Escot House provides a unique and distinctive venue for conferences, seminars and meetings. Apart from the lovely setting, in private parklands in glorious East Devon, the house itself has a quirky character that make it memorable for delegates.
The current house was built in 1837 by Sir John Kennaway and is the family home of Sir John-Michael and Lady Kennaway (Mish and Lucy).
On arrival, visitors to Escot House see our unusual jungle themed staircase. It was created in 1999, by aspiring young designer Marek Spencer needed to undertake a project to support his application for a design course at Leeds College of Art and Design. The stairwell was already home to several oversized plants, so Marek, helped by his partner Yukiko and his brother Oliver painted the stairwell in the theme of a Malayan jungle.
At the top of the stairs is the large hallway, which is home to some imposing paintings of the senior Kennaways as well as marble busts (which are generally decorated with Santa hats at Christmas). This is where teas, coffees, cake and buffet lunches are served for delegates. There’s also a bar, ideal for evening events.
Escot House has three ‘day rooms’: The White Room, The Library and The Kennaway. Each of the rooms has a very different character, but all contain historic characteristics, including (working) marble fireplaces, more portraits, chandeliers and decorative features.
The White Room is a stunning, light filled room with views to the lake and the gardens. With traditional oak flooring, it’s the most suitable room for theatre-style seating.
The Library has, as the name suggests, lots of books! This also has views across the lake, as well as the terrace. Fantastic to use for boardroom-style and set ups but ideal for other set ups too.
The Kennaway Room is the least formal room, with traditional sofas and chairs and views across the parkland. This can also be used for boardroom-style set ups, or circular seating.
Having three spacious rooms offers organisers plenty of opportunity to think about creative ways of utilising the space, using the rooms for different groups of people, having different presentations or workshops in each room, or having breakout sessions, or using one room for relaxing between sessions (usually we suggest The Kennaway Room with a roaring fire in winter).
The rooms can be hired individually, as two rooms or, for guaranteed exclusive use, all three. They’re all suitable for different uses
There’s a lot to love about Escot House as a conference venue. To find out more, download our brochure.
