Weekly Round Up

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Eventurous sign Net Zero Carbon Events Pledge

Following an inspiring day at the beam ESG summit in Milton Keynes, where thought leaders within the events and hospitality industry met to exchange knowledge and drive behaviour change, Eventurous Ltd announced they have signed the Net Zero Carbon Events pledge.

The news comes shortly after the owner of the sustainable event management agency Joanna Garland was announced as an expert speaker at the London Venues Summit being held at the Hilton London Canary Wharf on July 1st 2024.

Joanna will be joined by industry colleagues from Isla and The Kia Oval Events & Entertainment at the London Venues Summit to discuss “How to make your events Net Zero.” Great timing, as the leading events agency gears up to make their biggest commitment to the planet yet!

But what does it mean to sign the pledge and how does it relate to the events industry?

Eventurous are joining the race and are promising to do their part by holding themselves accountable for their carbon footprint. They will set SMART goals and agree a pathway to achieving their goals by the end of 2024. Signatories to the The Net Zero Carbon Events Pledge, including Eventurous, ?have committed to reach Net Zero by 2050 and to halving their emissions by 50% by 2030.

In pursuit of this important aim Eventurous will analyse the carbon generated by their business through various operational outputs including energy, food waste, housekeeping, production, procurement, employees and travel.

The corporate event and team building experts at Eventurous won three awards for their sustainability efforts in late 2023 and early 2024 and are now using this recognition as a catalyst for change within the wider events industry.

As part of the pledge, Eventurous have already begun working with local businesses and councils, partners, suppliers and customers to drive change across the value chain, advocate for carbon reductions and promote initiatives beyond the events industry.

Headed up by Owner Joanna Garland who has a degree in Land Management and spends her spare time beekeeping on the 150-acre farm where Eventurous resides, the hardworking team at this award-winning agency are excited to see where their journey takes them next!?

Vacancy on the UKEVENTS Executive Committee for a Vice Chair position

Due to increased work commitments and development in the US, Nick Morgan has stepped down from the Executive Committee. Chris would like to take this opportunity to thank Nick on the Executive Committee’s behalf for his great support and contribution over the year and wish him all the best.

Nick was re-elected in December 2023 for another two-year tenure. As a consequence, UKEVENTS (Org) are now inviting interested Partners to put themselves forward for the role. If more than one person is interested, an election will take place with a view to fill the position before the next Full Partners Meeting on 21st June 2024.

If you are interested, please confirm your interest by email to [email protected] by Thursday 6th June 2024 at 17:00.?

First Choice Conference & Events Joins Brief2Event

Brief2Event and First Choice Conference & Events , two highly successful and well-established agencies, have merged, with First Choice Conference & Events becoming a brand within Brief2Event. Penny Banyard , Founder, Owner and Managing Director of First Choice Conference & Events has joined the board at Brief2Event.

Speaking about the deal, Penny Banyard said “Together we are creating the ultimate venue finding and accommodation booking agency offering unbeatable customer service to new and existing clients.

“Combining the know-how and expertise of 12 talented venue finders we’ll have the greatest possible?venue knowledge and be able to provide highest quality customer service. It’s a tremendous new asset for clients and an exciting prospect for all of us.”

Guy Mason , Managing Director says 'The Brief2Event team are very excited to have First Choice Conference & Events join us.? There is great synergy as the two companies have similar values of customer service, industry knowledge and similar commitment to support clients in every aspect of their events.

“To reinforce this, we are investing in further training such as educational visits to destinations and key cities so that our teams have even more in-depth knowledge that they can apply to help clients.

“This is a key element of our growth strategy and we’re determined and confident that we can build on this together to create further organic growth.”

While both agencies offer venue finding, accommodation booking and event management,

First Choice Conference & Events will continue trading as a brand within Brief2Event offering clients a wider range of event services such as group bedrooms links for large events; plastic free, on demand badge printing; conference apps, and virtual event platforms to support their clients.

All First Choice Conference & Events jobs have been retained and the combined staff of the two agencies will be 23 in total.?

The Venues Collection to Showcase Sustainability at The Meetings Show

The Venues Collection (TVC) will be participating in The Meetings Show this June to showcase its commitment to sustainability and its innovative dessert range that is made without dairy ingredients.

The Venues Collection is the first UK venue chain to remove dairy ingredients from all dessert menus across all its five venues. The alternatives offer a delicious selection of classics including sticky toffee pudding, cherry trifle, Biscoff mousse with raspberry compote, seasonal berry cheesecake, and salted caramel panna cotta with flapjack crumble.

