Hosting 60 hotel inspectors – is this the toughest job in hospitality?

Whether it’s a classic episode of Fawlty Towers or Alex Polizzi’s latest TV series, the words Hotel Inspector can strike fear into venues across the UK.

But two Cotswold venues are this week embracing the challenge by hosting a four-day residential training course for 60 hotel inspectors.

The course is being run by G4S’s Quality in Tourism (QiT) team – which has a license to assess on behalf of VisitEngland – and is being hosted at the award-winning Cotswold Conference Centre, near Broadway. Course attendees will also spend one evening taste-testing at the nearby Dormy House Hotel.

Entitled ‘Food for Thought’ the training is a refresher course for the experts, most of whom have many years’ experience assessing accommodation on behalf of VisitEngland.

The delegates are brushing up on every area of their trade, from how best to judge food and spot which carpets work well in a venue, to hearing updates on the latest hospitality marketing and website trends.

However, the prospect of 60 hotel inspectors instinctively running the rule over the service and surroundings during the week has only enthused the Cotswold Conference Centre.

Operations Manager Richard Howdle said: “Even though they are on a training course I’m quite sure, in their heads, all the inspectors will be assessing our rooms, food and service during their stay, but I’ve absolutely no doubt that we’ll meet their expectations.

“We have had a wide range of clients over the years and a residential course for hotel assessors is just one more exciting challenge for the team.”

QiT’s role is not only to inspect hotels and B&Bs, but also to offer positive advice to venue owners on how they can improve their services. The course will ensure that the assessors are up-to-date with the latest industry standards.

Guy Levoir, Operations Manager for G4S Assessment Services, is leading the course.

“We have expert speakers in everything from flooring and carpeting to food and websites so that the assessors can provide the best advice to the 23,000 VisitEngland venues across the country,” he said.

“It’s a highly specialised training course for experts in their field. They never really switch off and at a residential event like this the attendees are inevitably assessing everything around them – it’s what they do.”

During the week, the Cotswold Conference Centre’s catering team will be put to the test as the attendees are expected to get through 420 cups – or 14 gallons – of tea and coffee, 480 biscuits, almost 300 cakes as well as several hundred rashers of bacon and sausages.

Are you struggling to get the availability at the rate you need in the Capital this summer?

Olympic rates from £35+ vat Day Delegate and £115+ vat 24h rate

If you are struggling to get the availability at the rate you need in the Capital this summer, why not give us a call and see what we can offer?

We are only 30 minutes outside of London, and easily assessable from the rest of the UK. Which means your delegates and colleagues can escape the commuter nightmare.

Our 70 purpose built meeting rooms can all be adapted to your requirements – they all have natural daylight, air-conditioning, conference furniture and free Wi-Fi, just let us know anything else you may need.

For further details, contact our Hotline team today on 0845 230 1414 or info@cceonline.co.uk and quote Olympic 04/12E

Terms and conditions apply, all offers are subject to availability

Spring into business at Missenden Abbey

Book your conference/meeting to take place between now and the 31st of May and experience Missenden Abbey for special rates of:

£120 + VAT 24hr rate

• Three course hot & cold buffet dinner

• En-suite single occupancy overnight accommodation

• Two free syndicate rooms

• All AV equipment

• Complimentary chilled water, cordials & sweets

• Full English or Continental breakfast

• Air conditioned meeting room

• Fast & free wireless internet access

• Unlimited flipcharts

• Unlimited tea, coffee, biscuits & fruit

• Three course hot & cold buffet lunch

• Secure car parking, free of charge

• Delegate name cards, pads & pencils

£30 + VAT Day rate

• Air conditioned main meeting room

• All AV equipment

• Fast & free wireless internet access

• Unlimited flipcharts

• Complimentary chilled water cordials & sweets

• Unlimited tea, coffee, biscuits & fruit

• Three course hot & cold buffet lunch

• Delegate name cards, pads, pencils

• Secure car parking, free of charge

*Offer for new bookings only

Call us now on 0845 230 1414 to check availability or email info@cceonline.co.uk

Leap into Spring with Broomgrove's delicious £25 day conference deal, with bonus bacon rolls

Our special, all-inclusive package is just £25 per person* and available for meetings held throughout April, May and June.

• Guest registration and a dedicated event manager

• Audio visual equipment

• Unlimited high speed internet access, cabled or Wi-Fi

• Flipchart stand with whiteboard and pens

• Pens, notepads, name cards

• Still and sparkling water, cordials and a selection of sweets

• Unlimited tea, coffee, homemade biscuits and cakes

• Two-course hot and cold buffet lunch

• On-site technical support

• BONUS OFFER:Breakfast roll on arrival

Celebrate Spring with us and choose the pretty Grade II listed Broomgrove, Sheffield for your next meeting, conference or workshop this April - June.

Broomgrove is AIM accredited and has 7 spacious and flexible meeting rooms, including a grand chandelier-hung Ballroom, the Hayloft for up to 15, the Snug for intimate groups of up to 6 and the Upper Court seating 55 theatre style. All rooms come fully equipped with state-of-the-art technology, including free Wi-Fi.

