College Court wins award at Chamber of Commerce event

The University of Leicester’s conference and training venue College Court has taken pride of place in a prestigious regional awards dinner.
The £17.5million facility has already won a clutch of awards- the latest coming from the East Midlands Chamber of Commerce Awards dinner.
College Court, in Knighton, was selected as Winner of Business Improvement through Technology and Finalist for Excellence in Customer Service.

College Court Director Steve Crawford said: “It was lovely to be in the same room with so many businesses from across the region and see College Court up on the big screen. It was particularly thrilling to hear our name called out as winners.
“Our success is down to a team effort so a huge thank you to all who work at College Court. As we head toward our 3rd Anniversary I am sure that we can look forward to future success and indeed the need to buy a bigger trophy cabinet!
“There is another awards event this coming Friday where we have been shortlisted for Excellence in Professional Services.”

Since opening in October 2013 College Court has generated sales of £6.5 million. With the combined offer of College Court, Stamford Court and the broader portfolio, annual sales for the next financial year will be in excess of £4.5 million. All profits feed directly into the University.
Over 300 people attended the event at Leicester City Football Club's King Power Stadium.

Chamber President Jean Mountain said:
“The Chamber’s congratulations go to all of this year’s winners. We had some really good entries and the judging process was extremely tough, but all of the winning businesses thoroughly deserve their success.
“The standard of competition was extremely high, which clearly shows that despite the surprise of the exit vote at the EU Referendum, we have some real success stories of Leicestershire businesses doing well. All of the finalists also deserve recognition for their success.
“Over the past 12 months, businesses in Leicestershire have been busy investing, innovating, exporting and growing and these awards are testament to the quality of businesses we have in this city and county.”

Imago hosts 25th Anniversary Charity Dinner

DIG DEEP, BID HIGH AND DON’T FORGET YOUR SPLASH OF RIO!

Imago hosts 25th Anniversary Charity Dinner

Imago is celebrating its 25th Anniversary this year and, to mark the occasion, is hosting a fundraising dinner in support of its partner charities - Minnie’s Friends and Twenty Twenty.  Minnie’s Friends is a drop-in centre which provides vulnerable people with hot meals, hot drinks and clothing, enabling them to move on to a better life and become more integrated into the community. Twenty Twenty gives invaluable help to hundreds of disadvantaged and disengaged young people, developing their self-belief, self-worth and motivation, whilst gaining academic qualifications and work-ready skills they need to find and keep good jobs.

Emma Boynton, Head of Sales and Marketing, comments: “As part of our commitment to the local community, we proudly support our partner charities and we couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate our 25 years than an evening of carnival celebration and networking, especially with the success of Loughborough athletes in the Olympic Games!”

The Rio-themed event is taking place on Friday 28th October 2016 at Burleigh Court Hotel and Conference Centre from 6.30pm until late. Tickets are £60 each or £500 for a table of ten, with bed and breakfast accommodation being offered from just £25 per person. Fifty percent of all ticket sales will go directly to the charities, in addition to all proceeds raised from prize auctions on the night. 

For more information, to buy tickets or to explore sponsorship opportunities, call on 01509 633085 or email info@welcometoimago.com

Celebrate Your Business at Warren House

The office Christmas party is the perfect time to celebrate the achievements of your business, highlight members of your team who have particularly excelled in their roles and even set in motion some bold and ambitious plans for the future. With a range of rooms available, from intimate dining spaces to versatile conference rooms, the team at Warren House are confident they can exceed all of your business requirements this Christmas season.

With a number of select packages available for businesses of all sizes to come and experience Warren House this Christmas, all of which include the use of this beautiful venue and delicious food prepared on-site by their extensively qualified team of culinary experts. For a small and intimate meal between a close group of colleagues, we’d highly recommend the Christmas lunch package, which includes the use of one of the more private dining areas, and is perfect for groups of up to 10 guests. You can even make use of the excellent Surrey location, joining Warren House for a midday meal before arriving back in the office in the late afternoon. For larger parties, there is a choice of packages designed to help businesses make the most of their events budget, with several additional services available to create a truly unique, memorable event.

