The transformation of the event spaces at the Bath & West Showground continues apace with the recent opening of the Wessex Pavilion.
Glastonbury Festival organiser and friend of the Bath & West, Michael Eavis cut the ribbon to officially open the refurbished restaurant facilities following a £1.2m project, signed-off by the Trustees of the Royal Bath & West of England Society in partnership with in-house caterers, Hayes Catering Ltd.
Attendees enjoyed a glass of Thatcher’s cider in the newly named Thatcher’s Bar & Restaurant – a 500 capacity ground floor event space with an outside terrace which features a striking visual of Thatcher’s Somerset Orchards.
Located next to the Showering Pavilion, the Wessex Pavilion also includes a 350-capacity event space on the first floor; The Butcombe Bar, making it the largest dining and conference space in Somerset, North Dorset and West Wiltshire.
Somerton-based Edgar Builders carried out the refurbishment which has been completed in good time for the Royal Bath & West Show (29 May – 1 June). The professional team that supported the project included Della Valle Architects from Shepton Mallet, project management from Randell Simmonds of Wells and Beveridge Chartered Structural Engineers from Street.
Branded the “Wessex Pavilion”, to recognise the showground’s regional influence and its Vice-Patronage by Her Royal Highness, the Countess of Wessex, the venue has been designed to host large weddings, awards dinners, black tie events and conferences the scale of which have not been hosted in the Mendip area before.
Chief Executive of the Royal Bath & West Society, Rupert Cox said: “This is a major investment for the Society that improves our facilities tremendously. The changing face of event management necessitates the need to continually improve our offering for the 800,000 visitors that come to the showground to be entertained by a range of fantastic events throughout the year.”
Join Somerset Chamber of Commerce to give your business a stronger voice both locally, regionally and nationally. Combined with local town chambers, we represent over 2,000 businesses across Somerset with a direct line to policy-makers at all levels.
