Shotton Hall cancels wedding bookings as coronavirus restrictions leave banqueting suites future in doubt

An East Durham wedding venue has been forced to close its doors by the coronavirus crisis.
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

Peterlee Town Council has announced the closure of its Shotton Hall banqueting suites as the impact of COVD-19 continues.

The banqueting suites in Old Shotton have been operated as a wedding, banqueting and conference centre since the 1980s, when the the council acquired the empty building from the former Peterlee and Great Aycliffe Development Corporation.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The venue specialises in large weddings, functions and conferences with a capacity of up to around 300 guests and also serves as a conference centre and meetings venue during the working week.

Shotton HallShotton Hall
Shotton Hall

It has been closed to customers since March 7 due to the Covid restrictions.

Now the Town Council has agreed to cease all commercial operations at the venue as it considers its options with the future of the building.

Part of the building also serves as the administrative HQ for the Town Council and these offices will remain open until at least Spring next year when a final decision on the future of the building will hopefully be reached.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Chief Officer of Peterlee Town Council Ian Morris, said the council had hoped to be able to reopen the banqueting suites at some point but had now been left with no choice but to confirm a closure.

Read More
13 photos show how Peterlee is coping with the lockdown

The authority has been in touch with customers who have paid deposits for functions to arrange refunds: “We have tried to weather the storm of the initial 6 months COVID lockdown period and were hoping to be able to open for smaller weddings back in August.

"Sadly the government’s ongoing restrictions, the ‘rule of six’ and the latest North East restrictions have meant that the council has had to make the very difficult decision to close the doors at Shotton Hall to protect the council and the public services that we provide from further losses.

“We have contacted customers who had future bookings to issue full refunds of any deposits paid. The Council hopes to be in a position to confirm the longer-term future of the banqueting suites at some point in 2021.”

A message from the Editor

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our advertisers - and consequently the revenue we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription.

You can subscribe to this website and enjoy unlimited access to local news and information online and on our app. With a digital subscription, you can read more than 5 articles, see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. SImply click ‘Subscribe’ in the menu. You can subscribe to the newspaper with 20% off here. Thank you.

Related topics: