Twickenham Stadium, incorporating Twickenham Experience, has announced a significant boost to its already impressive sustainability programme by appointing a full time Sustainability Manager and launching a three year strategy. Dru Morton has taken on the new role, bringing a wealth of experience as an Energy and Sustainability consultant for Johnson Controls, where he worked with a range of clients including IBM, Barclays and the BBC.

Twickenham, the Home of England Rugby and RFU head office, will further develop its comprehensive sustainability programme across five core areas: governance; waste management; energy management; transport; and procurement. A number of significant sustainability targets have already been met in these areas by the stadium, including: increasing recycling to 65% of all waste generated on site, as a result of Twickenham’s ‘Recycle More than the Ball’ campaign; re-use of the original South Stand concrete in the redevelopment of the new stand; automated sub-metering to better target and eliminate energy wastage across the stadium; closed-loop office paper recycling; and a local food sourcing policy to reduce food miles. In 2009, the RFU joined the Major of London’s Green 500 scheme and achieved a Gold award for its carbon saving activities.

Simon Mills, Head of Sales and Marketing at Twickenham Experience, commented: ‘The green agenda is still an important aspect of venue selection for meetings planners, in our experience. There is an expectation that certain environmentally responsible practices will be in place, but we aim to go beyond the basics to deliver a comprehensive sustainability policy that we can be proud of.’

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Notes to editors:

Key sustainability policy highlights include:

Governance
• The RFU’s Environmental Steering Group governs the development of the RFU’s environmental agenda and has implemented a sustainable development policy and environmental management system, to provide an operational framework for continuous improvement in carbon reduction.
• In 2009 the RFU joined the Major of London’s Green 500 scheme and achieved a Gold award for its carbon saving activities.
• The RFU has recruited a full time Sustainability Manager to drive the sustainability agenda and reduce the RFU’s carbon footprint.
• A three year sustainability strategy has been produced, outlining the RFU’s commitment and action plan for carbon reduction and sustainable development culminating with the Rugby World Cup 2015.

Waste Management
• As part of the redevelopment of the South stand concrete from the old stand was broken down and reused as aggregate in the development of the new stand.
• Following the implementation of the RFU’s “recycle more than the ball” campaign, the stadium recycling rate has increased to over 65%.
• Twickenham also operates a zero waste to landfill policy ensuring whatever is not recycled is utilised to provide energy.

Energy Management
• The Stadium has a Building Energy Management System is in place to control energy consuming systems throughout the stadium.
• The RFU offices are fitted with modulated air conditioning and an automated high efficiency lighting system to run as efficiently as possible.
• The RFU have initiated the implementation of automated sub metering to better target and eliminate energy wastage across the stadium.

Transport
• The RFU has developed a thorough Transport plan and actively works with local authorities and public transport providers to ensure alternative travel options are available when travelling to the stadium.

Procurement
• The RFU recycle all office paper in a “closed loop” returning waste paper to our supplier to be recycled and returned to us as fresh paper.
• Twickenham Experience operate a “local food” policy, reducing the carbon footprint of food served on site by buying local British produce instead of transporting food in from further afield.

About Twickenham Experience Limited
Twickenham Experience Limited (TEL) is a joint venture between the RFU and Compass Group, the world’s largest food services provider. TEL sells and manages all conferences and events that take place within Twickenham Stadium as well as all match day hospitality and public food and beverage services.
www.twickenhamexperience.com

Media contacts:

For Twickenham Experience Limited:

Simon Mills Tel: 020 8831 7636
Email: simonjmills@rfu.com

Mexia Communications Tel: 0845 305 8118
Kursha Woodgate Mob: 0791 476 6510
Email: kursha@mexiacommunications.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/mexiaPR

For the RFU:
Amanda Inkley Mob: 07739 894 749
Email: AmandaInkley@RFU.com

Agents from across the UK embraced the sporting spirit already catching hold in the City of London to join in a competitive Going for Gold experiential weekend last week hosted by the London City Selection (LCS).  Attendance was up by 65% on 2011 for the event, which was designed to give agents the ‘Square Mile knowledge’ through an interactive experience themed around competitive sports.

Following an initial welcome, exhibition and networking on Friday March 31^st at The Mermaid, delegates were put into teams to compete in the Going for Gold experience.  Teams were divided and led by LCS venue members, including Barbican Centre, The Hoxton, Hilton Doubletree, etc.venues and Ironmongers’ Hall.  Activities included a Going for Gold themed challenge at each venue, from cycling in the Barbican conference room velodrome to archery at the Malmaison, hockey at Furniture Makers’ Hall and synchronized swimming at Ironmongers Hall.  The weekend culminated in a gala awards dinner in The Long Room at the HAC.

