Spencer House can be hired for private and corporate events on an exclusive basis: cocktail receptions for up to 450 guests, seated dinners for 120, theatre-style presentations for 100 and wedding ceremonies for 90. The venue is the suite of eight State Rooms of an 18th-century London palace at 27 St James's Place, facing Green Park, in the heart of St James's.
Seminars and company events
The house presents itself for corporate functions of every size, from an intimate meeting to a large reception. A company can stage a presentation, a board meeting or a product launch in the State Rooms, and the events team arranges the audiovisual equipment needed. The team can also suggest ways to carry branded or themed communication into the rooms. Theatre-style seating reaches 100 people.
For an evening, the standing capacity is 450 guests, which suits a client reception or an anniversary. Because the house only accepts exclusive use, a company never shares the floor with another group. Every event has all eight rooms, which means arrivals, a presentation and a dinner can each take place in a different room.
Weddings and receptions
Spencer House is licensed for wedding ceremonies for up to 90 guests. The same rooms then serve for the reception or the seated dinner that follows. The house works with its own staff, recruited and trained in-house, with a high ratio of staff to guests.
Rooms and capacities
The State Rooms are a series of interconnecting reception rooms, some large and some small, all in the classical style of the eighteenth century. Their layout can be configured for the occasion.
Seated dinners take up to 120 guests: 84 in the Great Room and 36 in Lady Spencer's Room, which adjoins it. Receptions take up to 450 people. Theatre-style sessions take up to 100.
In May, June, July and September the terrace is part of the booking. It looks over a rewilded garden and across to Green Park. In colder months the rooms themselves provide the shelter and the setting.
Catering
Catering is handled by the house's own team of chefs, who work from locally sourced ingredients. For a reception the choice runs from canapés and bowl food to food stations. For a dinner the format is formal seated service.
History and setting
The house was built between 1756 and 1766 for the first Lord and Lady Spencer, on a site overlooking Green Park. It is one of the few great aristocratic palaces of London that survive. After decades of decline caused by war damage and commercial occupation, it was restored between 1985 and 1994. The collection of paintings and furniture can be seen by the public on Blue Badge guided tours, which run on Sundays and by pre-booking for groups during the week.
Getting there
The address is 27 St James's Place, London SW1A 1NR. Green Park is the closest Underground station. The house is closed in August, so plan summer dates around that month.