Get the Festive Feeling - A Showcase Event

Warren House are delighted to be hosting a promotional event specifically dedicated to Christmas packages on September 15th 2016. To spread a little Christmas spirit, Warren House will be offering Christmas-themed refreshments throughout the day including warm m

ulled wine and festive canapés. Members of the team will also be on hand throughout the day to provide tours of this beautiful venue and offer further information on the range of packages.

BOOK NOW: To confirm your place on the showcase event, please contact the Warren House team on 020 89747109 / 7118 or email : tannaz.goss@warrenhouse.com

Green Light for Golden Jubilee at Awards

The Golden Jubilee Conference Hotel has been shortlisted in two categories at the Glasgow Business Awards, making it through to the finals in the Sustainable Development and Green Champion categories. 

Hosted by Glasgow Chamber of Commerce, the Awards, which take place at The Hilton, Glasgow, on Thursday 6 October, are dedicated to celebrating outstanding contributions from large and small businesses across a range of categories.

The Sustainable Development Award is open to organisations who demonstrated they are actively improving and adding value to their business through sustainable practices. 

The Green Champion Award recognises individuals or teams who demonstrate innovations and the impact of green initiatives they have driven forward for an organisation. 

Discussing the nomination, Gary Rice, General Manager of the Golden Jubilee Conference Hotel, said: “The Glasgow Business Awards is one of the most prestigious events in the Scottish business calendar. To be nominated twice for our sustainability and green practices is a huge honour and major recognition of the efforts of our Green Team to make this possible. 

“Over the past several years we have aimed for an environment of continuous improvement, aiming for new ways to make our practices more environmentally friendly, while still offering a comprehensive service for all of our guests and conference delegates.”

The Golden Jubilee Conference Hotel has consistently performed to a very high standard in the Green Tourism Business Scheme and has a strong track record of achieving environmentally friendly awards, including the Eco Hotel of the Year finalist at the AA Hospitality Awards 2013 and 2014, the Eco Award for Environmental Excellence at the Scottish Hotel Awards 2013, and recently receiving the Silver Accreditation in the TripAdvisor Green Award. 

Gary added: “We provide specialist Green Conference Packages for event and meetings organisers, state-of-the-art electronic car charging points and an award winning restaurant and hospitality service which specialises in providing top of the range, locally sourced produce. 

“Going forward we will continue to find new, innovative and exciting ways to reduce our impact on the environment and provide better value, greener services for all of our guests and delegates from around the world.” 

For more information about the Golden Jubilee Conference Hotel’s Green Conference Packages, visit: http://www.goldenjubileehotel.com/conferences-and-events/green-conference-package/ 

Conference Hotel in the running for top food award

The Food and Beverage team at The Golden Jubilee Conference Hotel have been shortlisted as a finalist for Hotel Restaurant of the Year in a prestigious food awards.

After securing a huge number of votes from the public, the Hotel restaurant was announced as a finalist in the South West of Scotland heat of the Food Awards Scotland 2016.

The Awards, which are voted for by the public, celebrate the very best in Scottish food hospitality and are designed to recognise the efforts of Scotland's restaurants, takeaways, gastro pubs and cafes.

The team will find out if they have won at a glittering ceremony in the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Glasgow, on Monday 15 August.  

Gary Rice, General Manager of the Golden Jubilee Conference Hotel, said: “I am really excited to hear that we have been shortlisted as a finalist at the Food Awards Scotland 2016.

“Here at the Hotel we pride ourselves on serving all our delegates and guests with delicious meals that always include local and fresh ingredients of the highest quality.

“We are honoured to be in contention for such a prestigious award and I would like to say a massive thank you to everyone who voted for us and of course I am delighted that the efforts of our fantastic Food and Beverage team have been recognised as they work hard every day to ensure we continually deliver the highest possible standard of service.”

The Golden Jubilee Conference Hotel is continually recognised for always delivering an excellent level of customer satisfaction and sustainable practices, recently receiving their sixth consecutive Certificate of Excellence from TripAdvisor as well as being regularly evaluated and accredited by the Green Tourism Board. 