To book, contact the Hotline today on 0845 230 1414 or info@cceonline.co.uk and quote 'Broomgrove Spring Offer'.

*Minimum booking of 10 people applies. Not applicable to existing bookings. Price quoted is exclusive of VAT.

Easter break offer at Engineers House!

We filled up fast this March and April's looking to follow suit. To fill those last minute gaps, how about 25% off our rack rate?

Engineers' House are expanding their Monday and Friday offering of £24.50+VAT DDR on any NEW BOOKINGS up to April 13th 2012.

What you can expect.

• Fully equipped conference room, set-up to your specification

• Dedicated event manager to ensure your event runs without issue

• Bistro lunch in our recently refurbished restaurant

• Hot drinks on tap all day, in our recently refurbished coffee lounge

• Industry leading service from a team that really performs

Contact the Hotline team today on 0845 230 1414 or email info@cceonline.co.uk

Breakfast Meetings at The Manor House

Meetings work better out of the office, away from distractions like the ringing phone, pinging e mails and colleagues asking if they can “just have a word”. Yet getting a few people away for even a few hours is not made any easier by the pressures on time we all face, let alone any budgetary constraints.

Building a meeting around a meal at the Manor House Conference Centre near Guildford could be the answer. Breakfast meetings, in particular, are making a comeback and with a bit of planning they can offer so much more than the traditional pre-meeting fare of a limp sausage in a soggy bun with a cup of lukewarm coffee.

Breakfast meetings offer all sorts of advantages to Surrey businessmen. Not only is the cost reasonable compared to a traditional meeting, but a short meeting with colleagues before the start of the business day leaves office hours free to do the day job.

So what are the options? Firstly, you should consider how you want to meet. If privacy is important, you may want to think about hiring one of the Manor House’s private rooms, such as the Boardroom. If it is less of a concern, then a meeting in the main dining room may offer the easiest and most cost-effective solution.

Choosing what’s to eat is also important. If you are only a few people, you could start the day with a traditional full English breakfast. Some venues will cook everything to order, meaning you get your breakfast freshly cooked for you. Other venues prefer a hot buffet which , whilst offering plenty of choice, can have the disadvantage of looking unappetising if there is not a quick turnover of food or if it is not topped up often, as happens if service is slow or coming to an end.

The Manor House fall in to the former category, cooking everything to order, so when you want to eat, your breakfast is as fresh as fresh can be.

The Manor House also uses local ingredients & suppliers, so when you order a Manor House Surrey breakfast, that's exactly what you get, complete with organic eggs and sausages made a couple of miles away.

Of course, The Manor House also caters for those who prefer something lighter - how about pancakes and maple syrup or muesli made to the Manor House’s own recipe?

If your group is larger and networking is important, you may want to consider a breakfast finger buffet. This could incorporate traditional items such as pastries, as well as items like mini smoked salmon bagels and mini brioche with Parma ham. Of course, larger groups may also want to sit down and enjoy “the full monty”, perhaps to the accompaniment of an inspirational speaker.

There are lots of possibilities and we’re here to help. If you’d like to discuss some ideas, please contact the Hotline today on 0845 230 1414 or info@cceonline.co.uk

BURLEIGH COURT CELEBRATES TURNING 21 AND LAUNCHES NEW CHARITY PARTNERSHIP IN STYLE

Burleigh Court, the four star hotel of hospitality and conferencing brand imago, welcomed a host of VIPs through its doors on Friday 23rd March in celebration of its 21st anniversary. The red carpet event raised £2,000 through a raffle and auction for its brand new charity partner, Youth Sports Trust. All proceeds will be used for its Sporting Chance initiative which develops opportunities for young people with special educational needs and disabilities.

The invitation only event was attended by University alumni and existing Burleigh Court customers who were thanked for their support over the last 21 years. The evening’s Olympic theme celebrated the venue’s bright future as the official host of Team GB with evening speaker Baroness Sue Campbell CBE, who is the Chair of UK Sport and Youth Sport Trust, discussing the exciting prospects of London 2012 and the new partnership between the charity and imago.

The evening’s five course dinner was entirely sourced from the East Midlands with the Derbyshire trout even caught by the venue’s own head chef, head porter and sous chef the afternoon before. imago always strives to work with local suppliers where possible and has even launched its own anniversary hamper, complete with specially brewed ale and bars of chocolate.

Kay England, imago Chief Executive and team member since Burleigh Court opened 21 years ago, said: "The gala dinner was a fantastic opportunity to thank our customers and celebrate with colleagues from Loughborough University. The Olympic theme not only links to our relationship with Team GB and other top institutions in the sporting world but to our objective of always improving the services we provide whilst striving to be the best at what we do. This is an incredibly exciting time for Burleigh Court and we’re looking forward to using the experience we’ve gained over the last 21 years to welcome the Olympic athletes and a host of other guests.”

imago also manages Holywell Park, a versatile conference and exhibition centre and The Link, a quality budget hotel which is ideally located for access to the University, the M1 and East Midlands Airport. It also has a range of meeting facilities and accommodation across Loughborough University campus.