CHURCH HOUSE WESTMINSTER HOSTS CENTENARY CONFERENCE #AskHerToStand

The 21st of November 2018 marked 100 years since the first women gained the right to stand for election to the House of Commons. To mark this centenary celebration the Government Equalities Office chose to host their conference “From Law Breakers to Law Makers” at Church House Westminster on this date.

On arrival in the morning the Bishop Partridge Hall was used as an exhibition and networking space, which were supported by the Fawcett Society, the Jo Cox Foundation, the Centenary Action Group and 50:50 Parliament.

Almost 200 guests then took their seats in the Hoare Memorial Hall where the National Youth Choir performed before proceedings commenced for the conference.

The panel of speakers included:

Seyi Akiwowo – Founder of Glitch UK, a not-for-profit organisation that exists to end online abuse.

Victoria Atkins MP – Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Home Office

Jane Garvey – British radio presenter, currently of BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour.

Stella Creasy MP – British Labour and Co-operative politician MP for Walthamstow.

Baroness Anne Jenkin – Conservative Member of the House of Lords

Gina Martin – Activist and writer, launched campaign to make upskirting illegal.

Attendees were able to learn from women lawmakers who have made a difference to the country. They were also encouraged to remember the work of the women, and men, who won women the foothold of equality. The speakers delivered inspiring speeches during the conference, underscoring the event hashtag #AskHerToStand to encourage more women to become candidates and to stand for political office.

 

 

What will 2019 bring for the industry?

As we welcome in a new year, we asked a couple of our board members what we can expect to see over the next 12 months. According to Paul Martins virtual venue showrounds will become the norm, while Clare Davies believes remote participation will increase.

Paul Martins, director of sales at Cavendish Venues, says: “As we approach the end of another decade, technology continues to advance. Virtual 3D walk-through presentations are already popular, but they will become even more of the norm as clients from all lengths and distances find the convenience, accuracy and even the interactive novelty appealing as an integral part of their decision-making process. At Cavendish Venues, they’ve enhanced our proactive business tools demonstrating we’re a forward-thinking venue. Just by sharing the links with clients, who can easily share them with their colleagues, we’ve witnessed an increase in conversions.”

Clare Davies, sales & development manager at IET London: Savoy Place, says: “The global impact of events, both from a sustainability perspective and audience reach, will likely gain more traction next year. Events in London or the UK are not limited to the guests in their location or attendance, which means a greater number of events and concepts will look at how they can deliver and share their content across continents and audiences. This will be with greater digital investment to encourage live streaming, social sharing and looping in guest speakers from abroad for real-time conversation with guests. Not only is this a benefit to global MICE professionals, it’s also going to have an environmental benefit, when you consider 500 delegates being able to attend online conferences rather than flying around the world into one destination.”

New outdoor space available at the Royal Society

The Royal Society is delighted to announce the opening of Waterloo Gardens as an exclusive outdoor space for summer events at the venue.

With its tranquil feel and beautiful surroundings, this private garden offers the perfect setting to spend a summer evening in the heart of Westminster. Whether for an evening reception or simply for relaxed networking at the end of a day conference, this lush garden is an ideal option.

Sip on a refreshing cocktail while enjoying delicious canapés or bowl food and let the venue’s dedicated team take care of everything.

To hold your event at the Royal Society, contact the conferencing team on 0207 451 2612 or email [email protected].

Fit for a king

November 2018 saw 209 members from the Estates and Facilities Directorate at King’s College London (including eight from King’s Venues), successfully completed the Fit for King’s training programme.

Launched in 2013, the customer service training programme is designed to inspire staff to deliver a world class service to all.

Book an event with King’s Venues and experience what makes them Fit for King’s.

QEII scoops two top accolades at The Drum Experience Awards

Leading central London events venue the QEII Centre has triumphed in two of the top venue categories at The Drum Experience Awards 2018.

The 2,500-capactiy venue was named Best Large Events Venue, as well as winning the award for Best Venue Team, at the annual ceremony for the experiential events industry which took place at Marriott Grosvenor Square on Tuesday 4 December.

QEII’s success follows a five-year refurbishment and rebrand, with £15 million invested in transforming into a flexible, creative events space, attracting a wide variety of events from London Fashion Week runway shows and beauty product launches to cutting-edge tech conferences and global human rights summits.

