Kirsty rates ‘location, location, location’ of Woodland Grange

One of the key considerations for anyone booking a conference is location. Is the venue accessible to all major motorway, rail and air links? 

Facilities are also important, but making the right choice of venue goes far beyond just having the right address or kit. It’s a holistic approach covering everything from assessing a venue’s ethos, standards of care and technology to the quality of its food.

When Kristy Peake, Chair of the CAPBT, the COAPE Association of Pet Behaviourists and Trainers, was looking for a venue for the organisation’s annual conference this May, she took a practical approach and checked out Woodland Grange for herself before committing to a booking.

She explained: ”Last year, while attending an event at Stoneleigh Park, my colleague and I were looking for accommodation. My Google search came up with Woodland Grange and while there, we asked for a tour of the facilities and we were very impressed. My colleague and I decided that Woodland Grange would be the perfect venue for us.

“This proved to be the case as our speakers and members were subsequently delighted with the venue and its facilities. Interestingly, this year we did an analysis of our membership to find a geographical centre. It turned out to be Leamington Spa so it couldn’t have made a better choice!”

CAPBT, the COAPE Association of Pet Behaviourists and Trainers is the largest specifically qualified association for pet behaviourists and trainers in the UK. Membership offers all pet owners a guarantee of quality when seeking help with the treatment of behaviour problems or in training a dog or puppy.

Throughout the year, the organisation holds many small events around the country, but for its big annual conference, wanted a central location to facilitate its members.

Kirsty Peake said:” We like to ‘push the boat out’ for our annual conference, with speakers from outside our Association, as it helps to raise our profile.

“Location was key for us as many of our members travel to the conference from different parts of the UK and Ireland and we wanted to make it as easy as possible for them. Woodland Grange offers easy access to Birmingham Airport for members from Scotland, Ireland and the CIs.

“The food was also excellent and we were very impressed with the care and attention given to us. I spend a lot of time in the USA where the service industry is respected and valued, whereas here in the UK it is not so much. The level of service provided by the team at Woodland Grange was outstanding. The fact that everything went well and the odd hiccup was dealt with immediately was very reassuring. We will definitely consider returning to Woodland Grange again.”