Hayes Conference Centre

The Hayes is a popular venue for conferences, run by the Christian Conference Centre since 1996. I stayed there for a conference, recently.
The Centre is based around a former private residence, built in the 1860s as the home of Mr. Fitzherbert Wright. In 1910 his son, Henry, sold the Estate to the company who adapted and extended it for use as a Conference Centre. It was used a prisoner of war camp in World War II.
Today, the original house forms the main reception area, and accommodation blocks, meeting rooms and a sports facility are set out campus-​style across the grounds. The 90 acres of grounds are delightful, especially in the summer.
As the name implies, most of the conferences (although not all) are run for Christian groups. The site can cater for up to 400 delegates, with three halls seating over 300, in addition to 30 smaller meeting rooms. These come with all the usual conference audio-​visual equipment. You can also stay there as a private guest.
There are 265 bedrooms, ranging from single to family rooms, some of which are adapted for those with disabilities. (Although the site has level access, there are some quite steep slopes, and distances between the buildings can involve a fair bit of walking). As well as the sports hall, there is a Chapel.
The bedrooms are modern, very clean and spacious, and mostly en-​suite — a small but decreasing number have shared bathrooms. A few are very spacious — more like suites. It isn’t a hotel, mind, so don’t expect posh shampoo or shower gel — guests are provided with towels and soap. The rooms have hair dryers and tea and coffee making facilities, but mine didn’t have TV or radio. The site has free wifi (and quite a good speed).
Meals are taken in one of the two large dining rooms, and feels a little like a college — each table is asked to gather up dishes at the end of each course. The menu is rather old-​fashioned as well, though this may suit the clientèle. There is also bar and lounge area in the main house.
Breakfast was the best meal — a buffet of cereals, toast, fried breakfast, etc. They provided some nice salads, but the dressings were in a tray of those little sachets. As a vegetarian, I had a pretty awful dinner one evening, consisting of three potatoes, peeled and boiled, (with no butter or other sauce) and an omelette — with no vegetables. Served on a white plate, it was a peculiarly white meal, and rather off-​putting. (Everyone else had a lovely-​looking lasagne.) Thankfully, pudding was a selection of fruit pies or Bakewell tart, served with custard. Lunch was cold meats and quiche, with more boiled potatoes (though this time there was more choice), followed by apple and strawberry crumble and custard. Better food would have upped my review by a star. I’ve been to a lot of conference centres in my time and most had excellent food, so this was a bit of a surprise.
If you don’t drive, access is either from Derby or Alfreton stations: the centre has an arrangement with a local taxi company. There is also a bus every 15 minutes or so between Alfreton and Derby on the nearby main road (around 40 minutes to Derby, 20 to Alfreton).