A BRIDE-TO-BE who suffered years of sexual abuse is terrified her dream wedding may have to be cancelled due to the credit crunch.

Natalie Woods, of Stone Cross Close, Church, recovered from her childhood trauma to meet and fall in love with Chris Harvey, 24.

She booked her dream wedding at the Park Hall Hotel at Camelot theme park near Chorley over a year ago but the company that owns the hotel, Prime Resorts, was placed in receivership earlier this year after falling victim to the recession.

Administrators are hoping a buyer can be found to keep the hotel open but 20-year-old Natalie, who put down a £3,500 deposit, has been left in limbo.

She said: "The wedding was supposed to be a new chapter in my life after I was abused by my stepfather from the time I was seven until I was 14.

"Our wedding, which we booked for 24 May, is all I could possibly want. It would mean that I finally had complete closure."

Care worker Natalie and Chris put down the deposit for the venue last May.

Some of the money came from Natalie’s compensation payout for the abuse she suffered.

She said: "My idea was that in the end something happy could come out of the terrible things that had happened to me."

As soon as the news broke about Park Hall, Natalie contacted them and was told to give them two to four weeks to sort everything out.

She said: "I was really, really annoyed. I told Chris I would not turn into a Bridezilla but now I am beginning to.

"We reserved the venue in May 2008 and until recently they have been really helpful with my queries. I am worried about the money being tied up."

Natalie already has her wedding dress, a page boy suit for her son Ethan, flowers, bridesmaids’ dresses and nearly everything else sorted out for her big day – but she does not have any alternative venue in mind.

She added: "I just want them to tell me the wedding can go ahead or give me my money back."

A spokesman for Grant Thornton, which is overseeing the receivership, said he is still hopeful a buyer can be found.

He added: "We are hoping that any buyer will put the wedding on. There are 80 people employed at the hotel who want to see it continue to operate.

"We are making every effort to secure a full sale of the hotel to save jobs and keep weddings as scheduled."


* Natalie’s stepfather, John Neale, 46, was sentenced to 12 years in prison in May 2007 for three counts of rape, one attempted rape and one indecent assault. The family was living in Fleetwood at the time. Natalie has agreed to waive the anonymity afforded to victims of sexual assault.