Bar staff, waiting staff and front of house for weddings in venues, barns, marquees and gardens. Hand-picked, briefed on the running order and the table plan, and paid properly, on a published hourly rate with a four-hour minimum.
A wedding runs to a timeline that nobody can rerun. Our teams arrive at the briefed time, set the room to your plan, and serve the drinks reception and canapés while photographs are taken. They seat guests for the wedding breakfast, serve each course on the call from the caterer or our supervisor, pour for the toasts on time and stay out of the way during the speeches. If the room turns round for the evening, they clear, move tables and reset the bar before the first dance, then run the evening bar and clear down at close.
Barns, marquees and gardens are a different job from a hotel ballroom. Kitchens are often a tent behind the main marquee, the bar may be a trestle table and the walk from the kitchen can be across grass in the dark. We brief the site layout, the power and water points, the toilets and the route for plates before the day, so nobody is finding their way during service. We supply the people. The bar, stock, glassware, linen, tables and catering equipment come from you, your venue or your caterer.
Bar staff, waiting staff and runners are Core tier at £25.00 an hour ex VAT. Cocktail bartenders and fine-dining or silver service waiters are Skilled tier at £28.00. A supervisor is Lead tier at £34.00: they hold the running order, work with your coordinator or caterer, call the courses and are the single point of contact for the whole team, so the couple and their families are never asked a staffing question on the day.
Every person on our books has been interviewed by us, has had two references checked, has passed a right-to-work check before their first shift and has worked a paid trial shift alongside a senior member of our team. Anyone handling food or drink holds Level 2 food safety and allergen awareness, paid for by us. Supervisors hold Level 3.
For weddings we look for people who have worked a full wedding day and can stay sharp across a long shift. The written brief includes the running order, the table plan and special meals, the names of your coordinator or caterer, and the site layout for barns and marquees. Where the day needs a personal licence holder on the bar team, tick it on the enquiry form and we confirm at booking whether we can fill it.
They are our people, engaged on PAYE zero-hours terms, and they choose which shifts to accept. So the person who turns up wanted the shift. They are paid every Friday, from £14.00 an hour plus holiday, and they are paid for the hours booked even if you send them home early.
Every person is briefed twice before your event: once in writing 48 hours out, with the venue, door, transport, uniform, service style, allergens and your on-site contact, and once by phone three hours before start. They photo check-in on arrival. If anyone is not right, tell us in the first hour and there is no charge for them.
If you want to work these shifts yourself, see how we take people on.
These are the starting points we use when we build a wedding quote. They are general guidance, not a rule. The distance from the kitchen, the service style, whether the bar is free or paid, and whether the room turns round for the evening all change the number. Tell us the plan and we will tell you honestly how few people the day needs.
| Service | Guidance only |
|---|---|
| Drinks receptionTrays of drinks and canapés | 1 per 25 to 40 guests |
| Wedding breakfast, platedThree courses, standard service | 1 per 10 to 12 guests |
| Wedding breakfast, sharingPlatters or family style | 1 per 15 to 20 guests |
| Evening barBeer, wine, spirits and mixers | 1 per 50 to 75 guests |
| Marquee or barnLonger carry from a field kitchen | Add 1 or 2 to the floor team |
| SupervisorRunning the team on the day | 1 per wedding, 2 for large or split sites |
Wedding bar staff, waiting staff and supervisors are charged at the national rate everywhere outside the M25, and a Saturday costs the same as a Tuesday. The only uplifts we apply are for London, the festive period, bank holidays and New Year's Eve, and they are printed below.
| Tier | We pay them | You pay us |
|---|---|---|
| CoreBar staff, waiting, runners, kitchen porters, event crew, stewards, cloakroom, admissions | £14.00 + 12.07% holiday | £25.00 |
| SkilledCocktail bartenders, baristas, fine-dining and box waiters, hosts, brand ambassadors, team leaders | £16.50 + holiday | £28.00 |
| LeadSupervisors, event managers, chefs de partie | £20.00 + holiday | £34.00 |
| Senior chefSous chefs, head chefs | £24.00 + holiday | £40.00 |
Every client booking carries the same five guarantees, written into our terms of business.
Written, itemised, ex VAT, 8am to 8pm every day. Three hours outside that.
Your account manager's mobile is on the booking confirmation, answered on any day we have people working.
Anyone not right? Tell us in the first hour. No charge for them and a replacement on the way.
New clients get one person for one four-hour shift free on their first booking. See what you are buying.
Names confirmed within two hours of booking. If we cannot fill a position we say so at booking, never on the day.
No. We supply the people. The bar, stock, glassware, ice and tills come from you, your venue, your caterer or a mobile bar supplier. We brief our team on what is there and how you want it run.
Yes. We brief the site layout, the kitchen tent, the route for plates and the power and water points in writing before the day, and our supervisor walks the site with your caterer or coordinator on arrival.
Yes. Many caterers bring chefs and ask us for the front of house. We take the service style, the menu and the allergen list from the caterer and our supervisor works to their calls in the kitchen.
Yes. Clearing the wedding breakfast, moving tables and resetting the bar is a normal part of the day. Tell us the plan and we build it into the team and the timings.
No. There is no weekend rate and no surge pricing. The only uplifts are London, bank holidays, the festive period from 1 December to 2 January and New Year's Eve, all printed on the rate card.
Every quote includes a contingency line so a late finish never becomes an argument. If we do not use it, you do not pay it. Finish times and transport home are written into the brief.
Cancellation is free more than 48 hours before the start, 50% between 24 and 48 hours and 100% inside 24 hours, because that pays the people who kept the day free for you.
Our people arrive in black, which we supply free. If you want white shirts, waistcoats or a look that matches the wedding, tell us at booking and we brief it.
See the whole rate card and the instant estimate, or start a full quote. Looking for shifts yourself? Work with us.
Your brief lands with Tasmyn or Liam, not a queue. A written quote within 60 minutes (8am to 8pm) and a call if anything needs clarifying. A named mobile is given to every client at booking.
Every person paid through our PAYE payroll, so you carry no status risk. Right-to-work checks before day one. Employers' Liability £10m, Public Liability £10m. Certificates with your first confirmation.
Keep them. Use us for the shifts they cannot fill, or the ones that matter most. Overflow is where most first clients start.
Short on people for a big weekend? We supply overflow to other agencies on the same published terms.