PLEASE NOTE THIS IS FOR OUR COURT MEMBERS’ CONSORTS ONLY (NOT FOR OUR MEMBERS GENERALLY)
VENUE:
FURNITURE MAKERS’ COMPANY,
12 AUSTIN FRIARS, LONDON EC2N 2HE
DATE
MONDAY, 14th SEPTEMBER 2026
TIME
Reception Drinks at 12.15 p.m.
Lunch 1.00 pm – 3.30 p.m.
DRESS CODE
Business Attire
You are warmly invited to our annual Court Consorts’ & Guests Luncheon which will be held in the elegant surroundings of the Furniture Makers’ Company at 12 Austin Friars, London EC2. This is an occasion for a friendly get together and to express our thanks in particular for the support given by Consorts to Livery Masters and partners.
Our Principal speaker will be Elspeth Hughes-Penney, Consort of Robert Hughes-Penney, Aldermanic Sheriff of the City of London 2025-6 who will be speaking about the Sheriffs’ and Recorder’s Fund and life as a Sheriff’s Consort at the Old Bailey.
Cost is £130 per person including VAT for a 3-course meal and wine.
Short Biography of Elspeth Hughes-Penny.
Elspeth was born and raised in Yorkshire and studied law at Nottingham University. After completing her training in Chester and qualifying as a solicitor in London, she specialised in corporate finance and law within the investment and insurance sectors, eventually becoming an associate partner. She paused her career to raise three children, continuing as an employment law consultant until her youngest was born. Her older children work in the City, and her youngest studies Theology. In 2012, she earned the FT Non-Executive Diploma to develop a diverse career and, more recently, qualified as a Spiritual Director, offering space for spiritual reflection. She is a Freeman of the Goldsmiths’ Company, sits on the Advisory Committee of the Sheriffs’ and Recorders’ Fund, and as Sheriff’s Consort is actively involved with the Old Bailey, inspired by her ancestor Elizabeth Fry, the prison reformer.
Potted History of Furniture Makers’ Hall
The Worshipful Company of Furniture Makers referred to as the Furniture Makers’ Company was established as a guild in 1951 and granted livery status in 1963. It is the 83rd Livery Company in the order of precedence of the City of London’s Livery Companies and received its Royal Charter in 2013. Its Hall, built in 1882 by E A Gruning, features Victorian architecture and original fittings, including an ornate oak staircase. The hall’s original tenants were the Leipzig-based banking firm Fruhling and Goschen. During WWII, the Hall sustained superficial damage from German bombing, unlike the nearby historic Dutch Church, which was completely destroyed. Today, the Company serves as the central organisation, charity, and patron of the British furnishing industry.