It’s one of Huddersfield’s best-known houses … and now it’s having a new lease of life as a wedding and events venue.

Banney Royd on Halifax Road in Edgerton is a Grade I listed stately home built by legendary designer Edgar Wood – the architect also responsible for Lindley Clock Tower – in 1901 and set in seven acres of grounds.

Current owners Mike Phillips and Marina Shaw (pictured below with their family) have owned it since 2011 and were looking to sell it in recent years.

However, they have now decided to keep it to ensure it retains all its original features and remains a part of Huddersfield’s heritage.

Banney Royd will now be used to stage weddings – it held its first one recently – but Mike and Marina also want community events too and the first one will be a family Santa experience this Christmas.

Banney Royd is reputedly the most important Arts and Crafts house in the north of England featuring stained glass windows, oak woodwork, carved wooden icons, grand fireplaces with detailed carvings, barrel vaulted ceilings, arched doorways and stone mullion leaded windows.

Arts and Crafts homes were built in the 19th to early 20th century and focus on natural materials, skilled craftsmanship and harmonious integration with the surrounding landscape.

Mike said: “When Banney Royd was on the market we had several people or organisations interested in buying it but some of the plans would have changed the house forever.

“One was talking about boarding up all the large open fireplaces while another was thinking about splitting it into apartments. We don’t want to see that happen.

“This house is something special and we want to keep it that way with all its original features such as the oak panelling and decorative ceilings.

“People are amazed when they come inside and see it for themselves so we thought: ‘why not give people the chance to do that?’

“It needs people using it and walking through it to bring it fully to life and what better way than with joyful occasions such as weddings and Christmas.

“It also means it will bring in the income needed to keep it going – as you can imagine it’s a costly place to maintain. It’s also an ideal venue for corporate events.”

Banney Royd can be hired for many different types of events and they would like to hear from anyone interested.

The couple have been together for 34 years and have six children between them aged from 26 to 43 – Daniel, Adele, David, Marc, Ben and Callum – and they have staged several family weddings at Banney Royd.

All are involved in running Banney Royd from gardening and maintenance to running events.

Mike and Marina ran their own video conferencing business Direct Visual before selling it to a large global IT company in 2011 which gave them the money to buy Banney Royd the same year.

“Our intention was to retire,” said Mike. “And it’s been a wonderful place over the years to host family occasions such as anniversaries, birthday parties, weddings and some charity events.

“Now we’ve decided to keep it as an asset to Huddersfield as a whole and open it up so more people can enjoy it as a special place. It also means we’re coming out of retirement.”

The couple have come from modest backgrounds to where they are today. Marina is one of 13 children who hails originally from Marsden where the family squeezed into a four-bedroomed council house.

She said: “Banney Royd is such a special place it’s a shame for it not to be seen. Many people have heard of it but very few have actually visited it and we want to change that. It’s an important part of Huddersfield’s history.

“Edgar Wood never spoke about the houses he designed. He said they would speak for themselves and now is the chance for people to understand what he meant by that.”

The large dining room has a large stone arch in one corner featuring a big open fire.

“There was no real design reason for that arch to be there,” said Mike. “It was a ‘show off’ piece.”

Former architecture lecturer John Archer, a renowned expert on Edgar Wood, told them that the arch is holding up that corner of the house and that Edgar Wood had built it ‘just because he could’, just because there was no real budget for a house of this grandeur at the time so the archway is there because it’s something unusual that could be done.

Marina says the house will always have a homely feel – in fact it will be enhanced by the events with weddings that will seat 70 guests for a legal ceremony and 150 comfortably for the celebration.

The house has eight bedrooms and offers a honeymoon suite, plus preparation rooms for hair and makeup. It is exclusive to anyone hiring it and includes all the formal areas inside and out for celebrations and events.

Marina added: “We are doing all the organising ourselves so we know exactly what’s involved and can make sure everything is perfect. When you go into something like this you have to be passionate about it.”

The Christmas Experience at Banney Royd has two dates scheduled so far – Saturday, December 6 and Sunday, December 14.

The experience starts as soon as visitors enter the private gated driveway with a small marquee housing a small stable theme and a life-size sleigh with Santa, Rudolph and friends.

Santa greets every person into the house where there will be an open fire in the oak-panelled hallway and children will be able to make crafts such as a 2026 calendar or a Christmas decoration before they get cocoa and cake while Santa reads a Christmas story.

It ends quite literally on a high note with a festive singalong while children collect their gifts from Santa.

Banney Royd has a couple of bars where adults can pre-order a tipple or even a bottle of wine or prosecco and the bar features Hawkstone lager made famous by TV personality Jeremy Clarkson and his Diddly Squat Farm in the Costwolds, Oxfordshire.

Banney Royd also has a huge car park.

For more information and to book a slot for the Christmas event go to https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/santa-experience-at-banney-royd-hall-huddersfield-7590-minutes-tickets-1708047338569

For inquiries about weddings at Banney Royd search for Banney Royd Hall on Facebook, email banneyroydevents@gmail.com or phone 07966 362627.

Written by ANDY HIRST who runs his own Yorkshire freelance journalism agency AH! PR (https://ah-pr.com/) specialising in press releases, blogging, website content, copywriting and ghost-writing autobiographies.