Warwick Conferences ‘British BBQ Champion’ hosts thank you dinner

As a thank you for their business during 2014, Warwick Conferences held a BBQ event for its clients on Friday 26 September.

The BBQ event comes after the success of Warwick Conferences’ Executive Development Chef, Graham Crump, at this year’s British BBQ Battle. Graham impressed a panel of judges, led by World BBQ champion Ben Bartlett, during the live ‘cook-off’ held at Blenheim Palace in June.

Pictured are (l-r) Hannah Collins – RICS; Kate Stockley – RICS; Graham Crump - Warwick Conferences; Gemma Beasley – RICS; and Naomi Reynolds.

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.”

Weetwood Hall Conference Centre gets a contemporary makeover

In a drive to deliver first-class conferences in the most stylish of surroundings, award-winning Weetwood Hall has completely refurbished three of its conference rooms. 

The £85,000 project included the refurbishment of the Lawnswood Suite, Lawnswood Breakout and Bramley Room. All three rooms have been designed in a contemporary style. 

The recent renovation of Weetwood’s conference facilities is part of a wider refurbishment programme of the hotel. Over the last five years, Weetwood Hall has invested two million pounds refurbishing the hotel bedrooms in a fresh and modern style. 

An innovative and comprehensive lighting system

A comprehensive lighting system has been installed into both Lawnswood Suite and Bramley Room in order to be able to reflect the different moods and aspects of a conference. 

For a more atmospheric ambience when hosting social functions and weddings, an events setting can alter the mood of the lighting to create a more intimate experience.

Enhancing the mood for conferences and wedding ceremonies 

Mood lighting is also at the heart of the Lawnswood Suite lighting system, with a coloured LED system in place, which can be set to the corporate colours of an organisation. This innovative lighting system can also be used in conjunction with musical entertainment to mirror the tempo of the performance.

Specific to the Bramley Room is a lighting setting for a civil ceremony. The atmospheric wedding lighting can be lit when the guests enter the room and by the registrar’s table. 

Promoting eco-friendly conferences 

Maintaining its aim to promote environmental awareness and minimise its impact on the environment, the LED lighting along with motion sensors reduce the electricity consumption in conferences. 

Weetwood Hall’s newly refurbished conference rooms, which have been revamped to the highest of standards, augments the hotel’s commitment to create a flexible, inspiring and practical meeting space for businesses. 

Weetwood Hall’s contemporary-themed conference rooms are accompanied by complimentary high-speed Wi-Fi access, free parking and an accessible location – indispensable elements of a stress-free and enjoyable conference experience. 

Conference Centres of Excellence kicks off PA networking forums at Office* 2014

Conference Centres of Excellence is working with their group of nationwide venues to set up a new regional networking forum for PAs, and is inviting all Office* Show visitors to join them for a glass of bubbly to discuss this series of events at the show.

The group has acted on feedback from existing PA and Office Manager clients, having identified that there is very little scope for regional forums in their sector, and have already delivered the first successful session over the summer. Building on this, Conference Centres of Excellence aims to broaden these events across key regions throughout the UK, delivering valuable content with the opportunity to meet like-minded individuals and discuss relevant industry topics and challenges. 

With 29 unique meeting and event venues nationwide, covering an area from the south coast of England to Scotland, Conference Centres of Excellence is the UK’s leading marketing consortium for dedicated conference, meeting and event venues. By collating and sharing knowledge, best practice and expertise from all member venues, the group continues to deliver excellent events by providing the highest quality of service and facilities in the meetings and event industry, and all members are quality monitored to ensure these standards are delivered whatever the event.

Join us on stand 1071 at Office* 2014 and enjoy a free glass of bubbly while meeting our experienced venue teams. 

CLICK HERE to download your voucher and bring along with you!

Oxford City Centre venue latest to join Conference Centres of Excellence

Conference@SaïdOxford, part of the Saïd Business School, University of Oxford, in the heart of Oxford city centre is the latest venue to join Conference Centres of Excellence, the nationwide group of quality assured meeting, conference and events venues.

The impressive West Wing opened in 2012 and offers a wide variety of conference, meeting and exhibition facilities, finished and furnished to the highest of standards and with stunning architecture.

Highlights include three oak-panelled Harvard-style lecture theatres each seating up to 76 delegates, three large flexible classrooms, and 18 boardroom style seminar rooms.

The East Wing offers a high quality venue, with the pretty courtyard and beautiful garden ensuring an air of calm and tranquillity to a wide variety of facilities. The grounds are suited to seasonal networking events such as BBQs and wine tasting, and can incorporate activities such as team building exercises. Marquees can be erected in the courtyard area, and the 400 seat outdoor amphitheatre offers a truly stunning and unique option for an event.

“Customers will be extremely impressed with the variety of facilities, including the lecture theatres and superb technology in all event spaces. The convenient city centre location will also benefit all delegates and the unique outdoor space is a hidden gem within the urban environment.” commented Amanda Stacey, Marketing Manager at Conference Centres of Excellence.

Having met the requisite quality criteria for facilities and customer care, joining Conference Centres of Excellence enables Conference@SaïdOxford to benefit from the group’s marketing activities, providing customers with a single route to booking nationwide venues, with consistent quality standards.

“We are delighted and honoured to be joining Conference Centres of Excellence and fully support their values of providing the highest professional standards in the meetings and event industry, ensuring our customers experience an excellent quality of service and facilities.” Said Martin Garside, Space, Allocation and Events Manager.

“Following a £28 million investment into our conference and meeting facilities we offer world-class venues with all-year round availability and look forward to working in partnership with new event organiser’s in arranging events of the highest standard”.

For more information call us on 0845 230 1414 or email info@cceonline.co.uk

EEF Venues celebrates market confidence with major refurbishment

EEF Venues has completed a £120K refurbishment project at its Woodland Grange conference centre in Leamington Spa. 

The company commissioned McCarthy Interiors, leading specialists in corporate refurbishment and space planning, to upgrade the venue’s lounge and bar areas. This included new flooring, lighting, décor and furniture.

This latest project follows just one year after EEF Venues made a £1 million capital investment in the refurbishment of bedrooms and bathrooms at the AIM gold accredited venue.

David Vaughton, director of venues for EEF Venues, said: ”We have seen a 27 per cent growth increase across our three venues over the last four years. Because of this significant growth, our parent group, EEF, the manufacturers’ organisation, made a commitment to invest further.

“Our newly refurbished lounge and bar areas now reflect the diversification of our client-base and their expectations. Softer lighting, more comfortable seating and colourful décor have changed the mood of these areas, providing a calmer and more relaxing environment for people to unwind after a busy conference or training session.”

The coffee lounge features a new Autobar bean-to-cup coffee station, where delegates can enjoy Woodland Grange’s range of hand-made biscuits, speciality teas, fresh juices and fruit.

“Delegates expectations are higher than ever so we now bench-mark ourselves against top quality hotels and conference venues,” said David Vaughton.

“We have dropped the lighting levels, created lower ceilings and added luxury fabrics and contemporary, retro-style seating to create a more chilled environment because we feel that when people are happy and relaxed, they are more productive and energised. Our meeting spaces are still comfortable yet functional but it’s important that break-out areas and lounges have a very different feel.

“This latest investment is about strengthening the total solution for our clients so that their every need is met, from state of the art technology to great food and a warm and inviting after-work ambience.

“It is also an indication of the confidence we feel in the market. August trading results for Woodland Grange show a 61% per cent year-on-year increase. Now that we have completed the refurbishment, we expect further enhanced performance going forward.”

The 114-bedroom venue also features a health suite which includes a Jacuzzi, gym and sauna.

Join us for a glass of bubbly at Office* Show!

Conference Centres of Excellence will be attending the Office* Show next week at London Olympia.

Office* provides a unique platform where key corporate buyers can meet and do business with a range of relevant and carefully selected suppliers. Running alongside the show is a world class education and training programme which will aid personal development and attract executive support professionals from across the country. This is an event not to be missed by any PA, EA, VA or office manager!

Come along and meet our venue sales team along with representatives from member venues:

• Kents Hill Park
• Ashorne Hill
• Warwick Conferences
• Weetwood Hall

Join us between 12.30 and 3.30 for a free glass of bublly, and talk to us about our regional PA network events. Meet with like-minded professionals and discuss the subjects that matter to you…

Download our voucher and bring along on the day >

For more information contact info@cceonline.co.uk or call us on 0845 230 1414