Tag: Conference venue

Regent’s celebrates success at London Venue Awards

Posted on by engineroom

Regent’s Conferences & Events has been recognised for its unique outdoor space and flexibility, winning the Bronze Award for Best Venue with Outside Space in the London Venue Awards 2022.

The awards, which were presented at The Kia Oval, London on Friday 11 November, aimed to recognise and reward outstanding achievement in London-based venues and catering companies.

The accolade comes after a record-breaking summer of success at Regent’s, as the team evolves its outdoor events offering year-on-year. The past 12 months has been no different. Due to the increasing demand for excess space, the lawns have proven to be incredibly sought after. The venue was virtually booked out by April 2022, but even after inevitable COVID dropouts, rail strikes and cancellations, it still saw 90% occupancy – 30% above target.

The outdoor space is unique in its versatility for events.  Perfectly positioned for balancing convenience with secluded privacy in the heart of London, the four acres of gardens are just a few steps away from the city’s hustle and bustle. The expanse of landscaped lawns, paired with a hidden, gated Secret Garden offers a fairy-tale-like setting with wildflowers, lush greenery, and excellent views of the city’s horizon. Concealed by foliage, the hidden space is accessed via a walkway covered by a beautiful pergola.  

Responding to the award success, Rafael Azzopardi, Interim Head of Catering and Events said: “To pick up another prestigious award for our summer party offering is testament to the consistency in service and facilities over the past few years. It’s brilliant to have the team’s extraordinary effort over the past 12 months recognised, as they continue to produce outstanding events in our outdoor space, despite all sorts of challenges thrown their way. We are quite fortunate to have such a large, private outdoor area in such a convenient location in London, and visitors are frequently astounded by the venue’s rural setting despite being only a short distance from the bustle of the city.

“It’s undoubtedly a fantastic motivation for the team to deliver another season of memorable outdoor events in 2023, as demand for the summer has already picked up.”

Find out more about Regent’s event space.

IET London: Savoy Place shortlisted for double London Venue Awards accolade

Posted on by engineroom

IET London: Savoy Place has been shortlisted for both Best Venue Customer Service and Best Venue for Hybrid Events in the London Venue Awards 2022.

Amid recognition of outstanding customer service, the venue has been celebrating the loyalty of its staff, with four of the senior team having dedicated over a decade of service to the IET and its clients. Due to the consistency and expertise offered at Savoy Place, the venue has had over 60% repeat bookers for events over the past 12 months.

Savoy Place’s modern conference facilities with robust IT infrastructure have allowed it to facilitate filming and streaming to multiple rooms. Additional hybrid filming and streaming services supplied to commercial clients by in-house AV specialists, IET.tv, are on track to grow in value by 300% for 2022, compared to 2021.

As the IET’s central London event venue, the building is well used by science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) businesses as well as clients from broader industries championing CSR because of its sustainability credentials, including its most recent Greengage Platinum ECOsmart accreditation. With many high-profile visitors and events, Savoy Place is proficient in client privacy, NDA content and full-service packages to provide security. The venue’s Operations Manager also has House of Commons security experience.

On being shortlisted, Sean Spencer, Head of IET Venues and Facilities said: “It’s brilliant recognition of the hard work the team has put in over the past 12 months to constantly adapt our client offering while continuing to deliver above and beyond when it comes to customer service. We’ve worked hard to develop a strong culture and thorough training scheme, educating staff on the importance of exceptional operational standards.

“Congratulations to the entire Savoy Place team for being recognised in two categories that highlight both technical prowess and outstanding delivery.”

Explore Savoy Place’s hybrid facilities to find out more about hosting your next event here.

New interactive installation at London Transport Museum will take families on a ‘Green Journey’ this summer

Posted on by engineroom

This summer London Transport Museum is welcoming families to explore a new interactive ‘Green Journey’ installation that will get visitors thinking about climate change, the role of transport in creating a sustainable city, and how we can all do our bit to ensure a greener future. A green themed trail around the Museum galleries and creative workshops will also run throughout the holidays, helping young visitors to learn about these big concepts in a fun and family-friendly way.

Visitors to The Green Journey installation will be able to explore four themed, hands-on areas to learn about topics such as global warming and its effects on London, the solutions from big businesses that are already underway to help tackle it – such as Transport for London’s hydrogen buses – as well as new green jobs and the people behind them. The space will also help families discover the small changes we can make at home to be more eco-friendly.

Family workshops inspired by the themes of the Green Journey space will also take place on selected dates throughout the holidays. Five workshops will run per day, suitable for children 8-14 years old:

  • Climate Calling: selected dates between 23 July – 4 August (23, 26, 28, 30 July and 2, 4 Aug). Learn about the ways climate change affects our city and the role of transport in providing the solution – from TfL’s new hydrogen buses that are helping make London’s air cleaner, to the active travel choices we can all make when getting from A to B. Create your own Climate Calling board game inspired by what you’ve learnt.
  • Future Innovators: selected dates between 6 – 18 August (6, 9, 11, 13, 16, 19 August). What will life in our city look like in the future? What jobs will exist and what skills will we need? Hear about real-life climate change innovators and explore the skills we are going to need to help tackle climate change in the future. Then create your very own climate change super-hero. Let your imagination lead the way.
  • Activate: selected dates between 20 August – 1 September (20, 23, 25, 27, 30 Aug and 1 September). We all have a role to play in tackling climate change. Discover the small ways you can do your bit to make London greener and create your own set of Family Action Cards to get inspired.

