Ferry House Inn

The Ferry House Inn is a family-run hospitality business on the Isle of Harty, a remote corner of Kent in south-east England, near the village of Leysdown on the Isle of Sheppey. It is best known today as the historic name of the site that has been reimagined as The Harty Estate, an award-winning barn wedding and events venue set beside the Swale estuary. The business combines a waterside inn and dining operation with exclusive-hire event spaces, guest accommodation and self-catering cottages, and it markets itself as a rural retreat roughly an hour from London. The site has deep local roots. The Burden family has farmed this landscape since the 1960s, and Alex and Victoria Burden continue a third-generation farming heritage that remains central to how the estate is run. The Ferry House name is the one by which many local people still know the place; the estate's own history notes that "Many will know this place as The Ferry House." Over time the property evolved from a pub and inn into a destination for weddings, personal celebrations and corporate retreats, supported by on-site accommodation and an estate-to-plate food philosophy. Today the business operates under The Harty Estate brand. It offers barn and outdoor weddings overlooking the estuary, corporate events and leadership retreats for groups of roughly 2 to 350 delegates, and leisure stays in self-catering cottages at Mocketts Farm. Dining is a central part of the offer, with menus rooted in the estate's kitchen garden, family farm and Kentish producers, and a grain-to-glass partnership with the nearby Copper Rivet Distillery. The estate has won recognition including a Best Events Venue award in the Muddy Stilettos Awards for Kent. Ownership is private and family-based. The Ferry House Inn is not a listed public company; it is a privately held hospitality business tied to the Burden family and the wider Harty Estate operation. Its official web presence is at theferryhouseinn.co.uk, while current marketing and event information is presented through The Harty Estate website.

The Ferry House Inn takes its name from its historic role as a waterside pub and inn on the Isle of Harty, a small, secluded corner of Kent separated from the Isle of Sheppey by a short causeway and from mainland Kent by two bridge crossings. The site sits beside the Swale estuary, between the Elmley and Swale nature reserves, in an area known for its birdlife, open skies and ecological importance. The surrounding marshes, farmland and waterways have shaped both the atmosphere of the place and the rhythm of life on it. The Burden family's connection to this landscape reaches back to the 1960s, and the estate describes Alex and Victoria Burden as continuing a third-generation farming heritage. Fields are still worked, food provenance matters, and sustainability is presented as a sincere responsibility rather than an afterthought. This farming identity underpins the later hospitality business: the estate's food ethos is built on a kitchen garden, a family farm producing grass-grazed beef and wild estate game, foraged ingredients from the hedgerows, and a grain-to-glass partnership in which three types of estate-grown grain are sent to the nearby Copper Rivet Distillery to be made into gin, vodka and whisky. Over time, the property evolved from a pub and inn into a place designed for people to come together. Weddings became central to what happens there, supported by barn and outdoor ceremony and reception spaces overlooking the estuary, on-site accommodation and a dedicated events team. The estate's own account notes that many people still know the place as The Ferry House, and that the landscape has since been reimagined as The Harty Estate — an exclusive-hire barn wedding and events venue offering private celebrations, corporate events and on-site accommodation. The modern operation spans weddings, personal celebrations and corporate retreats. Corporate clients are offered flexible event spaces for roughly 2 to 350 delegates, waterside breakout spaces, on-site accommodation across 34 rooms in guest rooms and farm cottages, team-building activities such as clay pigeon shooting and tastings, and complimentary use of presentation equipment. The estate has been recognised as Best Events Venue in the Muddy Stilettos Awards for Kent. Self-catering cottages at Mocketts Farm sit within the grounds and are available for leisure stays, allowing guests to combine a celebration with a longer escape in the Kent countryside. The business remains family-owned and privately held, with no public listing. Its historic Ferry House Inn web presence sits at theferryhouseinn.co.uk, while current event and venue marketing is presented through The Harty Estate website. The dual identity — an old inn name and a modern estate brand — reflects a broader shift in rural hospitality, in which working farms and historic waterside properties are repositioned as exclusive-hire destinations for weddings and corporate gatherings.

• Burden family farming heritage in the Harty landscape begins, with roots stretching back to the 1960s.

• The site operates as The Ferry House Inn, a waterside pub and inn on the Isle of Harty.

• The property evolves into a weddings and events destination, with barn and outdoor ceremony spaces.

• The landscape is reimagined as The Harty Estate, an exclusive-hire barn wedding and events venue.

• The Harty Estate is named Best Events Venue in the Muddy Stilettos Awards for Kent.

A remote yet accessible family-owned waterside estate near London, positioned as an alternative to chain hotels for weddings, celebrations and corporate events.

• Barn and outdoor weddings

  Rustic, relaxed and refined barn and outdoor weddings overlooking the Swale estuary, offered on an exclusive-hire basis with estate accommodation and homeborn menus.

• Corporate events and retreats

  Flexible event spaces for 2–350 delegates, waterside breakout spaces, on-site accommodation and team-building activities, positioned as an alternative to chain hotels.

• Personal celebrations

  Celebrations, commemorations and family gatherings hosted with the same care, warmth and hospitality as weddings.

• Estate stays and self-catering cottages

  11 ensuite guest rooms and 5 self-catering cottages at Mocketts Farm within the grounds, available for leisure stays.

• Estate dining

  Award-winning seasonal menus rooted in the kitchen garden, family farm and Kentish producers, with a grain-to-glass spirits partnership with Copper Rivet Distillery.

1. 1The Harty Estate | Waterside Barn Wedding & Event Venue Kentthehartyestate.co.uk
2. 2About The Harty Estate | A Wedding & Events Estate in Kentthehartyestate.co.uk
3. 3Corporate Events & Retreats | Waterside Estate Near Londonthehartyestate.co.uk
4. 4Corporate Event Food & Drink | The Harty Estate, Kentthehartyestate.co.uk
5. 5Ferry House Innwikidata.org