The North West: A destination with much to boast about

The North West is a region of contrast, from the cosmopolitan style and contemporary built environment of Manchester to the cultural credentials and architectural grandeur of Liverpool, the Roman and medieval heritage of Chester to the rolling hills of Lancashire and the stunning scenery around the Lake District.

Art, culture and sport
The region is celebrated for the range and wealth of its cultural assets with art collections, museums, theatres and music of international repute. Sport also plays a huge role, from international events and world-class venues to globally recognised clubs and renowned sporting personalities.    

In addition the region boasts some of the UK’s most beautiful and inspiring natural landscapes, with three official areas of outstanding natural beauty and 32 nature reserves.   

The region is currently home to the UK’s largest manufacturing sector with major strengths in aerospace and chemicals, it will also soon be Europe’s second largest media hub. It also boasts an internationally-recognised biomedical community and is a major player in the global nuclear energy market.   

The North West includes five dedicated regional conference bureaus which exist to support conference and event organisers in planning events. The conference bureaus each offer a free venue finding service and help with securing hotel accommodation, as well as advising and providing guidance on partner programmes and teambuilding activities.    

The individual regions are Manchester City Region, Liverpool City Region, Chester and Cheshire, Lancashire and Blackpool, and Cumbria.  

Lancashire and  Blackpool
History and sport are set to make 2012 a record year as Lancashire and Blackpool Conferences & Meetings (LBCM) cement the region’s position as the UK’s most unusual and diverse business tourism destination.   

A combination of events are raising the area’s national profile. These include the unique Preston Guild celebrations, Preston becoming a European City of Sport and the region also hosting the 19th UK Corporate Games.    

One-off projects planned for the year include turning Preston’s Moor Park into a ‘Future City’, with a 5,000-seat temporary arena which will be available for conferences and exhibitions.     

Preston Guild 2012 will mark 833 years since King Henry initially granted a ‘Guild Merchant’ to Preston, allowing citizens with special rights the ability to control trade within the town.    

As a European City of Sport, Preston has ambitions to hold an international sporting conference and will also host Olympic teams in 2012 from countries including Thailand and Fiji.   

The 19th UK Corporate Games is Europe’s largest corporate multisport festival. It has been estimated that the games will boost the Lancashire and Blackpool economy by at least £3 million.    

The county is home to some of the most unusual, diverse and intriguing conference settings anywhere in the UK. These range from the world famous Pleasure Beach Blackpool Theme Park to the incredible Tree House Conference Suite at Ribby Hall Village conference venue, between Preston and Blackpool.    

The UK’s first floating conference centre is due to open in the heart of the brand new Brockholes nature reserve, just off the motorway on the outskirts of Preston in April.   

The area also provides the opportunity to combine a conference or meeting with golf, with venues such as Mytton Fold Hotel and Golf Complex having their own 18-hole course.

Cumbria
Whether you are holding a meeting for five or an annual conference for 500 delegates, then you may just wish to consider Carlisle and Cumbria as an ideal destination with an inspirational backdrop. Conference venues include luxurious hotels on tranquil lakesides, contemporary urban hotels, purpose built centres, country house retreats, state of the art visitor attractions, a spectacular racecourse and even a majestic castle.   

In addition to the wide variety of venues, bookers can also be confident in the quality on offer. All of the venues promoted by myplacecumbria are ‘AIM-Cumbria’ accredited, so you can be confident in your venue selection from your initial enquiry and check-in, right through to departure. myplacecumbria teamed up with the Meetings Industry Association (MIA) to launch the AIM (Accredited In Meetings) venue accreditation scheme in the county and it was the first such scheme of its kind in the UK.     

When it comes to teambuilding, it is the space, beauty and diversity of this region that lends itself perfectly to a wide variety of team-based events and activities. Enjoy unusual activities such as cooking lunch for your colleagues using nothing more than a NATO ration pack. Consider a ‘meeting with a mission’ or a ‘conference with a conscience.’  Talk to the team and take your pick of teambuilding challenges that reflect elements of your corporate social responsibility.   

Dry stone walling, re-building fellside footpaths, hedge laying, bracken bashing or woodland management are just a few of the options available depending on your time, budget, numbers and of course, the season.   

Alternatively, for a fun filled, adrenaline rush, consider ‘Go Ape!’ and zip-wire 120ft through trees, get wet with kayak orienteering on a spectacular lake, abseil into a redundant quarry, get muddy in the mountains with a mountain bike or go off-road in a 4x4.    

