Make your budget go further with 8 Northumberland Avenue

Delivering a fantastic event on a budget can be a challenge but certainly not impossible. To help you make sure your budget goes that little bit further, 8 Northumberland Avenue has rounded-up their top tips for cutting down on cost, not quality:

Be flexible with your dates:
Choosing a Monday or Friday for your event can save you, on average, 25% on venue hire and sometimes even up to 50%. A Monday conference is a great way to initiate a productive week and a Friday reception will allow your guests to really let their hair down and with potential savings of up to half-price, you really have nothing to lose.

Think about the month
As with days of the week, some months are more popular than others. We have found that January and April are great months to book when your budget is limited, as they tend to be slightly less popular meaning prices are generally lower than more sought-after months like August or July.

Limit your options, not your quality
Opting for a limited menu means saving up to 10% on costs but at 8 Northumberland Avenue we ensure this does not compromise on quality for our guests. Our event partners AlchemyLive will guarantee impeccable food and service no matter what your budget may be and will work with you to deliver your event vision at a realistic and achievable cost.

For more information on how to deliver a fantastic event regardless of your budget, contact the team, today at [email protected]

New summer menus launched at Bateaux London

Bateaux London is celebrating the very best of British cuisine in its new summer menus for its fine-dining Thames cruises.

The four-course dinner menu available on both its Harmony and Symphony vessels, which take in the sights of some of the capital’s most iconic landmarks, begins with a summer pea velouté and a choice of starters including free range chicken and Pimms jelly pressé, Scottish smoked salmon with yuzu pearls, asparagus and caviar or marinated heritage tomato salad.

Main courses of Cornish hake, South Downs’ lamb or crisp basil gnocchi are followed by sumptuous desserts including dark chocolate and Kentish raspberry delice, poached summer berries and artisan English cheese.

Lunchtime diners will be served roasted feta and pickled summer vegetable salad, roast Suffolk chicken or burrata and summer pea stuffed courgette flower, with strawberry cheesecake for dessert.

While those planning to spend Sunday on the river will enjoy a starter of pickled heritage beetroot, a main course of roast highland beef starter or traditional nut roast and a dessert of rhubarb and vanilla cream.

Or, for an alternative to the four-course menu, guests can enjoy a quintessentially British afternoon tea featuring smoked salmon and cucumber, egg and cress and coronation chicken sandwiches, a variety of cakes and scones, with strawberry preserve and Cornish clotted cream.

Gareth Brown, marketing manager for Bateaux London, said: “This summer we are celebrating the best of British produce with some classic, traditional dishes and where better to enjoy them than on the Thames, with a backdrop of world famous buildings such as Tower Bridge and the Palace of Westminster?”

Bateaux London’s vessels are available for exclusive hire for a range of corporate and leisure events.

For information, or to enquire about booking an event with Bateaux London, call 020 7695 1800 or email [email protected].

WVC members are shortlisted for prestigious 2017 miaList

Westminster Venue Collection is delighted to announce staff from member venues Cavendish Venues and the QEII Centre have been short-listed for a place on the Meetings Industry Association’s coveted miaList.

Paul Martins from Cavendish Venues and Roopi Woodall, Roberto Goncalves, and Charlotte Best from the QEII Centre are all hoping to have secured a place on the prestigious 2017 roll of honour, which recognises key individuals from the meetings, hospitality and events industries who go above and beyond the call of duty.

We wish Paul, Roopi, Roberto and Charlotte the very best of luck when the winners are announced at a celebratory lunch on Friday, 6 October 2017 at Park Plaza Victoria, London.

Follow us @Venues_Wminster for updates and news on this, and all other WVC news.

Westminster Venue Collection appoints Diane Waldron as chair

Westminster Venue Collection is delighted to announce Diane Waldron, director of sales and marketing at the QEII Centre, has been appointed as our new chair.

