Closed wedding venue seeks new suitor for £18m

A Grade I listed country house in Leicestershire which was last used as a hotel and wedding venue has gone up for sale with a guide price of £18m.

Stapleford Park near Melton Mowbray, abruptly ceased trading in October 2024 after what the business described as "adverse trading conditions".

Wedding bookings were cancelled at short notice and the company operating the hotel subsequently entered liquidation with the loss of 92 jobs.

Now the 48-bed home and its 54-acre grounds have been put on the market through agents Strutt & Parker.

The main building features guest rooms, a restaurant. bar and 1,000 sq m of conference and event spaces as well as a 22m indoor swimming pool, jacuzzi, sauna and steam room.

The sale also includes a separate "wellness Centre", pavilion, four cottages, and a nursery previously used as a creche for guests' children.

Street & Parker said there was planning consent for eight additional cottages to be built.

Outside, the landscaped gardens once designed by Capability Brown and grounds include four tennis courts, while the deconsecrated Church of St Mary Magdalene sits with grounds but is not part of the sale.

Stapleford Park has a long history, as the site was originally two manors but was united as one in the early 16th Century.

It was converted into a hotel in the 1980s by American restaurateur Bob Payton.

Over the years it has hosted members of the Royal Family including George VI and Edward VIII as well as celebrities such as David Beckham, Naomi Campbell, Mariah Carey and rock band Guns N' Roses who stayed at Stapleford Park when headlining the Download Festival in 2018.

Liquidator Leonard Curtis said in 2024 that "despite efforts to reach profitability", the company running the hotel "was unable to generate the turnover required".

Guests who were due to hold their wedding reception at the hotel said they were "flabbergasted" after being told their bookings had been cancelled.

Listen to BBC Radio Leicester on Sounds and follow BBC Leicester on Facebook, on X, or on Instagram. Send your story ideas to eastmidsnews@bbc.co.uk or via WhatsApp on 0808 100 2210.