“Big house” birthday rental.......

Agree with most points made by others. Just be aware of the configuration of the sleeping areas. Eg, you can’t expect a 15 year old boy to share a room with his auntie as he might have done when younger.

Also make sure of the date with the family before you book. A WhatsApp group useful for coordinating arrangements.

Have a look at the larger houses operated by the Landmark Trust. See their website. The propterties are beautifully restored and well set up with everything you need for self catering and have very comfortable beds. (Landmark actually make their own mattresses.)
The properties are all interesting, historic buildings all over the UK with a few in France and Italy. They accommodate everything from a couple to large groups. Two years ago we rented a 15th century tower for a special birthday celebration and can thoroughly recommend Landmark. Our bookings were all done online from Oz with no problems.

We’ve done this a few times in France and Italy as well as U.K. as with all the children, partners, GC, aunties etc no one has a big enough house to host everyone. you need a big communal dining area and a big lounge to all sit together. A big garden for games of rounders or cricket also a plus. Walks from the house or a nearby pub good too. Make a list of meals and all bring food plus a kitchen rota for whose in charge on what day. We had a Come Dine With Me challenge where a different couple would be in charge of the menu that evening. There are lots of useful websites one is www.groupaccommodation.com/property-search.

Ooh thanks for all your comments and helpful tips - all sounds v positive! I might try it for 3 or 4 nights, rather than a week. It’d be down to me to fund it I think, as daughters don’t have much spare cash (not that I have, but I could chip into my ISA ?)

We have done this twice for big birthdays by renting a whole Youth Hostel at very reasonable cost. Both Hostels had a huge lounge and kitchen/dining area. Perfect for informal meals and parties. Both were in scenic locations with lovely walks and plenty space outside for games and barbecue, etc.

We have done this several times when my brother was living abroad, When he came home, rather than him spreading himself thin visiting everyone, we would all meet up for a week in a big shared house. We split the cost between three families - brother sister and myself. We stopped doing it a few years ago when the family just got too big as the children grew up and had partners etc.
Things I learnt:
Whilst collections of cottages are nice and give you a bit of privacy, they struggle for big communal areas. I'd go for a big house with a big kitchen.
Swimming pools and games rooms are a big bonus.
It really doesn't matter about the location - the aim is to spend time together and there is always something nearby the least promising area for day trips.
Split the cooking between you - we used to do one meal each. Some places offer catering, which is great for a special occasion.
We have great memories of these holidays, go for it!

We did this some years ago in France for late DH's birthday . We had a big farmhouse which slept 12 for the family plus a 2 bed cottage in the courtyard. We used that and over the fortnight had 3 separate sets of friends to stay. A pool, a games room and a huge garden were the icing on the cake. We had a fabulous time and are left with many happy memories. I'd say go for it Sally

Yes, we didn't do the renting but were invited to one and it was an excellent weekend. There were separate areas to the converted barns with their own kitchens, bedrooms and sitting rooms and a large kitchen and communal area in the central barn.
It all worked very well - whereabouts are you thinking of Sallyann1?
Because we were all different families related to the birthday girl we all paid our share so it was not just one person paying.

Our family did this almost three years ago for the 60th birthday of one of my nieces. She rented a beautiful converted barn in Herefordshire for three nights, which was very expensive but we and another niece contributed too. There were 22 of us ranging in age from 83 to 1, plus a dog. The barn had lots of rooms (including a games room) for us to spread out and a hot tub in the garden proved an unexpected success in the evenings. We all had a wonderful time, made many happy memories and are planning to do it again, so I would say go for it!