For the foodies out there why not enjoy the quality of Cumbria’s cuisine with a personal ‘Cumbria on a Plate’ food safari. Or why not arrange for a local chef to host your event and try the art of making Cumberland Sausage by hand from scratch, or have a go at ‘taste testing’ – could you identify a celery seed in a jar of marmalade?   

Superb venues and inspirational settings all combined with quality food & drink – surely, the perfect partners for a successful event.

Chester
Business Tourism is one of Cheshire and Warrington’s key markets. Our venues show distinctiveness and choice. Recently we’ve seen the creation of more than 966 new bedrooms, including the 85-bed ABode Chester.    

Cottons Hotel & Spa refurbished the Verandah Suite at a cost of £1 million whilst a £1.5million development at Peckforton Castle included 11 additional bedrooms and spa treatment rooms. Arley Hall opened its Olympia conference facilities and Doubletree by Hilton Chester is also making a name for itself in the sector.   

Developments in the pipeline include Mere Golf & Country Club’s 83-bedroom development with spa and gym, opening in 2011 whilst Thornton Manor is building two permanent marquees for large events.    

During 2009/10, Chester and Cheshire Conference Bureau placed 78 events in Cheshire which contributed to over 8,000 delegates visiting the area with a delegate economic benefit of over £2.3 million.   

The bureau expands its conferences through existing networks and universities under the Ambassadors Programme, and is in the process of supporting an ambassador to secure the International Conference of Equine Physiology; the 2010 event was held in South Africa.   

Maintaining cross-border relationships is essential; working with key partner destinations to ensure conferences they can’t accommodate are referred and vice versa.   

Chester and Cheshire Conference Bureau have the support of strategic partners including Virgin Trains, where the creation of new services, has resulted in greater access to Cheshire with train journeys of two hours to and from London.   

Working with partners such as Tatton Park and Chester Zoo provides added value packages for delegates in our bespoke Welcome Packs. We work hard to ensure local businesses are aware of, and make use of facilities that are on their own doorstep.

Manchester
The city is enjoying a renaissance where innovation has found new uses for old buildings, where creativity is flourishing and where people and businesses want to be seen. There is a saying: “What Manchester does today, the world does tomorrow,” and with just cause. Manchester makes history yet it still retains the intimacy and variety that makes old cities so successful, and ensures people feel welcome and valued.   

There is more to Manchester than meets the eye; it’s a city waiting to be discovered. From superb shopping areas, a hot-bed of cultural activity and exciting nightlife to stunning countryside, award-winning architecture and a vibrant history, Manchester really has everything. It is a city of great variety, showcasing both the historic and modern.    

Thanks to continued effort from the city’s venues – such as Manchester Central, the Point, University Place, and ongoing investment in hotel accommodation – Manchester continues to demonstrate its profile as a leading business tourism destination.   

Indeed, 2010 saw Manchester named as the Best UK Destination by a panel of industry experts at International Confex and earlier the city was named third best conference destination in the world by the readers of Conference & Incentive Travel Europe magazine.   

Manchester is capable of accommodating all events from the most simple to the most demanding. The city offers an abundance of quality venues and accommodation for up to 19,000 delegates. Modern, purpose-built meeting and exhibition facilities contrasted with elegant refurbished Victorian buildings and dramatic out of the ordinary venues; whatever your requirements Manchester will provide the ideal back-drop for your event.    

Details of these venues can be found on the new Manchester website, www.visitmanchester.com/conference, which has been re-launched to bring the city’s business tourism online presence in sync with that of its leisure tourism site.   

Steven Small, head of business tourism added: “The new website is easy to use and doesn’t rely on gimmicks. It allows time-poor event organisers to gain an understanding of what Manchester has to offer. This includes an event planners tool-kit and general information about what there is to see and do in the city – which we know to be important when choosing a location for a conference or event.”    

In addition, the 2011 Manchester Conference Guide was launched – the city’s long-standing reference for event organisers looking to hold an event in the city. Manchester is the first city in the UK to ensure that all of the venues in its guide have been assessed by Accredited in Meetings – the industry quality assurance scheme. To order your own copy of the new conference guide please log onto www.visitmanchester.com/conference.

For more information:

Lancashire & Blackpool: www.lancashireandblackpoolconference.com
Cumbria: www.myplacecumbria.co.uk
Chester and Cheshire: www.meetinchesterandcheshire.com
Manchester: www.visitmanchester.com/conference