Under Diane’s expert leadership, which is drawn from a number of years in the sector, she will be implementing in a range of new initiatives designed to make the collection of 34 venues more visible and accessible to event buyers.

Following hot on the heels of our appearance at The Meetings Show last month, we will be exhibiting at Square Meal Venues and Events Live at Old Billingsgate on 20-21 September, which offers another fantastic opportunity for us to meet organisers face-to-face to discuss your current and future requirements.

Diane takes over from Clare Arouche, former head of business development at 10-11 Carlton House Terrace, who has now joined Royal Museums Greenwich as head of sales and events.

If you would like to find out more about us, what we do, and how we can make venue finding faster, easier and more efficient, click here.

Westminster Venue Collection appoints Diane Waldron as chair

Diane Waldron, director of sales and marketing at The QEII Centre, has been appointed chair of leading consortium Westminster Venue Collection (WVC).

An active board member of WVC since 2015, Diane takes over the position of chair from Clare Arouche, former head of business development at 10-11 Carlton House Terrace, who has now joined Royal Museums Greenwich as head of sales and events.

Extremely well-suited to the role of chair, Diane brings a wealth of hospitality and events experience to the position having held previous roles at the Honourable Artillery Company, Natural History Museum, Searcy’s at the Barbican and at the Tower Thistle Hotel.

On her appointment, Diane Waldron said: “Clare has been a truly fantastic chair for WVC and has guided the collection through our full rebrand, including the launch of our intuitive new website, over the last 12 months. Having been on the board for two years, I have seen the positive changes made under Clare’s leadership and am looking forward to continuing this, and developing new initiatives, in the months to come.”

Commenting on her departure from the board, Clare Arouche said: “Although I will of course miss working with my colleagues on the WVC board, I am delighted to be handing over to Diane and know she will do fantastic job continuing the growth of the collection. I have immensely enjoyed my time with WVC and look forward to watching it develop and progress under Diane’s expert leadership.”

The next big event in the collection’s calendar will be Square Meal Venues and Events Live at Old Billingsgate on 20 and 21 September. Taking a stand at the show, which brings together 250 of the UK’s best venues, is one of Diane’s key new initiatives which will offer both valuable exposure for the membership and increased visibility for the new name and branding.

Supporting Diane on the Westminster Venue Collection board is Victory Services Club’s Rosa Davies; Cavendish Venue’s Paul Martins; IET:London’s Clare Davies; One Great George Street’s Jayna Patel; Lansdowne Club’s Lucy Mannering and London Film Museum’s Rob Chambers.

#Eventprofs see us at The Meetings Show and grab yourself a prize!

We are very excited to be exhibiting at The Meetings Show 2017 taking place next week (Tuesday 13 June – Thursday 15 June).

Last year, we used the show as a platform to announce we would be relaunching under a new name and with a much-improved and more intuitive venue finding website and this year provides the perfect opportunity to get to know our exciting new-look collection as well as meet some key representatives from some of our 33 member venues.

We will also be marking the occasion with a fantastic prize giveaway with some unmissable prizes and experiences from our member venues including a ‘Secret Garden’ picnic for four with bubbles from Regent’s Conferences and Events, dinner for two with wine from 8 Northumberland Avenue and The Royal Horseguards Hotel and a magnum of Champagne from Cavendish Venues. To be in with a chance of winning, come and see us at The Meetings Show or sign up to our newsletter before Friday 23 June.

Full list of prizes are as follows:
Army & Navy Club
Two-course Club set menu meal and a bottle of Club wine
Regent’s Conferences and Events
‘Secret Garden’ picnic for four including a bottle of bubbly
8 Northumberland Avenue
Dinner for two with a bottle of house wine at Boyds Grill & Wine Bar.
Cavendish Venues Magnum of Champagne
The Royal Horseguards Hotel and One Whitehall Place
Dinner for two with a bottle of wine at One Twenty One Two Restaurant
London Film Museum Family ticket