Wedding FAQs

Yes, you will need to liaise with the registrar separately and ensure they are available to conduct a civil wedding ceremony on the date you have chosen. This is the second most important thing to do after booking the venue. The phone number for Isle of Wight Council is 01983 823233.

Please note that the venue ceremony fee is separate from the fee the council will charge to conduct the ceremony.

You are also able to have a blessing by a celebrant or family member. There is no venue charge for this. Please see our list of local suppliers for some of the celebrants we have worked with previously.

Yes. Dogs are more than welcome to be part of your celebrations and to stay in the accommodation. Our extra accommodation, down the road at Tapnell Farm, also welcomes dogs. Should you need help looking after them on your wedding day, we have recommended dog sitters and walkers on our supplier list.

Yes. We have two portable Bose sound systems at the venue, as well as two wireless microphones. The two microphones can be used at the same time. The portable sound systems can also be used to play your ceremony music and during drinks or dinner. A member of our team will ensure the right music is playing at the right time. We'll share playlists the day before the wedding so we can make sure your chosen music is ready to play from our devices.

Our licensed finish time for music is midnight. Although we do not have a sound restrictor in place, we ask that musicians be sensible about the noise levels. If they are excessively higher than normal, we will ask them to turn down the volume. Please note this is a rare occurrence.

We ask that no loud music be played on other evenings during your stay to avoid disrupting neighbouring properties.

No. We are sorry, but we cannot allow fireworks because of the animals and neighbours nearby. We do allow sparklers and will provide sand buckets if you have sparklers at your wedding.

Yes. We ask that all confetti be real or biodegradable. Confetti can be thrown in all areas of the venue.

East Afton Farmhouse & Annex can sleep a total of 20 guests across eight bedrooms if you fill every bed space. There are further accommodation units in the paddocks at the venue, as well as at nearby Tapnell Farm.

Yes. We ask that candles in the ceremony barn are enclosed, and any on the tables have holders that catch the wax. Please note that if the wax goes onto tablecloths, then they have to be thrown away. If this happens, we will need to pass on replacement charges from the hire company at £15 per cloth.

No matter which hire option you pick, we ask that all couples pay a £2000 deposit within two weeks of holding a date. Please get in touch if this is not possible, but you are concerned about booking a particular date.

There are a few options for transport to the church, or to and from the venue. Southern Vectis offers a 1930s open-top bus for hire ('The Old Girl' – one of the oldest in Britain), while Wight Minibus can do minibus trips. Alternatively, ICAB can offer a shuttle service with an eight-seater back and forth to Tapnell Farm or locations nearby.

Yes. Our inclusive packages can be tailored for each couple – you don't have to have everything included in our example package. All dietary requirements and allergies can be catered for, too.

Our venue capacities are as follows:

• Events Barn: 250 standing guests or 170 seated guests
• Stone Barn: 150 standing guests, 120 seated ceremony guests or 80 seated dining guests
• Coach House: 100 standing guests, 90 seated ceremony guests or 50 seated dining guests

Please get in touch if you have any questions.

Yes. For every wedding at the venue, we'll allocate a wedding coordinator. This person will be there on the day, a few hours before your guests arrive, to ensure everything is ready. They are there to ensure everything runs smoothly, and can play music, make announcements, liaise with suppliers and troubleshoot if required. They'll stay until every guest has left.

We'll also manage all the logistics in the months leading up to the wedding day. We'll contact every supplier, so they know timings, and we'll ensure we have their insurance details. We'll create your wedding schedule with you and share our knowledge and experience with you to help you plan the best day.

Our licensed areas include:

• All 3 wedding spaces (Stone Barn, Events Barn and Coach House)
• The courtyard decking
• The front lawn
• The paddock at the entrance to the venue

We allow our couples to provide their own welcome drinks, table wine and toasting drinks without any corkage charges.

Charges apply if you require any service or glass hire for these drinks. Glass hire is £0.80 per glass, and service is per hour per team member. The average cost to service all of these drinks for you is £200.

If you'd like guests to have drinks included all day and night, then you can have a tab to cover this. Alternatively, guests can purchase drinks at the barn from a time that suits you.

We are licensed until midnight, so music and drinks sales will stop a few minutes before. You will then have time to say goodbye to guests. We must have all barns empty before 12.30am. Please ask guests to book carriages for midnight or before.