Sustainable installation

These summer activities are part of London Transport Museum’s 18-month Climate Crossroads programme supported by Mastercard, Mott MacDonald, Cubic Transportation Systems and Sopra Steria. The programme aims to create experiences that get people thinking about what the future of our city could look like and inspired by the great engineering ingenuity of London’s past and also explores what innovations, skills and jobs we need to build this sustainable future.

On Wednesday 3 and Thursday 4 August, London Transport Museum will also be hosting Mastercard’s Girls4Tech STEM workshops in the main Museum gallery. Children can drop-into sessions on Cryptology and Big Data, learning about these topics through fun, problem-solving games. The Girls4Tech workshops will be run by Mastercard staff, looking to inspire the next generation to pursue a STEM career.

While at the Museum, families can also see real buses, trams and Tube trains from 200 years of the capital’s transport history. They can learn how to drive a modern-day Elizabeth line train in the Future Engineers gallery and climb aboard a fleet of mini vehicles in the All Aboard play zone.

Between 11:00 and 15:00, visitors can head to Canteen, the Museum’s café by popular eatery Benugo, for a bite to eat, and choose from exclusive transport inspired toys, gifts, homeware, poster artwork and games in the Museum’s shop.

Timed tickets to visit London Transport Museum can be booked online in advance. Adult tickets are £21 and allow free return day-time entry for a whole year. Plus, kids go free!

BOOK YOUR TICKETS HERE

Church House unveils new identity

Posted on by engineroom

From February 29th, Church House Conference Centre will be known as Church House Westminster.

The rebrand forms part of a strategic plan as the venue looks to the future and its continued investment, in particular in the technical facilities of its larger rooms.

Church House Westminster worked with design agency Deep on the rebrand which includes a new logo, a redesign of all marketing materials and the launch of a new website. With a logo inspired by their domed Assembly Hall and black and gold colour scheme, Church House Westminster new branding reflects the quality of the venue.

General Manager Robin Parker commented: “The rebrand is a milestone in the venue’s history. It highlights that we are no longer just a conference centre but a venue that can host a variety of events, from product launches and exhibitions to national consumer events and large award dinners. We wanted our new name to reflect not only this but also our location in the heart of London.

“Since opening in 1991 Church House has established itself as one of the highest quality venues in London known for its exceptional levels of service and friendly staff. Church House may have a new name but we will still be providing our clients and their guests with the same high levels of service that they have come to expect of us over the last 26 years.”

Church House Westminster is an AIM Gold accredited venue, and a frequent winner of the BDRC Gold Standard, placing it amongst a select group to achieve both awards. It has also been recognised for its audio visual capabilities, in which further significant investment is being planned for later in the year.

Church House Westminster is one of London’s most versatile event venues offering 19 flexible event spaces, which accommodate between 2 and 664 guests hosting a wide variety of events including meetings, conferences, awards ceremonies, gala dinners and receptions. For more information call 020 7390 1590 or visit www.churchhouseconf.co.uk.

QEIICC commences £12m refurbishment on a high with revenue 143% ahead of target

Posted on by engineroom

As extensive refurbishment works gain pace at the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre (QEIICC), the iconic meetings and events venue is demonstrating its dependability as an events destination with enquiries tracking 26% up in quarters one and two of 2014 compared with the same period last year. Operating surplus is 143% ahead of the year-to-date target.

Conferences incorporating catering and exhibition space are generating the highest number of enquiries, followed closely by requests for receptions, awards dinners and meetings. A stellar performance across all departments in June 2014 has seen the QEIICC exceed target by 143%, a figure reflective of 98% occupancy. Room hire generated revenue higher than ever achieved in a single month in the venue’s 28-year history.

Similar success is visible with the QEIICC’s in-house audio-visual service ‘Interface’, which has surpassed its budgetary forecast for June, achieving its highest ever revenue in a single month. This reflects an integrated approach to meeting event organisers’ needs, with clients opting to invest in the expert audio-visual consultancy and facilities available on-site.

The QEIICC’s catering partner Leith’s continues to demonstrate excellence in its delivery of on-trend, bespoke food and beverage solutions to discerning clients, seeing concessionary catering revenue increase by 83% in June compared with the same period in 2013. It’s the best performing food and beverage sales month in Leith’s 28-year partnership with the QEIICC. Clients can now look forward to the September launch of the brand new Executive Lounge within the Sanctuary Foyer, a stylish café lounge serving delicious cakes and snacks, light lunches, barista-made coffee and bar service.

Speaking of the QEIICC’s strong performance, chief executive Mark Taylor said: “This excellent team and business performance continues to suggest that the market is maintaining its recovery and we’re feeling very positive. Our client feedback continues to be exceedingly impressive with many positive comments and high satisfaction ratings. Overall client satisfaction for the last quarter was 98%, so I’m delighted not only with the volume of business we’re enjoying, but with the exceptional quality of our delivery too.

“We’re recognising our diversity and our capabilities and our capital investment programme is a clear indication of our move to re-energise and future-proof this iconic meetings and events destination.”

Works commenced on site on 19th July, with the centre set to reopen on 1st September.