Initial feedback from attendees has indicated how valuable the weekend has been in terms of improving product knowledge in a creative and innovative way and stimulating ideas for client events.

Carol Tye of Events in Business said: ‘The weekend was fabulous, well organised and great fun too.  I would definitely recommend other agents to take part as you get to see some wow venues and meet such lovely people.  Totally exhausting, but well worth every minute.’

‘Attending the LCS venue weekend was so useful for my job and so much fun too! It has shown me just how diverse the City of London is and how great the venues and hotels are,’ added Caroline Crossley, HotelRes Ltd.

Lindsey Miller of Conference Care also commented: ‘Fab weekend, great fun way to see lots of great venues and enjoy a great team building experience.’

Samme Allen, London City Selection Chair, commented: ‘Our aim with this weekend is to showcase our member venues and to give inspiration as to how buyers might use the spaces for their own client events.  With a 65% increase in attendance and some excellent feedback already, plus an active buzz on Twitter, our creative approach is paying dividends for London City Selection.  We have already received some interesting enquiries on the back of the weekend and know that there are many other opportunities more likely to come our way as a result.  It is definitely worth the investment in creating a memorable experience for agency buyers.’

New branding and website unveiled

London City Selection also unveiled its new identity and website to agents attending the weekend.  In addition to providing a hub for information about London City Selection venues and news, the new site provides buyers with a query tool, facilitating venue research according to event type and capacity requirements.

For more information, visit www.londoncityselection.co.uk.

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About London City Selection

The London City Selection (LCS) is a handpicked group of the finest venues working within the city of London. LCS members offer some of the world’s leading facilities, event spaces and technology for meeting and event planners, catering for commercial meetings, association conferences, exhibitions or private receptions and dinners.  Established in February 2010, LCS members include:

Barbican Centre                                                             London Stock Exchange

The Mermaid                                                                  Plaisterers’ Hall

LSO St Luke’s                                                                  CCT Venues

The Montcalm, London City                                        Crowne Plaza, Shoreditch

Ironmongers Hall                                                           Searcy’s, The Gherkin

ETC Venues                                                                     Museum of London

The Brewery                                                                   America Square Conference Centre

St Bride Foundation                                                      Malmaison

Apex Hotels                                                                    St. Paul’s Cathedral

Trinity House                                                                  HAC

The Hoxton                                                                     Pewterers Hall

One Moorgate Place                                                    Middle Temple

Doubletree by Hilton                                                    Furniture Makers’ Hall

For more information, visit www.londoncityselection.co.uk or connect on one of the following networks:

www.twitter.com/CitySelection

LinkedIn

Facebook

i2 Office’s newest centre at Meridien House, Watford has opened its doors this month, welcoming Najat Zounaki as GM, Sales for Watford and new clients from the Fencing Contractors Association and recruitment sector. Clients have cited the proximity of the rail network and the high standard of fixtures and fittings in the newly refurbished centre as major attractions.  Meridien House is immediately adjacent to Watford Junction Station in Clarendon Road, providing access to the capital via an 18-minute journey to London Euston running every 15 minutes.

Najat Zounaki joins i2 Office from with eight years’ experience in the serviced office sector.  She has worked at various London locations being fully involved in the day to day running of the Centres, concentrating on the financial and overall management issues to ensure they always run with high occupancy and profitability.

Najat commented: “Watford has a thriving business community and our new centre in the heart of the business area has been well received already with many enquiries and new clients moving in from day one.  I am delighted to have joined i2 Office at this time and look forward to growing the business in Watford over the coming months.”

Philip Grace, CEO of i2 Office, added: “We have continued to expand and created prestigious office space in prime locations on flexible terms that offer new and growing businesses excellent facilities.  Meridien House is a welcome addition to the i2 Office network and we are delighted to have Najat on board to build on the success of i2 Office’s other centres around the country and create a thriving business centre in Watford.”

Meridien House is a Grade A newly refurbished building, located in the preferred business location for Watford and adjacent to Watford Junction Station. For more information, visit www.i2office.co.uk.

i2 Office last week welcomed a host of visitors to its recently opened business centre at 6 Mitre passage, Greenwich Peninsula, to showcase the new site.  Visitors, including neighbouring Greenwich Council and Ravensbourne Art School along with commercial property agents and brokers, were treated to the spectacular views across the Thames from the fifth and eighth floors of the building during a celebratory evening.

