchanged.

Reception

The Collecting Yard is a beautiful space for your drinks reception. It is spacious and perfectly maintained, ideal for mingling with guests, entertaining, musical performances, and evening relaxation. Experienced caterers and staff provide choices of seating and dining. The all-weather Collecting Yard comes complete with a terrace bar, sheltered alfresco seating, and a roaring fire pit.

The Threshing Barn is a magnificent space for a wedding reception and party, the Threshing Barn exudes countryside opulence with exposed wooden beams and original features. Offering plenty of flexibility for all sizes and styles of wedding reception, it is the perfect backdrop for your evening celebrations. The event managers can recommend varied layouts to reflect your perfect wedding, with a large area that can accommodate a wide range of guests, acting as a dining hall for your wedding breakfast, an entertaining space for evening dancing, or as a banquet area for festive or winter-themed occasions.

Accommodation

The Milking Parlour is the perfect finishing touch to an incredible wedding; with its serene and stylish interiors, you can relax and indulge in the memories of your day. Located in its private courtyard with a rose garden and water feature, the Milking Parlour provides a calm and relaxing space for you throughout the special day. A freshly prepared Roots breakfast hamper is delivered the next morning to enjoy. The Milking Parlour can also be used for the wedding party to get ready in, with large mirrors, seating and all the facilities needed for the important wedding day preparations.

Mama Lou Shepherd’s Hut is the epitome of first-class glamping. Set in the alpaca’s grazing field with its own festoon-lit private pathway and garden, it has been immaculately restored to create a sumptuous and unique retreat. In the fridge, you’ll find chilled prosecco, fresh juice, milk, and coffee to accompany the breakfast delivery.

Enjoy a night of luxury under the sparkling West Sussex sky, the beautiful new luxury bell tent accommodation offering. Sleeping 12 people in total, each of the six tents accommodates up to two adults and comes equipped with lighting and charging points, luxurious double beds complete with Egyptian cotton bedding, and a delicious continental breakfast created by Roots Catering delivered straight to the tent in the morning. The bell tents also have exclusive access to bathroom facilities, including showers and WC, with a range of decadent Cowshed toiletries and soft towels available.

Food & Drink

Roots Catering is the in-house team of talented chefs passionate about fusing fresh ingredients with creative flair to create mouth-watering menus that evolve through the seasons. From sharing platters and street food to decadent three-course feasts and plant-based dishes, enjoy exploring the menus, and the chefs look forward to creating a wedding day celebration perfectly tailored to you.

At Southend Barns, choosing the right drinks is just as important as the dream menu, setting the overall tone and enhancing each dish or canapé to perfection, from the delicious range of cocktails and mocktails to the extensive wine list and very own Southend Craft Lager. All drinks are selected with the celebration in mind, served in elegant glassware and poured by a dedicated and attentive team to add to the experience and create memories lasting forever.

Sustainability

Carbon Neutral Weddings at Southend Barns, being a countryside barn venue on a farm, dedicated efforts have been put in to protecting and looking after the building, surrounding area and land. Having achieved a sustainable venue means they can offer carbon-neutral weddings to their soon-to-be wedded couples. The focus on environmental sustainability is achieved not only at the Barns but also at Southend Farm, making the soil better again and generating more organic matter in the top layer of the soil. Discovering the crops as well as the soil has its own microbiome, similar to what we humans have, they had to improve soil microbial diversity and richness to create better soil health.

Buying locally has been a priority for Roots Catering at Southend Barns. Not only does it support local suppliers, but it also reduces food miles and, therefore, reliance on fossil fuels. The addition of the allotment next to the barn has enhanced the now very local offer of vegetables, berries, and herbs.