Gary added: “At the Hotel we always look to go the extra mile for our delegates and guests and offering a relaxing, comfortable, fine-dining experience is a crucial part of the elite standard of service we constantly strive to provide. 

“In addition to offering a four star restaurant and hospitality service, we are in the process of rolling out our new bedroom collection which will see us continue to offer a high standard of facilities, providing the perfect environment for our guests to work, study and, just as importantly, relax at the Golden Jubilee Conference Hotel.”

imago welcomes new university facilities

imago, one of the UK’s leading academic venues, has welcomed the opening of Loughborough University’s latest facilities. 

imago already provides event organisers with access to one of the UK's largest and most extensive single conference sites through the facilities available on campus. The 410-acre campus features more than 75 state-of-the-art exhibition, meeting and conference rooms for up to 2,000 delegates, in addition to facilities Burleigh Court, Holywell Park and The Link Hotel. 

The opening of the new £3 million teaching space - The West Park Teaching Hub – will see Its campus offering extended even further. The West Park Teaching Hub – located in the former Ford College building - features five lecture theatres, two seminar rooms and a central learning and exhibition zone and is equipped with the latest audio visual equipment. Alongside the formal teaching space there is an informal learning area and waiting areas with seating and a café.

Emma Boynton, Head of Sales and Marketing at imago, says of the new meetings facilities: “It’s really exciting to be able to offer clients a new event space on campus – it is an outstanding facility to have in our portfolio. The West Park Teaching Hub offers everything event organisers need for successful meetings and conferences. But our campus offering is about more than the buildings. Being able to utilise the university’s reputation for academic excellence is also a great way for event organisers to enhance the content of their event so it has real value for delegates attending.”

imago unifies Loughborough University’s conference and events venues under one brand which offers high quality meeting spaces, venues and accommodation along with excellent sports and leisure facilities. imago manages Burleigh Court, Holywell Park, Loughborough University’s conference and events facilities and The Link Hotel. 

Major gain for Wilson Vale

Independent catering company, Wilson Vale, has gained the single largest contract in its fourteen year history to date – a full service contract with Conference Aston in Birmingham. 

Worth £1.75 million in annual turnover, the three-year contract is due to start on 1st August when Wilson Vale will take over from the incumbents, Sodexo, at the 163 bedroom AIM accredited residential conference centre, which is part of Aston University.

As well as managing catering and hospitality services under a seven-day operation, Wilson Vale will manage housekeeping and bar services.  A team of 46 Wilson Vale staff will be involved in running the contract at the venue which attracts up to 55,000 hotel guests and conference delegates each year. 

Andrew Wilson, co-founder of Wilson Vale, said: “This is a seriously special milestone for us. Over the last three years we have steadily developed our conference and venues portfolio so to have gained this flagship venue shows our understanding of the specific needs of this niche market.  

“We were up against some industry heavyweights, and it is wonderful that Conference Aston has bought into our food and our culture to drive their business forward.”

Samantha Brown, head of Conference Aston, said: “As a venue, we are always seeking new ways to drive innovation into our guests’ experience, and food plays a crucial role within this, often creating the lasting impression for our conference and hotel guests. 

“The business tourism sector in Birmingham is increasingly competitive, so it was vital that our contract partner for catering and housekeeping could provide the energy and creativity for us to stand out from the increasing number of conference hotels and continue to develop our first class service offer. Wilson Vale stood out during the tender process with their passion for fresh, local, homemade food and we are looking forward to taking our food offer across our restaurants and bar to exciting new places as we progress the partnership.”

The value of Wilson Vale’s conference portfolio has doubled over the last twelve months, representing 15% of the business, with the remainder of the portfolio within business and industry and private education.

The company now employs 600 people and projected annual turnover is £23 million for 2016.

Since it was established in 2002, Wilson Vale has seen an average 15 cent compounded growth rate year-on-year, showing consistency of standards and growth over its entire history to date.

Wilson Vale became preferred suppliers to Venues of Excellence in 2012 and are in partnership with two member venues.