Mark Gregson, GM Sales for i2 Office Greenwich, provided an overview of the offer in the docklands, highlighting the value of the proposition to prospective tenants and differentiating this from other London-based locations.  He said: “Greenwich is a prime location for new and growing businesses.  The area is thriving, with the Olympics just around the corner and the general build up throughout 2012, Greenwich is a key area of development within London.  We wanted to give neighbouring businesses and agents a true flavour of i2 Office Greenwich, something which can only be experienced first-hand.”

Philip Grace, CEO of i2 Office, added: “We were delighted to see such a great turnout at our first hosted event in Greenwich and the feedback has been excellent.  The offer in Greenwich is truly spectacular and we have already had great interest in the centre with clients already signed up from the outset.  We look forward to continuing to work with Lend Lease to develop opportunities for both serviced and managed space options at Greenwich.”

i2 Office Greenwich was opened in January 2012 and has already sold almost half of the available space.  For more information, visit www.i2office.co.uk .

Leading events agencies across the UK will get the ‘Square Mile Knowledge’ at London City Selection’s (LCS) forthcoming experiential weekend on March 30th -31st.

Designed to deliver the ‘venue experience’ from the delegate perspective, the weekend has been carefully crafted based on feedback from previous delegates regarding what agents need to experience in order to build their product knowledge effectively.  Rather than adopting the traditional fam trip approach, the LCS portfolio of venues has created a ‘Going for Gold’ themed experiential weekend, packed with fun, interactive experiences that demonstrate how its venues can be used with creative flair.  In addition, LCS will be providing a unique ‘Venue 101’ guideline checklist to agency ‘new recruits’, covering the key questions to ask a venue during site visits and RFPs.

Jenny Pink, Director of Accomplished Events, commented: ”We recognise the importance of building first-hand product knowledge.  It can be a real challenge to get out on site to every possible venue and so this condensed approach over a weekend rather than the working week worked well for us.  It’s great to have such a variety of versatile venues working in partnership together to offer us the best possible service and solution for our clients. The weekend gave us an opportunity to develop relationships with the different venue contacts and this helped immensely when placing enquiries.”

Samme Allen, Head of Sales – Business Events at the Barbican, said: “With 100% of attendees rating last year’s LCS experiential weekend as ‘Excellent’ or ‘Good’, great things are expected of this year’s event.  We have already signed up almost as many as last year and are looking forward to an engaging weekend – lots of fun and the start of some great new relationships.”

Themed ‘Going for Gold’, agents will experience a range of interactive games and activities, starting with supper and networking at The Mermaid on Friday March 30^th and ending with a gala dinner and awards presentation in the Long Room at the HAC on Saturday March 31st.

Agents interested in attending are invited to contact events@londoncityselection.co.uk for further information.

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About London City Selection

The London City Selection (LCS) is a handpicked group of the finest venues working within the city of London. LCS members offer some of the world’s leading facilities, event spaces and technology for meeting and event planners, catering for commercial meetings, association conferences, exhibitions or private receptions and dinners.  Established in February 2010, LCS members include:

The Barbican                                                                      London Stock Exchange

The Mermaid                                                                     Plaisterers Hall

LSO St Luke’s                                                                     CCT Venues

The Montcalm, London City                                        Crowne Plaza, Shoreditch

Ironmongers Hall                                                             Searcy’s, The Gherkin

ETC Venues                                                                        Museum of London

The Brewery                                                                      America Square Conference Centre

St Bride Foundation                                                        Malmaison

Apex Hotels                                                                       St. Paul’s Cathedral

Trinity House                                                                     HAC

The Hoxton                                                                        Pewterers Hall

One Moorgate Place                                                      Middle Temple

Doubletree by Hilton

For more information, visit www.londoncityselection.co.uk or connect on one of the following networks:

www.twitter.com/CitySelection

LinkedIn

Facebook

Media contact:

Mexia Communications 

Tel:                        0845 305 8118

Kursha Woodgate                          

Mob:                      0791 476 6510

Email:                   kursha@mexiacommunications.com

Twitter:               www.twitter.com/mexiaPR

i2 Office’s first centre in the North West, Chancery Place, just of King Street in Manchester, has opened for business and is receiving wide acclaim from its new clients.  With 47% of the space already let Chancery Place is proving to be a popular choice for businesses looking  for a central Manchester location.  This already includes a firm of surveyors, three recruitment firms and a large multinational.

Leigh Scott, General Manager, for i2 Office Manchester, commented: “The new offices are getting a real positive response from everyone who sees them.  Having the right working environment that meets the needs of both staff and visitors can make a real difference to a company’s success .”

