Rishi has welcomed the success of a farm diversification project which has created one of the biggest wedding venues in Yorkshire.
The Hugill and Scaife families of High Brockholme Farm opened their wedding barns business at Danby Wiske, near Northallerton, two years ago and it now attracts couples from across the North England and further afield for their special day.
The conversion of farm buildings has created a venue which can accommodate 300 guests with accommodation on site for up to 64 guests.
The venue is also used for a wide variety of events and is the base for a successful mobile bars business.
After visiting the venue, Rishi said: “Seeing how the family have developed this business in just two years is inspirational. They have shown real entrepreneurial adventure. The investment has been sizeable but it is good to see how it is paying off for them now.”
The Hugill family acquired the farm 100 years ago and three generations of the family have cared for it. Originally operated as a mixed dairy farm, the estate has continually evolved over the course of the century it has been in their custodianship.
The 2024 transformation created the events barn housing the ceremony room, a six-bed detached house for up to 12 guests and four three-bedroom units, as well as a honeymoon suite, all of which can accommodate up to 26 guests.
While many of the farm buildings have been converted to create the new venue, the land is still farmed under a share farming arrangement.
The business is run by Alan and Rachel Scaife, whose parents Heather and Tony Hugill, are an integral part of the business.
Both had built up extensive experience in the hospitality industry, running their own mobile bars business and successfully operating the Arden Arms at Atley Hill, near Scorton, for five years, before launching High Brockholme as a wedding/events venue.
It was their own wedding – in a marquee at High Brockholme in 2014 – which was the spark for the new business.
Rachel said: “That day they realised how much work was involved in creating the perfect space for a wedding and how beautiful the rural backdrop of High Brockholme would be for other couples.
“The bars business we set up first was a great success. It quickly grew and nearly every weekend we would running bars at multiple locations – at weddings, birthday parties, hunt balls and more.
“Our next challenge was to persuade my parents that diversifying the farm into a wedding venue with accommodation was the next chapter for High Brockholme.”
Rachel said planning permission was obtained and work started in 2023. High Brockholme Barns opened in the summer of 2024 with their first wedding event.
She added: “We love the planning and getting to know our couples as much as we do executing the wedding itself. We want couples to be able to enjoy our little corner of Yorkshire in a relaxed and private setting while creating memories that last a lifetime.”
