The pantheon of the UK's best venues - written by Mandy Chagger

The pantheon of the UK's best venues is as diverse as the organisations and businesses within its borders. The stereotypical hotel ballroom housing a conference of insurance adjusters does not fit the bill in defining what the best venues offer to UK groups. The definition of the best venue depends on the eye of the beholder, changing based on the number of invitees and the activities in question. An event organiser must think about his target audience as well as presenters and special guests when searching for the best venues.

One category of venues available to organisers involves simple design, high-tech facilities and basic furnishings. Modern hotels, conference centres and theatres are the best venues for professional groups more focused on their agendas than their surroundings. Teachers, attorneys, accountants and other professionals look for function rather than form when attending conferences. Breakout sessions, keynote speeches and group meetings are facilitated by Wi-Fi connections and computer workstations. This preference should help event organisers find simple but functional venues for their events.

Comic conventions, book fairs and speeches by popular entertainers need to be housed in venues with proper light and sound systems. An entertainer looking for a grand entrance to the stage may need a video intro, coordinated lighting and a booming theme song from the speakers. Comic conventions showing clips from upcoming action and sci-fi movies need to have miniature screening rooms to allow audiences to see multiple clips. A publishing event with prominent writers may need to shuffle seats and tables quickly to faciliate speeches, group discussions and breakout sessions. Since these events may not require as much space as other conventions, event organisers may be able to sacrifice convention rooms in favor of light and sound systems.

Trade group events and home shows require facilities that can handle product unloading, individual booths and exterior rooms that can handle overflow attendees. Furniture designers, home builders and construction companies must be able to unload samples and models easily from the street level to conference rooms. Medical supply events, home shows and other conferences where buyers and vendors are interacting are ineffective without individual booths for each vendor. The best venues are able to erect cubicle walls to match the number of registered vendors at an event, maximizing the value of the event for attendees. In addition to a large conference floor for easy movement, the best venues for these groups have sizable lobbies and adjacent overflow rooms to allow newcomers to wait until space is available in the vendor area.

While it is easy to break different groups based on their best venues, the ideal venue for any group has a few basic characteristics. The best venues in the UK are staffed with porters, desk clerks and event planners that are committed to their employer's vision of quality service. Instead of a group of individuals trying to complete their tasks, great venue operators assign their workers to teams to handle the needs of each client. Event organisers should also have contact with the venue's point person for conference clients. The point person is tasked with coordinating employees and resources to meet the needs of the venue's clients.

The best venues available to UK organisations and businesses add value to the organisations to their full calendar of events. Historic hotels and modern conference centres have their names attached to events everyday, lending some credence to sponsoring organisations and participating presenters. An emerging software company sponsoring a scholarly conference with IT professor and industry experts can boost its reputation by choosing a high-end venue. Since most organisations rely on their annual conferences and meetings to make a public presence, the choice of the best venue possible is critical to keeping a spotlight on important issues.

Stadiums, racecourses and hotels that host conferences in the UK offer premium services to their customers. The best example of premium services offered by the best venues in the UK comes from the catering and room service menus. High-end venues extend their catering menus beyond snack foods and appetizers to multicourse meals, spirits and desserts made onsite. Room service menus may pleasantly surprise attendees who are staying in conference centres and hotels over the duration of the events. A menu covering breakfast to dinner including omelettes, sandwiches and steaks can improve the reputation of the sponsoring organisation.

Whether it is a home show or a conference of legal professionals, the best venues offer connectivity to the outside world. The days of a hotel room offering a TV with basic cable and a simple phone are long gone. Contractors, attorneys, teacher and other professionals must have access to the Internet to stay in touch with family and colleagues. The best venues are wired for Wi-Fi connectivity and allow for teleconferencing and international calling facilitating meetings with absent colleagues.