Uniflex Staffing Ltd, has taken a 4-person office.  “Even before we’ve moved in the quality of the support we have received from the i2 Office team has been exceptional”, said Samantha Worsh, Business Unit Manager. “The quality of the facilities and convenient city centre location combined with a range of flexible formal and informal meeting room options are ideally suited to our business,” she continued.

Philip Grace, i2 Office CEO, added: “Despite the continuing uncertainty about the economy the serviced office market in Manchester is showing signs of growth.  We always thought the region had potential and are delighted that our offering has been so well received.”

i2 Office, a nationwide serviced office provider, has signed a 15 year lease to rent 15,500 sq.ft. ‘Grade A’ accommodation across the fifth and sixth floors of the office space at Chancery Place on Brown Street.  The combination of stunning architecture, a state of the art technology offering and a flexible approach to client requirements is indicative of the companies highly successful approach, which they are replicating across the country.

Chancery Place is in walking distance of Manchester’s two mainline stations.  Designed by the renowned architects, HKR, it offers modern, flexible office space which benefits from the latest in modern, comfortable accommodation with the added benefit of superfast broadband, with all suites benefitting from excellent levels of natural light.

i2 Office Gracechurch Street in the City of London has opened its doors with a healthy intake of new clients attracted to the centre.  With 58 workstations pre-sold, occupiers have cited the excellent IT infrastructure, sleek, modern feel and the ‘personal touch’ of excellent service levels offered by the team at i2 Office as key motivators for choosing Gracechurch Street. One other feature that is proving a draw is the suite of meeting rooms and the business lounge on the ground floor which provides an ideal environment for both formal and informal meetings.

Mel Schembri, General Manager, Sales for i2 Office London, commented: “Gracechurch Street has certainly sparked significant interest amongst prospective occupiers looking for space in the City.  The centre boasts an excellent location, superb facilities and offers a prestigious company image which clients are keen to buy into.  We are delighted that space is already selling well at our latest London City centre.”

Philip Grace, i2 Office CEO, added: “The fact that our third London City business centre is off to a flying start is a testament to the quality of our offer.  Mel and the team add the all-important personal touch which clients value so much.  In difficult economic times, quality and value need to go hand-in-hand which is what we are delivering to our clients.”

40 Gracechurch Street is a new, high profile 122,042 sq ft office and retail development. It blends the classic sweep of a part period façade with a modern construction, providing contemporary office accommodation in the heart of the City of London.

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About i2 Office

i2 Office provides serviced offices, virtual offices, meeting rooms and disaster recovery services to companies across the UK.  Headquartered in Milton Keynes, i2 Office aims to shape the office of the future through technology.  Through its partnerships with leading IT and telecoms suppliers, the company provides cost-effective office environments, whether physical or virtual. It is also pioneering online purchase and transparent pricing for serviced office space in the UK.  i2 Office was founded by Philip Grace, a serviced office expert and successful entrepreneur with more than twelve years’ experience in the sector.  For more information, visit www.i2office.co.uk.  or connect with i2 Office on any of the following networks:

www.twitter.com/@i2office

www.facebook.com/ServicedOffice

www.linkedin.com/company/i2-office

ABPCO’s 25th anniversary annual conference which took place last month in London at The Barbican Centre has been hailed the Association’s most successful ever, recording the largest attendance to date in its silver anniversary year.

Attendance figures for the event were up considerably on previous years, with over 170 attending the gala dinner held in the Crypt at St Paul’s cathedral, which played host to ABPCO’s first ever awards ceremony.

The conference gave PCOs and other industry professionals the opportunity to network and share experiences with fellow delegates from other areas of the industry. Delegate feedback highlighted the inspiring and motivational keynote speakers, the networking opportunities and the interactive workshops. Comments indicated that there was a genuine buzz at the conference, particularly on Twitter where many delegates were tweeting what was happening throughout the day using the conference hashtag #abpcoconf12.

The first day of the ABPCO conference commenced with an incredibly inspiring keynote speaker Dr. Graeme Codrington, who delivered a powerful and thought provoking presentation on the future and what major changes lie ahead. Day two focused on ‘hot topics’, finishing with a panel debate in a plenary session. Key issues discussed included subvention, wi-fi in the context of ABPCO’s Conference Cloud campaign and hybrid events.

Delegate feedback indicated a high level of satisfaction with many commenting on the excellent ‘buzz’ and networking opportunities created.

ABPCO member and delegate Rose Padmore from Opening Doors and Venues said: “What another great conference delivered by ABPCO. A real feeling of belonging to an industry that is growing in strength and subsequently providing the motivation and encouragement to attack the future with more confidence!”

