Meet and eat at the Manor House

A meeting at the Manor House conference centre doesn't have to begin and end with you and your colleagues sitting, surrounded by laptops, papers and the remains of a busy day. At some point, energy levels will have dipped and further progress is sometimes best made in other ways - like over dinner and a glass of wine. It might even make it easier to re-appraise the situation and then find an obvious answer!

A Victorian building with charm and character, the Manor House has a number of rooms for private dining - perfect for carrying on business discussions.

If you are a small number, the Taguchi Room is an intimate room for dinner. There's also the wood-panelled Boardroom, which seats 18 diners comfortably. It's a beautiful room, set off with flickering candles, crisp white linen and crystal glassware.

For larger numbers, both the Dining Room and Deming Room perfectly suit private dining. Taking things a step further, both rooms offer plenty of space for entertainment. In the past, this has included a table magician, a murder mystery to solve or karaoke into the wee hours. We're happy to advise on and organise all this for you.

In the current climate, cost is clearly a factor and we are happy to work within most budgets. The cost of a private room, for example, can usually be built into one of our very reasonable day or overnight packages. Dinner is, of course, included if you're staying on an overnight residential package - a four course set menu, prepared with flair, by our own chefs, from fresh, seasonal ingredients. Sample menus are available for download.

The same menu is also available to anybody on a day package, if they want to finish with dinner, but we take just the same care and attention should you prefer to choose a two course, themed buffet. Possibilities include Indian, Thai and even pub-grub. The themed menus can also be downloaded and are priced at £24 per person.

If you'd like to know more or you have dates to book, please call the Sales Office on 01483 520033. If it's more convenient, tell us when and they will call you.

Business at breakfast?

Meetings work better out of the office, away from distractions like the ringing phone, pinging e mails and colleagues asking if they can “just have a word”. Yet getting a few people away for even a few hours is not made any easier by the pressures on time we all face, let alone any budgetary constraints.

Building a meeting around a meal at the Manor House Conference Centre near Guildford could be the answer. Breakfast meetings, in particular, are making a comeback and with a bit of planning they can offer so much more than the traditional pre-meeting fare of a limp sausage in a soggy bun with a cup of lukewarm coffee.

Breakfast meetings offer all sorts of advantages to Surrey businessmen. Not only is the cost reasonable compared to a traditional meeting, but a short meeting with colleagues before the start of the business day leaves office hours free to do the day job.

So what are the options? Firstly, you should consider how you want to meet. If privacy is important, you may want to think about hiring one of the Manor House’s private rooms, such as the Boardroom. If it is less of a concern, then a meeting in the main dining room may offer the easiest and most cost-effective solution.

Choosing what’s to eat is also important. If you are only a few people, you could start the day with a traditional full English breakfast. Some venues will cook everything to order, meaning you get your breakfast freshly cooked for you. Other venues prefer a hot buffet which , whilst offering plenty of choice, can have the disadvantage of looking unappetising if there is not a quick turnover of food or if it is not topped up often, as happens if service is slow or coming to an end.

The Manor House fall in to the former category, cooking everything to order, so when you want to eat, your breakfast is as fresh as fresh can be.

The Manor House also uses local ingredients and suppliers, so when you order a Manor House Surrey breakfast, that's exactly what you get, complete with organic eggs and sausages made a couple of miles away.

Of course, The Manor House also caters for those who prefer something lighter - how about pancakes and maple syrup or muesli made to the Manor House’s own recipe?

If your group is larger and networking is important, you may want to consider a breakfast finger buffet. This could incorporate traditional items such as pastries, as well as items like mini smoked salmon bagels and mini brioche with Parma ham. Of course, larger groups may also want to sit down and enjoy “the full monty”, perhaps to the accompaniment of an inspirational speaker.

The Manor House - a small, green refurbishment

The Manor House conference centre and hotel near Guildford, Surrey is nearing the completion of the refurbishment of the smallest room in the house, the gents' toilets.

