The Inn at Whitewell hosts weddings for up to 200 guests in its riverside marquee, civil ceremonies for up to 75 and small meetings for up to 14 delegates. Weddings come with exclusive use of the whole inn and its 25 bedrooms. The inn stands on the banks of the River Hodder at Whitewell, in the Forest of Bowland in Lancashire, near Clitheroe.
Seminars and company events
Meetings take place in a private room in the Gallery, which looks over the river and the fells and holds up to 14 delegates. The room has a large screen for sharing a laptop and flip charts, and the hire includes three rounds of tea and coffee during the day. Working lunches are served as sandwich platters in the room or in a reserved area of the bar, and the bar lunch menu can be ordered ahead on the day. Small groups can add activities arranged by the inn: fly fishing on the Hodder, clay pigeon shooting, golf through the Clitheroe club, guided walks and trail biking. The inn keeps three electric bikes for guests. With 25 bedrooms in the same building, a board or a leadership team can meet, eat and stay without moving.
Weddings and receptions
Weddings are sold as total exclusivity: the couple have the whole inn, inside and out, and all 25 bedrooms for their guests. Church ceremonies can take place at St Michael's, the church beside the inn, which holds up to 200. Civil ceremonies are held in the main dining room for up to 75, and in summer the grounds can host the ceremony outdoors. The main dining room seats 60 for the wedding breakfast. For larger parties, a traditional marquee with river views takes 80 to 200 guests. It has glass doors onto a balcony and opens to a riverside garden with fire pits, and also serves for large private parties. The inn introduces couples to the photographers, florists and singers it works with.
Accommodation
The 25 bedrooms are each decorated differently and priced by size and position. On a wedding weekend they are all reserved for the couple's guests. Spa treatments can be booked during a stay.
Catering
The kitchen is led by head chef Jamie Cadman, now in his twenty-ninth year at the inn. Wedding menus and wine lists are written for each couple. For meetings, the inn serves working lunches of soups, sandwich platters and homemade chips, or meals from the bar menu.
History and setting
The inn dates back to the 14th century and is a Grade II listed building. It looks over the Hodder and the rolling fells of the Forest of Bowland, a rural part of Lancashire, and belongs to The Great Inns of Britain group. The setting is the main draw: river, open country and an old inn that a wedding party can have to itself.
Getting there
The inn is at Whitewell, near Clitheroe, postcode BB7 3AT. Clitheroe has a railway station with trains to Manchester, and Manchester Airport is the nearest major airport.
