Prince wins bid to create new wedding venue
● Prince Charles’s estate to create structure in woods
Officials have approved plans to build a luxury wedding venue in the grounds of Prince Charles’s Scottish stately home.
Weddings are currently held in the Tapestry Room of Dumfries House near Cumnock in Ayrshire. Receptions take place in a marquee erected next to the house, which is thought to detract from the character of the historic building.
The new venue will be built in surrounding woodland, with a walled garden also being created, and cater for up to 200 guests.
Prince Charles has been given the green light to build a luxury wedding venue in the grounds of his Scottish stately home.
The state-of-the-art facility is to be built at Dumfries House near Cumnock in Ayrshire to provide high-end wedding packages.
Weddings are currently held in the Tapestry Room of the historic house, with receptions taking place in a marquee erected next to the main house. However, the current marquee is thought to detract from the character of the A-listed building, which the heir to the throne helped save for the nation.
The new venue structure will be built in surrounding woodland. It will cater for up to 200 guests and a new walled garden is to be created next to it.
The project will also create up to 20 new jobs, with the profits being reinvested into charitable activities at the Dumfries House estate.
Plans were submitted to East Ayrshire Council in April and were approved last week after no objections were received.
In a report, planners said: “This proposal clearly has a high potential to deliver the economic benefit originally envisaged by the applicant for both the Dumfries House and the wider community through its potential to increase tourism, secure existing jobs and provide new jobs.
“On balance, it is considered that the significant economic benefit that could be delivered by this proposal, coupled with the precedent of built development within the estate, is sufficient to allow this proposal to be looked upon favourably.”
The Prince of Wales helped arrange a £45 million deal to buy Dumfries House and its collection of Chippendale furniture.
He led a consortium of charities and the Scottish Govern- ment to make the purchase in 2007, with his own charitable foundation contributing £20m to the total.
A design statement submitted by The Prince’s Foundation to the local authority said: “Event hosting is vitally important to the survival of all that goes on within Dumfries House estate and farther afield.
“Income generated by wedding and corporate event hosting is essential to the dayto-day running of the estate and the wide range of educational programmes that run throughout the year.
Prince Charles is also hoping to create a haven for red squirrels in the grounds of the estate.