If you feel Shugborough is the ideal venue for your special day, please telephone to arrange a wedding preview to discuss our venue and your requirements.

Please contact either of our Marketing Assistants on 01889 881388 who will be happy to arrange an appointment with you.

Once you have decided that Shugborough is the venue for your civil wedding ceremony we are happy to provisionally hold a date for you.  You need to liaise directly with the local Registrar who must be available to conduct the ceremony.
The Registrar’s details are:
The Superintendent Registrar
Eastgate House
79 Eastgate Street
Stafford ST16 2NG
Tel:  01785 277880

We will hold your preferred date for 28 days from the date of your discussion with us.  If you have not confirmed your date and time in writing, together with a fifty per cent deposit of the facility fee by this time, we will consider that you no longer wish to go ahead with the booking.  Once your confirmation letter and deposit have been received, the date of your wedding ceremony at Shugborough will be secure.

After confirming to you in writing the date and time of your wedding, we will contact you again to remind when the balance is due (ten weeks before the ceremony) and, again, about one month before the date to arrange a rehearsal for your special day.

Between Six Months and Six Weeks before the day…

• Decide on your guest list
• Choose a reception venue
• Organise a hairdresser and make-up
• Organise a florist
• Choose best man, ushers and bridesmaids
• Make honeynmoon arrangements
• Organise stationery – order of service, place cards, table plan
• Order wedding cake
• Choose photographer
• Organise entertainment

Before the Wedding…

Be assured that the Mansion House and the ceremony itself will be taken care of by Shugborough staff and the Registrar in the months leading up to the day.  The facilities that were described and discussed during your preview meeting will all be in place.

In order to help you with your planning, the following are some guidelines which we hope will be helpful to you.

• Shugborough is a visitor attraction and other activities may will coincide with the time of hire.

• Your official photographer can take photographs within the Saloon (summer weddings) and other rooms (winter weddings) but to protect the paintings, furniture and fabrics photography by guests is restricted to outside the building.

• A video recording of your wedding can take place.

• Toilets are situated in the same courtyard as the Tearoom and the National Trust shop.

• You may wish to have fresh flower arrangements and we can arrange for bases for pedestal arrangements to be available for you.  A small arrangement can be placed on the Registrar’s table.

• Live or recorded music can be arranged as guests are arriving and to play at appropriate times during the ceremony.  We can provide the names of musicians who have previously played at Shugborough.

• If you have guests who are not able to climb the steps to the Mansion House, please let us know when you come for your rehearsal and we can arrange for the step climber to be available to help them.  We are able to provide wheelchairs for guests if we have advance notice.  Guests who may difficulty walking any distance can be taken directly to the Mansion House steps.

• To discuss these and other details for the day, we will contact you about a month before your wedding to arrange a rehearsal.  When we have discussed all the relevant arrangements and timings with you, we will send you a confirmation of these to help with the smooth running of your day.

• The Saloon will be ready to receive your guests one hour before the ceremony is due to take place.  Any music or musicians can begin playing at this time.

• Access to the property is via the Main Gates, just off the A513 by Milford Common – there will be directions to the designated car park.

• There will be three wedding co-ordinators on hand to assist your guests and to ensure the smooth running of the ceremony.  Your best man should ensure - on your behalf –that ushers, if used, are available to greet your guests.

• The Registrar will speak to the Groom and Bride in the designated areas before the ceremony – these areas will be shown to you at your rehearsal.

• Once the Bride has arrived the doors to the Saloon will be closed ensuring total privacy for the ceremony.

• The ceremony and the signing of the registrar will be led by the Registrar.  If it has been decided to have a toast, it will take place when the legal ceremony has been completed.  This can take place on the Terrace Lawns if the weather is suitable, if not in the Saloon.  There will two hours after the ceremony for the bridal couple and their guests to enjoy the gardens and photographic opportunities.

• When the ceremony has taken place, please be aware that the Saloon will be open to visitors to the estate between March to October.

• When you leave for your reception, cars will follow the one way system and leave the estate by the Back Exit, on the A513.