ABPCO Chair Michael Foreman said: “We were delighted with the turnout at ABPCO’s 25th anniversary conference this year; it was a tremendous success. Our delegates have all been tweeting and linking in with each other post-conference, extending their networks beyond the event itself, and the general feeling was that ABPCO’s conferences just get better and better!

We have grown significantly as an Association over the last two years and plan to continue to support our members and champion key industry issues moving forward in 2012.”

For more information on ABPCO, visit www.ABPCO.org.

Academic venue UniSpace, part of the University of Sunderland and incorporating the National Glass Centre, will showcase its award-winning facilities and reveal a line-up of confirmed events at the venue at its first ever trade-show presence at International Confex, March 6-8th 2012. Exhibiting alongside NewcastleGateshead Initiative, UniSpace is making its first ever showcase to national and international buyers, following its launch to the national meetings market in November 2011 when UniSpace hosted the autumn meeting of ABPCO, the Association of British Professional Conference Organisers.

Sharon Olver, University of Sunderland Commercial Manager responsible for UniSpace, commented: “We are really excited to be launching to the national and international markets at Confex this year. Although we have successfully hosted many regional events over the last three years, we are keen to demonstrate the versatility of our perfectly located coastal venue and stunning, unique visitor space with the National Glass Centre and more to the broader association and corporate markets. We have already signed up several major events for 2012 and will be unveiling some of our line up during Confex.”

Michael Foreman, Chair of ABPCO, added: “UniSpace in Sunderland provides an unusual and characterful space for great events, as we experienced at our ABPCO autumn event. The hospitality in the region is renowned and the local heritage in glassware and ceramics, coupled with the wide range of cultural and leisure experiences on offer in the region, combine to make an attractive offer for both association and corporate clients.”

Unique ‘glasstastic’ prizes for visitors

Visitors to Confex are invited to join in a game of ‘Kerplunk’ on the UniSpace stand using unique marbles made at the National Glass Centre, part of UniSpace, with the best score at the end of each day winning the game and marbles as a keepsake. There will also be a daily business card draw to win a unique glass paperweight crafted at the National Glass Centre. Pre-arranged appointments will receive a complimentary glass-blowing experience to blow their own glass Christmas bauble at the studio within the National Glass Centre. NewcastleGateshead Initiative will also be hosting a number of activities on the stand during Confex, including a daily afternoon reception and magical mysteries from Magician Paul Lyton.

UniSpace facilities include several spaces for meetings and events, ranging from a high-tech media centre to an architecturally unique meeting space at the The National Glass Centre. UniSpace has played host to a number of prestigious events in 2011, including The Association Of Chartered Physiotherapists For People With Learning Disabilities (ACPPLD) Conference, The Oral History Conference, the International Women’s Film History Network and the BBC North East and Cumbria Sports Awards. For more information, visit www.unispacesunderland.com.

ABPCO, the Association of British Professional Conference Organisers, has revealed the winners of its first ever awards at its celebratory 25^th Anniversary Gala dinner held at St Paul’s cathedral in London last night.  Sarah Storie-Pugh received the Lifetime Achievement Award, while Annie Metcalfe of Leeds Met won the coveted Student Award in recognition of academic excellence.  The ABPCO ‘One to Watch, which recognises a wider contribution to the industry or innovative best practice for someone in the early years of their career, was presented to Catrina Foley of MCI Glasgow.

Each of the winners was presented with a unique glass piece created by the National Glass Centre of Sunderland, specially commissioned to commemorate these awards in celebration of ABPCO’s 25^th anniversary year.

ABPCO Chair Michael Foreman said: “I am delighted to have had the honour of presenting these first ever ABPCO awards on such a momentous occasion as our 25^th anniversary celebration.  ABPCO has always stood for excellence in conferencing and events and the winners of these awards have been recognised for outstanding contributions in their respective categories.  We received some excellent nominations for the awards and the winners should be proud of their achievement in receiving this accolade.  Well done to all!

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About ABPCO

The Association of British Professional Conference Organisers (ABPCO) is the only UK professional body to represent the interests of individual Professional Conference Organisers (PCOs).  Established in 1981 and formally incorporated in 1987, the association’s mission is to develop and enhance the professional status of conference and event organisers and increase the recognition given to its members as the leading representatives of the profession in the British Isles.  ABPCO’s members organise an estimated 3,500 conferences and events annually and spend an estimated £58m each year on venues and suppliers.  For more information, visit www.abpco.orgor follow ABPCO on Twitter at www.twitter.com/ABPCO.