‘WE WON’T GET HITCHED THERE’
COUPLE’S WEDDING PLANS RUINED AS VENUE GOES BUST AND CARAVANS PITCH UP AT SITE
AN engaged Hull couple have been left devastated after losing their wedding venue and hundreds of pounds worth of deposit at Dunswell Park.
The pair, who want to remain anonymous, booked the Woodmansey venue back in September 2019 with a view to getting married there in August this year.
But little did they know the company had already dissolved one month earlier, according to Companies House, and still accepted the couple’s £300 deposit money.
Pictures taken at the park in the past week also suggest that the venue has since become a travellers’ camp, with several caravans pitched up close to the main building.
Despite repeated requests for comment, Dunswell Park failed to respond.
After the government set out the “roadmap” to lift coronavirus restrictions, the couple tried to get in touch with Dunswell Park to confirm the booking, but have been unable to contact them.
The couple told the Mail they had therefore lost their 50 per cent deposit of £300 and now need to find a new venue in less than five months.
“We only found out that Dunswell Park was no longer a functioning venue when we tried to book a DJ this month for the wedding,” said the bride-to-be.
“He told us that Dunswell
Park had liquidated and that’s when we started to get worried.
“My partner and I booked the venue way back on September 13, 2019, and then nobody has been in touch with us from there since, but we thought that Covid would be the reason why with everything up in the air.
“But now that the restrictions are being lifted from June, our wedding in August should be able to go ahead, but when we then tried to get in touch with Dunswell Park to get the ball rolling, we can’t get a response to phone calls or
Facebook messages.”
The £300 deposit was a lot for the couple to lose, they said, and it is only thanks to the generosity of their friends and family that they have been able to try and book a new venue.
The pair, who have three children, have been saving for years for their big day and said they cannot believe what has happened to them.
“We tried to go through the bank to get our deposit back and they told us that Dunswell Park was dissolved in August 2019 - that was one month before they took our money and booked us in for the wedding,” said the woman.
“Sadly, we couldn’t get the money back from the bank, and without it, we wouldn’t have been able to get married and the reason we booked so far in advance was so we would have time to save.
“It’s only thanks to the kindness of family and friends who have chipped in and rallied around that we can have the hope and funds to secure somewhere else to get married.
“Now we only have five months until the big day and are frantically trying to find somewhere.
“The lack of communication from Dunswell Park and what they’ve done to us is so disappointing.
“Your wedding is meant to be most important day in your life we have been together 11 years and have dreamt of the wedding for a long time and had our heart set on it.”
According to companies house, Dunswell Park was “dissolved” on August 20, 2019.
The Mail made repeated approaches to Dunswell Park for comment, but none has been provided.