1/5
A warning to anyone wishing to hold any form of celebration at Cuffley Hall. We recently had our wedding reception here and needless to say, it is not a venue that is suitable for a party of approx 100 guests. Complaints to the hall itself will also be dismissed and not taken seriously by the Chairman as I have sadly experienced today.
Pros: Helpful administrative staff (particularly Anita) and somewhat flexible in regards to setting up decor etc. (However be prepared to communicate regularly and ask as many questions as possible to ensure you know exactly what's happening).
Cons: Extremely rude bar manager (huffing/puffing, eye rolling, slamming down drinks, ignoring guests, and having a generally rude and unprofessional manner. Many guests (and vendors) were appalled by her behaviour. She rushed us out at 11:30pm and even damaged decor in doing so. She constantly complained that it was too busy and there were too many people (we were under capacity by 50 people)... it was almost as if she resented us celebrating and being happy.
You, your guests and all your belongings must be out of the venue by 11:45pm (although the terms state midnight) or you risk being locked outside, with all your belongings inside. As we were almost finished leaving and emptying the venue at 11:40pm, the bar manager closed and locked the doors. She wouldn't let us back in and even when asked politely, we were ignored with rudeness. I had to then go to my hotel room without my medication, clothing and in a large wedding ball gown. Ending our wedding night on a sour note.
Expensive bar- you must only order bottled drink through the bar and this cost us nearly £1000- not including the money put behind the bar for further drinks. The bar is also suspiciously/inconveniently cash only.
A long list of ridiculous terms and conditions. My dad was also rudely and abruptly asked to not use the smoke machine (which we paid for) however this is not stated anywhere on the terms and conditions. We were also told we had too many balloons...we had under 10 average sized helium balloons. Again, nowhere to be seen on the terms.
There is a volume control alarm. If the sound goes over 85db a red light flashes. We were told on the day of the wedding "if this happens 3 times, your party will be shut down and all guests asked to leave". This would be fine if it did not go off at the sound of applause, laughter or cheering. Luckily, the alarm did not sound but only because I (the bride) spent the entire night worrying with the DJs and asking guests to be quiet and not cheer or sing or laugh or clap too loudly... at a wedding. The mere sound of a balloon pop made the red light flash.
I strongly suggest that Cuffley Hall re-think their terms and conditions and the statement on their website which states "perfect for weddings". This venue is most certainly NOT perfect for weddings or any large celebration for that matter.