TVC’s sustainable credentials also include attaining the 'silver' level in the Green Tourism 'Green Meetings' Standard the world's largest sustainable certification program, achieving Venue Directory ’s Green Accreditation and the installation of solar-powered EV charging points to be rolled at all venues.

The group will also be running a competition to guess the weight of a bag of compost, with the lucky winner rewarded with dinner, bed and breakfast at a TVC property. The compost has been made at Eastwood Hall ’s static aerated compost system which transforms the venue's raw organic materials into biologically stable, compost suitable for growing plants. This initiative further enhances TVC’s sustainability credentials and will be rolling out across their five venues this year.

Joanne Barratt , managing director, The Venues Collection said: “Sustainability is at the heart of everything we do, and we are committed to reducing our carbon footprint and supporting sustainability across our industry. By introducing a number of industry first initiatives and eco-friendly alternatives, we empower event organisers and venue bookers to make environmentally conscious choices."

The group was also the first to introduce carbon labelling on all menus (June 2022) and has a commitment to reach Climate Net Zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2030.

TVC will be at the show promoting an enhanced Meetings For Change DDR and 24 hour delegate rate, where bookers can earn quadruple Grow Reward Points on new enquiries and a free syndicate room for up to 8 people. As standard, these rates include main room hire, unlimited tea and coffee, water in meeting rooms and access to hydration stations, buffet lunch (with dishes under 500 calories, plant forward and desserts made without dairy options), carbon labelled menus, Wi-Fi, projector and screen, flipchart and pens (on request), stationary boxes and notepads (on request), free onsite parking and an event manager.

These initiatives are part of The Venues Collection's overarching commitment to sustainability under its Future First Charter, a framework designed to shape and deliver the Group's social purpose initiatives and targets. With a focus on People Pledge, Food Focus, and Enriching Environments, The Venues Collection continues to lead the way in sustainable hospitality practices.

Visit The Venues Collection at The Meetings Show on stand D63 to experience first-hand its pioneering sustainability initiatives.

For more information go to: www.thevenuescollection.co.uk

BCD Meetings & Events and ACA Live have pledged to support the REACH University Scholarship Initiative for the 2024 student intake at Bournemouth University

The REACH (Race Ethnicity And Cultural Heritage) events?scholarship initiative was launched in 2022 by Robert Kenward and Gabrielle Austen-Browne FRSA (she/her) to provide a fund and help Black, Asian and unrepresented minority ethnic students to study on events management degree programmes and enter the industry. The initiative provides a ￡5,000 yearly scholarship to support with living expenses.

Michelle Biggane , head of talent acquisition UK, BCD Meetings & Events said: “We are excited to be sponsoring future talent in their educational pursuit within the meetings & events industry. Here at BCD M&E, diversity, equity and inclusion is a core pillar of our value proposition, and a foundation we’re proud to be actively prioritising. By partnering with REACH and providing students with the tools they need to be successful, we hope this has a direct impact in enhancing the representation of historically underrepresented groups in our sector.”

Alexandra Crawley , client director, ACA Live said: "At ACA Live, we're investing in the next generation of talent and helping to break the vicious cycle of a lack of diverse representation within the events industry. The REACH events management scholarship helps us to redress the balance, directly benefiting students from Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic backgrounds. We work in a creative industry and a plurality of voices and perspectives can only benefit our agency and the industry as a whole. We're really proud to be involved in REACH, providing young people with a foot up on the ladder of success."

Robert Kenward, co-founder of REACH said: “I’m incredibly proud of the impact that REACH has achieved so far and thrilled that we have two agency powerhouses onboard for 2024. We are now in our third year and we can actually see the impact REACH is having on real people across two universities. This is a continuing campaign, we will continue to work with a new university each year and we are actively looking for more companies to come on board and help increase the diversity of our industry, from the ground up.”

Gabby Austen-Browne, co-founder of REACH said: "We're so excited to have ACA Live and BCD as donors for the REACH scholarship initiative. Their investment in the future of our industry is not only transformative for the recipients but also a powerful statement about the value of diverse perspectives and experiences in the events sector."

The initiative is working with Bournemouth University to support students wishing to study on the 2024 intake.

