Catering
| Do you have kitchen facilities? | No, we do not have kitchen facilities available on site. |
| Can we have alcohol? | Yes. We cannot sell alcohol on the premises but you can bring in your own drinks to toast your event. |
| Do you have a fridge? | No, there is no access to a fridge available. |
| Do you have a freezer? | No, there is no access to a freezer available. |
| Can we bring in our own catering? | Yes, you can bring in your own catering but no food vans or trucks. You’d need to setup and clear away in your booked time and take in your own crockery/cutlery. |
| Are we allowed bar trailers? | Unfortunately, we do not have a licence to sell alcohol on site so you would not be able to take in a bar, you would need to bring in your own drinks and glasses. |
| Can we hire plates from you? | No, we cannot provide crockery or cutlery. |
| Can we hire glasses from you? | No, we cannot provide glasses but you are welcome to bring in your own to toast your event. |
Equipment/ decoration
| Do you provide tables and chairs? | Yes, tables and chairs are included in the price. We have 6ft x 2.5ft rectangular tables and foldable chairs. We can show you the ones we have. You are also welcome to hire in your own if you wish. Set up of these would need to be factored into your hire time. |
| Do you provide tablecloths? | Yes, we can provide white wipeable tablecloths or you can bring in your own ones if you’d prefer cloth ones. |
| Can we decorate the area? | Yes, you can decorate the area as you wish, we’d just ask that you leave the hired area as you found it when you leave. You'd need to include any decoration time in your hire time. You can hire the area the day before if you wish to start your decorating. |
| Do we need to have everything away by the end of the hire? | Yes, we ask that you leave the hired area as you found it. |
| Do you have a sound system? | No, you would need to take in your own speakers or music. There are sockets in the glasshouses and we can provide an extension cable for the outside area if needed. |
| Can we have a band or DJ? | No bands or DJ’s but solo, 2-piece musicians or bagpipers are permitted. |
| Can we have candles? | LED lighting candles only, no naked flames. |
| Can we have confetti? | We do not allow confetti in the gardens or glasshouses but other customers have used blowing bubbles instead. |
| Do you have fans available? | No, but some customers bring in hand fans for their guests. |
| Do you have a projector and screen? | No unfortunately you would need to provide this. A screen is sometimes not very easy to see in the glasshouse due to the high light levels there. |
Facilities/ accessibility
| Where are the toilet facilities for guests? | The café toilets would remain open for your guests. |
| Is smoking allowed on site? | No smoking or vaping is allowed on site. Guests need to go off site to smoke as per company policy. |
| Can we go elsewhere in the gardens for photographs? | Yes, you can use anywhere in the gardens to take your photographs. Only the area you have chosen to hire for your event will be closed to the public though. |
| Can we reduce the temperature in the Tropical House? | No, the tropical house needs a certain temperature and humidity for the plants so this cannot be altered. |
| Is your garden wheelchair accessible? | Most of our garden areas and glasshouses are accessible. There are some uneven paths which might make some areas less accessible. |
| Do you have heating? | The IRC glasshouse is heated and has electricity. The Ed Shed does not have heating or electricity. |
| What happens with rubbish on site? | We have waste and recycling facilities on site and encourage customers to separate their waste at their event to help us. |
| Are kids allowed to come? | Yes, you are able to take any guests but children would remain the responsibility of their parent/guardian and should be supervised at all times. |
| Do you allow dogs? | Assistance dogs only. No pets are allowed. |
Hire/ charges/ payment
| Is there a discount for HLH or HC employees? | No, unfortunately not. |
| Do we have to pay it all at once? | Yes, we do ask for full payment at time of booking to secure it. If this is not something you are able to do then I can put you in touch with the debtors department to arrange a payment plan to help. |
| What time can we hire until? | We can hire within our opening times of 9.30am – 4.00pm |
| Do we need to have everything away by the end of the hire? | Yes, we ask that you leave the hired area as you found it. |
