Telford company banned from hosting weddings during coronavirus restrictions

A company in Telford which runs a banqueting hall has been banned from hosting weddings for as long as government coronavirus restrictions remain in place.

Excellency Midlands Ltd, based in Stafford Park, was served with a prohibition notice by Telford & Wrekin Council just days after it was fined by West Mercia Police.

Last week police officers found that up 120 people were due to attend a post-wedding celebration there. This wasn’t the first time the company had breached COVID regulations by hosting such gatherings during the pandemic.

In issuing the prohibition notice, Telford & Wrekin Council’s Public Protection Team had to produce reports and evidence of the COVID breaches and consult the Director of Public Health and West Mercia Police, both of whom supported the ban.

It means, while other venues can still host weddings subject to government restrictions (at the time of writing, limited to 15 people), Excellency Midlands Ltd cannot host them at all. The total ban for the company will remain in place for as long as there are any government restrictions placed on weddings.

David Sidaway, Chief Executive of Telford and Wrekin Council, said: “It beggars belief that people and a venue can be so reckless in the current circumstances.

“This case highlights a lack of fairness to the other businesses in the borough who are following the regulations and a lack of fairness to all those people who may come into contact with the 120 who were at the party and whose lives and livelihoods will be put at risk as a result.

“We don’t take this action lightly. Our officers have advised the company on the rules for weddings but they didn’t take on board our advice, nor the advice from the police.

“When we visit companies to talk to them about how to keep to COVID guidelines, we do it to help keep them in business. Excellency Midlands didn’t listen to us and we had no option but to serve this notice.”