Jonathan Goode , head of fundraising and alumni relations at Bournemouth University , said: “We are pleased to be joining other universities to deliver REACH Scholarships to students joining our degree programme in events management from September. Inclusivity is a core value at BU and this initiative enables us to join with like-minded organisations to deliver positive change and create a more diverse events sector and workforce. We are thankful to our two company partners for providing this scholarship funding and look forward to seeing the impact this will have on the recipients. We’d love to hear from other companies wanting to increase diversity in their workplaces through this innovative programme.”

Companies that are interested in making a positive and long-term impact to D&I in the industry can contact Gabby Austen-Browne ([email protected] ) or Robert Kenward ([email protected] ) for more information.

Lainston House hosts Team GB ahead of the?Paris 2024 Olympic Games

Lainston House , Exclusive Collection 's Winchester estate, recently hosted the leaders from?Team GB's elite performance teams ahead of the?Paris 2024 Olympic Games.?

Team GB took exclusive use of the property for 2 days with the objective of bringing 18 different sports disciplines together and to finalise its 2024 medal campaign.?

The hotel was chosen for its deep rooted ESG values and uncompromising stance on sustainability, as well as its in-depth understanding of elite sports groups. Exclusive Collection has a long-standing reputation for hosting sports teams for retreats, strategy offsites and pre-match games and has developed menus and services to reflect the demands of high-performance athletes and the wider team structure.?

Steve Lewis , general manager for Lainston House, comments: "What an amazing event to host – the excitement from every delegate for the upcoming games was palpable! Lainston sits at the end of a long, secluded drive so the anonymity of the event was protected whilst the guests took over the estate. Team GB is committed to limiting its environmental impact which marries with our B Corp certification and our focus on supporting our local producers, suppliers, and communities. From Lainston House and all of us at Exclusive Collection - good luck to everyone involved with Team GB in Paris later this summer.”

Updates from Venue Performance

Venue Performance 's April data indicates a slight market softening, but there's no need to panic. The year is still in growth mode, and surprisingly, the snap election, though disruptive to immediate schedules, could actually benefit the rest of the year, enabling everyone to 'get on with it' rather than second-guessing when the election might be.

It might even push some business from July into the summer (fallow) months, and with the economy projected to turn positive in the second half of the year, Venue Performance are confident that 2024 will be pretty good. The optimism continues into 2025.

On June 27th, at the Bankside Hotel in London, Peter Heath will co-host The Great M&E Debate. This event will be spicy, fun, interactive, and educational. During the event, all the key M&E topics will be debated (three debates in total) with powerful moderators, expert panellists, and a throng of senior commercial leaders in the room asking challenging questions - 100 to be precise.

Peter is offering 20 places to senior leaders of the VP community to join the throng and get involved. The audience will vote on the debated topics, and your participation will be central to the event's outcome.

If you're interested in attending, please fill out this form , and one of the team members will contact you with more details.

Here are a few taster videos: VID 1 -? VID 2 - VID 3

This Friday, join Christine Milburn-Philpott , commercial lead at One Birdcage Walk , and Peter as they discuss the latest market data and what it's like running an M&E Venue in central Westminster, London, in the heat of a General Election campaign. Bring your election stories and join Christine and Peter to discuss, share, and hear from others about how they (and you) tackle the challenges of budgets, diaries, clients, cancellations, and managing EVERYONE'S expectations.?

Scottish Event Campus CEO to step down

Scottish Event Campus (SEC) CEO, Peter Duthie , is to step down from the business at the end of June after 40 years with the SEC.

Appointed as Chief Executive in April 2014 and having been with the company since its inception in 1984, Peter has played an integral part in all aspects of its evolution.? He has been a member of the senior management team since 1991.

During his tenure as CEO, the SEC has hosted events such as the Commonwealth Games and COP26, whilst the OVO Hydro has become one of the leading live entertainment arenas in the world.

In response to Covid-19, the SEC was converted into the NHS Louisa Jordan. Peter was appointed Chair of Scotland’s Event Industry Advisory Group (EIAG) to help the industry, as well as the SEC, negotiate the pandemic.

Last year Peter was awarded an Honorary Degree by the University of Strathclyde in recognition of his contribution to culture, business, and society.

Peter said: “It has been a privilege to be part of the SEC’s journey and to have been involved in the development of all sectors of our business. We have a fantastic team at the SEC which delivers for Glasgow and Scotland and I’m sure will continue to build on its well-deserved reputation.”

Morag McNeill , Chair, SEC added: “I would like to thank Peter for his commitment to the business over the last forty years. He has played an important role in ensuring that the SEC has a global reputation for event delivery and he has been a great ambassador for the business and for Glasgow.”

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