About Us

The house and barn date back to around 1770

The Stephenson family bought the property in 1985 and transformed the barns to form a Wedding and Conference venue. A Day in the Country was formed in 1988 to run corporate activities and now runs over 150 corporate events a year, whilst The Great Barn holds up to 50 weddings a year. The Great Barn consists of two interconnecting barns named after the villages on either side of them – hence The Croughton Room and The Aynho Room. They were originally the hay and grain stores for the farm.

In 1999 an extension was built to incorporate an entrance hall and facilities for the venue. The Dressing Room was added in 2016 for the bride and her entourage to get ready in and offer a haven of peace during the big day. The farm itself has 250 acres of mixed arable and woodland. Both the venue and the farm are still run by 3 generations of Stephensons!

Our 18^th century barns are larger and wider than most. This means more room for guests and waiting staff around seated tables, and our higher ceilings keep it cool in summer. Also, three foot thick walls and open log fires keep us warm in the winter and provide a warm, cosy welcome.

Meet some of our people

Anna Stephenson

Team Building & Projects Manager

With a background in coaching, Anna runs most of our team building days. However, she also turns her hand to most things in the office during the week as Projects Manager for The Great Barn.

Jerry Stephenson

Managing Director

Jerry runs both A Day in the Country and The Great Barn, as well as the farm and can generally be found multi-tasking from a tractor, co-ordinating staff and logistics or re-stocking the bar!

Laura Davis

Wedding & Events Manager

From the first viewing with brides, grooms and their families, through all the careful planning stages to the day itself. You will be in very safe hands!

Beth Jones

Office & Events Manager

Beth is the friendly voice on the end of the phone when you first call in. She is our jack of all trades, handling calls, planning and coordinating events, responding to queries – all with a smile!

Bar Staff

We have a small core team of friendly and efficient bar staff who are always on hand with a smile at our parties and events.

Event Instructors

Over the years we have built relationships with some of the best event instructors in their specialist fields. Many are now regular faces at our events and have been with us for many years. They know their stuff.

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