Painshill offers meeting rooms for up to 60 people and outdoor spaces for up to 250 guests within a 160 acre 18th century landscape garden in Cobham, Surrey. Companies hire the Abercorn Room or the Riverside Rooms for meetings and workshops, while weddings and larger private events use the Walled Garden, the Great Lawn and the Gothic Temple. Painshill is run by a registered charity.
Seminars and company events
The conference offer is based in the Visitor Centre, where the function rooms are equipped and can be laid out in theater or boardroom style. A projector and a laptop can be hired for meetings and training classes. Organizers can use the Abercorn Room for full or part days, and a delegate group gets access to the garden during the booking. The site suggests a lunch break outdoors, a team challenge such as a scavenger hunt, or a walking meeting along the lake.
Other occasions listed on the room hire page include workshops, birthday parties, anniversaries, afternoon teas and celebration of life receptions. A summer booking of the Riverside Rooms can include the adjacent Riverside Garden for a drinks reception or networking. Free parking is available on site and the team supports the organizer from enquiry to the day itself.
Weddings and receptions
Weddings take place from May to September. The Gothic Temple hosts civil ceremonies and civil partnerships for up to 120 guests, with exclusive use for the ceremony, furniture and a covered marquee for guest comfort. The Crystal Grotto, a cave covered in crystals on the lake, takes ceremonies for up to 16 guests. The Walled Garden is a dry hire reception space for up to 150 guests, with a marquee hired separately. Photography sessions in the landscape can be added.
Rooms and capacities
The Abercorn Room is in the Visitor Centre. The room hire page gives 40 seated or 60 standing, and a private courtyard. The conference page quotes a theater maximum of 70, so confirm the figure for your layout. The Riverside Rooms overlook the River Mole. The Cascade Room and the Serpentine Room each take 30 seated, and together they take 60.
Outdoors, the Walled Garden holds up to 150 guests between May and September, with space for a marquee. The Great Lawn holds up to 250 guests and is available until sunset. Private hire of historic follies such as the Temple of Bacchus and the Crystal Grotto is possible for drinks, afternoon teas and small gatherings. Organized runs and sporting challenges can also be arranged across the grounds.
Catering
In-house catering is offered for every occasion, from tea and coffee on arrival to afternoon teas, buffet lunches and private dining. Bespoke menus are available on request. The Walled Garden is dry hire for weddings, so the couple arranges their own suppliers there.
History and setting
Charles Hamilton created Painshill in the 18th century as a landscape garden to be walked like a painting. It is considered one of the finest examples of the English landscape movement. Follies include the Gothic Temple, the Ruined Abbey, the Turkish Tent, the Gothic Tower and the Crystal Grotto, set around the Serpentine Lake. The vineyard is replanted on the estate. Painshill Park Trust, a small independent charity, operates the site, and the site states that every booking supports the conservation of the landscape.
Getting there
Painshill is in Cobham, Surrey. The site provides a Getting to Painshill page and states that free on-site parking is available for event guests. Train and airport details are not given on the pages consulted.