The Manor House is already accredited with a gold award by the Green Tourism Business Scheme (GTBS), the national sustainable tourism scheme for the UK. Although this refurbishment is only a small project, the conference centre's manager, Howard Canning, hopes that it will increase the Manor House's green credentials by reducing water and electricity consumption.

Waterless urinals have been installed, which according to Canning will reduce the conference centre's water usage by an estimated 66000 litres annually. "As we're expecting a drought this summer in Surrey, that's a small, but vital saving" he says.


The toilets will also be lit with new LED bulbs which, as well as giving much better lighting, use 50% less electricity than the previous lighting system. An efficient Airblade hand drier will altogether remove the need for expensive paper towels, "money" says Canning, "that goes straight in the bin."


The refurbishment is being done by the conference centre's Facilities Manager, Jeyson Fosbury, who has been keen to minimise the environmental impact of the work. "We were going to buy new doors" he says "but thought we'd try stripping the old doors down first." He was delighted and amazed to discover they were original solid oak doors from the 1920's." Naturally, these doors have been re-instated they will finish the job off to a tee.

Heritage open days

This year and for the first time, the Manor House in Godalming is taking part in Heritage Open Days and opening its doors to anybody who would like to look around this magnificent conference centre and hotel.

Heritage Open Days celebrates England’s fantastic architecture and culture by offering free access to properties that are usually closed to the public or normally charge for admission. Every year on four days in September, buildings of every age, style and function throw open their doors, ranging from castles to factories, town halls to tithe barns, parish churches to Buddhist temples. It is a once-a-year chance to discover hidden architectural treasures and enjoy a wide range of tours, events and activities which bring to life local history and culture.

"This is a brilliant opportunity for the local community to discover what's on their doorstep" says Centre Manager Howard Canning. "The Manor House has been here since the late nineteenth century, but we're amazed by the number of people who have lived in the area all their life who tell us they are completely unaware of its existence."

"The Manor House is a lovely late Victorian property with a character all of its own," continues Canning "and we can't wait to show people around. It took some work to restore it when the current owners bought it in 1993 and it has since been enlarged with an award-winning extension. Like all old buildings though, it requires constant maintenance, and we are fortunate to have a good team who look after that."

If you would like to look around the Manor House and see the results of all the hard work, tickets can be obtained from Godalming Museum. Naturally they are free!

Full details of Heritage Open Days can be found on their website.

Pretty as a picture

Visitors to the Manor House are currently able to enjoy two new striking exhibitions of photographs by photographers with local connections.

The first exhibitor is Trevor Skinner who has family in the area, although he now lives in Spain. A former teacher who now runs a language school, Trevor's work features breathtaking uban landscapes, such as the picture above. Most recently Trevor has exhibited at Can Manyé, Alella, Barcelona.

He is joined by first-time exhibitor Michele Howard. A local resident, Michele is a former Manor House employee who began taking pictures as a hobby. She has since turned her pastime into a thriving business.

Michele's pictures feature local scenes and sights and are full of warm charm and character.

All the pictures featured in the exhibition are available to buy

Seymour, Lord of the Manor

Our countryside location has many advantages including stunning views and a peaceful environment. It also means that we see more than our fair share of the local wildlife; foxes are plentiful, owls are occasional visitors and prize plants are often chomped away by hungry deer.

This small menagerie has recently been augmented by a proud male pheasant who struts around the grounds like the Lord of the Manor. Christened Seymour by the staff, he is obviously very pleased with himself and with his new home and has taken to declaring his joy with a piercing cry that reverberates around the gardens. Unfortunately, for our guests, his performance does start early, often around dawn.

If you are coming to stay and are a light sleeper or prefer to lay in late, we recommend ear plugs or the kind of patience that requires you gritting your teeth!

Summer newsletter 2011

Our latest newsletter is available to download or read with articles on greening the Manor House, special offers and why cakes can be on of your five a day.