For the Large Venue of the Year Award, judges said of QEII: “We were impressed by the investment in both the building refurb, its IT, its financial results and its people.” For the Venue Team of the Year Award, judges said they were “impressed by the winning team’s success stories, including financial result, diverse client base and innovative mystery shopper programme.”

The Drum Experience Awards, formerly The Drum UK Event Awards, aims to recognise the very best in the experiential events business, including venues, agencies and event organisers.

Chief executive of the QEII Centre Mark Taylor said: “I’m absolutely thrilled to have come out on top in both of these highly competitive categories. I am especially proud of all the team at the QEII Centre for their hard work and dedication, which has not only led to us winning this award, but to our best financial year to date, turning over £14.23m and creating a net economic contribution to the UK economy of £145million.

Chair of the judging panel and head of experiential and growth at Geometry, Andy Dougan said: “Experiential is one of the tools that retailers have to fight back the declining high street. We’re seeing a lot of evidence of experience having a role to play in places like the US, with shopping malls where experiential is driving traffic into those environments.”

For more information about the QEII Centre, visit www.qeiicentre.london.

From Georgian Weddings to the Cayman Islands, 116 Pall Mall proves its versatile credentials

116 Pall Mall, the Georgian home of the IoD, has launched its wedding packages for 2019/2020.

Alongside these, events planner Rebecca Kobus from Rebecca K. Events has designed and styled a photoshoot involving a mini wedding complete with a willing couple who, following their real wedding earlier this month, got dressed up for the third time in their wedding finery.

A beautiful table was set in the Nash room, with Miriam Faith creating floral displays of flowers cascading from gold baskets suspended above the guests, gorgeous stationery from Paper Pretty including personalised menus and name cards twisted into Roman scrolls, and a delicious oversized cake from Melissa at Thirty One Cakes.

The following night, the room was transformed into a Caribbean paradise as we welcomed 250 business people from the Cayman Islands to the venue. Exotic flowers abounded as the guests enjoyed a three-course dinner, spiced up with a Cayman chilli pepper jelly imported especially for the night.

The wedding packages are available online and by contacting the sales team on 0207 451 3107 or by emailing [email protected]

The National Gallery Company unveils two new outdoor event spaces

The National Gallery is proud to present two new outdoor event spaces for 2019 – The National Gallery Garden and Jubilee Walk.

Officially launched last month, the two new spaces increase the Gallery’s event portfolio to 22 inspirational locations within the venue.

Responding to an increased demand for outdoor entertaining options in Central London, the two new spaces, who will both have their own distinctive and versatile features, will be available to hire for a range of different events, both during the day and evening, from January 2019.

Kate Rolfe, Head of Events at The National Gallery Company, says: “The National Gallery is excited by

the creative opportunities that our new outdoor spaces provide. We look forward to taking the Gallery’s inspiration outside to bring both private and public events to life in these new and previously unexplored surroundings. This is a completely fresh offer from the Gallery and we look forward to seeing the ways they can be transformed for creative events moving forward.”

London Transport Museum proves perfect choice for Exterion Media

Europe’s largest out-of-home advertising company, Exterion Media, welcomed guests to explore all spaces at London Transport Museum ahead of the public opening of their annual ‘Upfronts’ breakfast event.

Set in the original flower market of Covent Garden, the Museum Galleries house a historic collection of transport icons including the world recognisable red Routemaster – making it a natural choice for the largest supplier of bus side advertising in the UK.

A hearty Benugo breakfast was served in the heart of the Galleries before speeches were made from the back of a 1910 West Ham tram.

As the number one media owner in the UK’s transport sector, Exterion’s ‘The Power of Movement’ theme was complimented perfectly by the exciting new ‘Future Engineers’ gallery, which features an Elizabeth line driving simulator.

Once open, Exterion Media whisked guests through Crossrail’s ‘Secret Life of a Megaproject’ exhibition and down into the Cubic Theatre for presentations in the recently refurbished Cubic Theatre.

If you are interested in a unique start to your next daytime event, contact London Transport Museum’s Venue Hire team on 020 7565 7292/ [email protected], for more information.