A NEW wedding and conference suite is set to be added to the historic Speech House Hotel, at a cost of £500,000.

Work on the scheme is set to start straight after the Forest Showcase, this Sunday (October 1) and will be completed by the end of April 2018.

Funding for the project at the 335-year-old Speech House has been boosted by a grant of £100,000 from the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD).

Hotel owners Peter and Gill Hands said they aim to create a smart wedding and conference facility in the heart of the Forest, offering panoramic views across Speech House Field and the surrounding woodland.

The centre is to be named the “Edwin Tauber Suite” after Gill’s father Edwin who was a great lover of trees and forests.

The project first came to fruition after the couple spoke to GloucestershireFirst local enterprise partnership who encouraged Peter to apply to the EU Rural Development Fund.

“This was a long drawn-out procedure which gave me a few sleepless nights, but in the end it was well worth the effort,” he said.

The (EAFRD) contributes funds to the Rural Development Fund for England, which helps small and medium enterprises develop and expand their businesses, allowing them to create more employment and bring more business to the area.

Peter added: “It is anticipated that this project will bring much needed additional business to the Forest of Dean and the local economy as well as creating more employment opportunities.

“Local tradesmen and businesses from around the Forest of Dean are to be employed in the construction of the building, and we are extremely excited about creating a fantastic venue for weddings, conferences and events in the very heart of the Royal Forest of Dean.”