Back to the future
Written by Melissa
On 5th October 1996, Mark and I were married at the Norman Church, St John the Evangelist, just next door to Pauntley. Pauntley Court is our family home and we live here with our three children, Sorrel, Mungo and Clemmie and an eclectic mix of family pets.
As a family run wedding venue, we offer a warm welcome to couples looking for that special and unique place for their own wedding. We love to share the magical atmosphere of Pauntley and the unique beauty that the house and formal gardens exude. We cannot wait to be able to open our doors again after we are through this challenging period that Covid-19 has created. As a new venue we have worked with our lovely couples who were due to marry this year and found them alternative weekend dates next year.
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| November 1933 | April 2020 |
In 1933, Pauntley Court was opened as The Gloucestershire Home for the Wayfarers, supported by John Masefield (Poet Laureate) to help with the flood of destitute and homeless young men tramping the countryside looking for work. These men worked hard to restore and maintain the house and farmed the 40 acres of land surrounding Pauntley Court in return for a roof over their head in the house.
For Mark and myself, with our 3 children, much of the above remains true today! We have been very busy maintaining the house, gardens and grounds during this time in preparation for an exciting 2021!
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| March 1934 | July 2020 |
Pauntley Court "lies in a place of great beauty and strangeness, very dear to me” - John Masefield, poet laureate, 1930 - 1967.
Never a truer word spoken. Pauntley Court has its own innate atmosphere allowing our couples the chance to create a truly original and personal wedding weekend and to capture wonderful memories of this special moment in time. The natural beauty of its formal gardens and surrounding estate give couples a multitude of options to create their unique three day wedding.
Dormitory May 1934
Since the Wayfarers lived here in dormitories, we are pleased to say that mattress technology has improved somewhat! All of our 10 bedrooms across the main house, the Elizabethan wing and the Dovecote are individually designed and decorated with wonderful ensuite bathrooms.
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| Feb 1935 | April 2020 |
Back then, the land was tilled by hand and the wayfarers worked hard to grow fruit and vegetables, with pigs and poultry and they were even given a cow named ‘Josephine’.
By living and working at Pauntley, these young men were helped to relaunch their lives and as John Masefield said "go back into life re-made with hope". Now as a wedding venue, it has come full circle with Pauntley Court once again being a place where couples and their family and friends can come together to celebrate their lives and launch a new chapter together!
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| February 1934 | July 2020 |
As the photos show, the grounds have dramatically changed. The formal gardens that surround the house today are very different to how it once looked before! My mother, Christine, created and planted these beautiful gardens in 1990.
We currently have a plethora of animals, even a chicken as mum to two ducklings, two cats, two old ponies and our latest addition - Fennel, a Cavachon puppy.
We feel passionate about maintaining this special place for the future just as John Masefield felt so keenly about setting up the Home here to help young men while at the same time, saving the building. All their hard work means that we are now able to allow many couples to start a new chapter of their lives here, through the wonders of Pauntley court.
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| November 1933 | September 2020 |
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| Dec 1933 | July 2020 |
" Twenty-one young men, rescued from the lives of tramps, listened intently to Brother Douglas, founder of the Order of St. Francis the Church England, when he declared open the Gloucestershire Home for Wayfarers at Pauntley Court…. "
" ......Then finally the Home, and the 40 acres of ground, were thrown open for inspection, and people were able to see the fruits of nine months' work done by the wayfarers themselves."
- extract from the Gloucestershire Citizen, Monday 28th May 1934 -
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I cannot praise Melissa, her team and Pauntley Court (PC) enough.
We were looking for venues for a whole year before we came across Pauntley Court and my gosh it was so unique.
From the very first video call with Melissa, PC just stood out. For one it is the most unique and magical place we've visited but also how wonderful Melissa was. On the initial call we were so taken with how bubbly Melissa was but also how nothing seemed too much trouble. This definitely continued throughout the entire wedding planning and on the weekend itself. Melissa would make herself available for any question we had (measuring the stretch tent, finding us an outdoor tap) - nothing seemed to phase her and she was open to anything - exactly what we were looking for in a wedding venue.
Now onto PC itself - I don't really think words can do it justice. The venue is simply stunning, every corner you turn there is something else to grab at your heart and pull you to the venue.
We also adored how you had use of the venue from 12pm on the Friday until 4pm on the Sunday. It meant we could have a rehearsal on the Friday, steam all the clothing, unpack and join our wedding party for drinks and a BBQ in the lavender garden on the Friday night. While Sunday enabled us to have a leisurely start while also reliving all the memories from the last night over breakfast with our friends.
Particular loves go to:
- the grounds - mentioned in reviews time and time again but they are just gorgeous
- the ability to have your legal ceremony in multiple locations and for a non-legal wedding you have access to the whole site
- Rebecca - the best co-ordinator ever - having access to Rebecca for the day (and calls leading up to the day) really helped with the last minute panics / helped the day run smoothly
- Rachel - the most wonderful housekeeper - keeping the food flowing on the Friday and for breakfasts. She ran a very tight ship and it enabled us to just relax knowing everything was handled.
- the beautiful ballroom - this was such a fantastic place to get ready with my bridesmaids but also hold an unforgettable ceilidh
- the cupid club - a new addition but great to keep the party going
- the lake house - makes a wonderful first look location or photo setting and with the water is such a calming space
I could honestly keep singing PC's praises and hope I can visit again in some form!
Image by Red Maple Photography