Green Tourism Week – Delegates ‘dig it’ at Cotswold Conference Centre 6-13 June!

The UK’s first Green Tourism Week is taking place 6th–13th June. This special week of events is being organised by leading eco-label the Green Tourism Business Scheme (GTBS) to highlight the bottom-line benefits of green-mindedness to tourism businesses.

Here at Cotswold Conference Centre we are really passionate about our environment and we care about the impact our business activities may have on the local economy and the people who live close by.   We already hold the GTBS Silver Award and during Green Tourism Week our delegates will plant a tree for each event running during the week!


For more details about the launch of Green Tourism Week visit www.greentourismweek.co.uk or to find out more about Cotswold Conference Centre call 0845 230 8580.

Cotswold Conference Centre catering: keeping it local

Cotswold Conference Centre prides itself on using local grocers and suppliers of high quality and seasonal food and drink, delivered in controlled temperatures. For most of the fresh fruit and vegetables delivered to the Farncombe Estate, the Catering Team will now be using Worcester Produce in Pershore. Worcester Produce was started over 100 years ago and have farms in Offenham and Harvington, and along with their local location have a solid ethos of purchasing and sourcing the goods they offer from surrounding farms and growers, in addition to the items that they grow on their own farms.

Just a few of the other ways in which we try to keep our “food miles” down;

• Our kitchen uses a nearby farm shop for all jams, marmalades and honey and returns the jars for re-use
• Goff’s, a local brewery, bottles Ewe Nutter exclusively for our bar and dining room
• A ‘Pure Water’ filtration system enables us to bottle and carbonate water on the estate. We wash and re-use our own branded bottles to reduce food miles further.

For more information about dining options at Cotswold Conference Centre contact Rachael on 0845 230 8580 or visit www.cotswoldconferencecentre.com

Cotswolds Green Scheme accreditation for Cotswold Conference Centre

Cotswold Conference Centre has been accredited under the Cotswolds Green Scheme, proving a sound commitment to sustainability in business practices.

Cotswold & Forest of Dean Tourism, West Oxfordshire Tourism and the Cotswolds Conservation Board have introduced the ‘Cotswolds Green Scheme’ as a local sustainable tourism initiative. In this scheme, tourism businesses are invited to complete a questionnaire to measures a commitment to environmental issues such as car-free tourism, use of local produce, nature and conservation, recycling and resource use, and energy efficiency.

Cotswold Conference Centre has been widely recognised for it’s commitment to sustainable business within the hospitality and training industry and is currently working towards achieving a Gold award under the Green Business Tourism Scheme. The training venue, based in the north of the Cotswolds received the Green Tourism silver award in 2011.

For more information about the Cotswolds Green Scheme visit www.cotswolds.com/site/membership/cotswolds-green-scheme

Further details about training facilities and corporate team building at Cotswold Conference Centre is available from www.CotswoldConferenceCentre.com

"Escape to the Cotswolds"

"Escape to the Cotswolds", a new discovery centre opened in Northleach, Gloucestershire (a 30 minute drive from CCC), tells the fascinating story of the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and how people have made a natural landscape even more beautiful. It provides an insight into the history of the area along with the work that is being carried out today to conserve and enhance this protected landscape.

Although Escape to the Cotswolds will be closing to the general public for the winter, from 1 November until 31 March, in the meantime, between now and the end of October, you may wish to visit the centre. Admission is free.

For more information about the discovery centre call 01451 862000 or visit http://www.cotswoldaonb.org.uk/.

If you would like a location map of CCC please contact rachaelb@cotswoldconferencecentre.com

CCC joins Team Green Britain !

Hundreds of thousands have already joined Team Green Britain. It’s about helping people to do what they can to reduce their carbon footprint by changing their lives in ways that are good for them and the environment. Like growing their own food, cycling to work, insulating their homes, swapping unwanted stuff. And having fun with their families, friends and neighbours along the way.

http://www.teamgreenbritain.org/be-a-part-of-it

New special offer for July/August from Cotswold Conference Centre !

A special tweet for you…. !


Here at Cotswold Conference Centre you not only benefit from the best training facilities in the Midlands and award-winning customer service, but your delegates can enjoy over 300 acres of Cotswold countryside, fabulous menus using local sourced produce and locally brewed real ale (try our very own “Ewe Nutter”).

For every 10 paying delegates taking advantage of our introductory meetings package in July/August we will ‘Rent a Nest’ with Worcestershire Wildlife Trust to help the birds that live and breed in woodland reserves throughout Worcestershire.

For every 20 paying residential delegates travelling by public transport on the day of your event we will give one free delegate place at your next event.

We’ll also post updates on who's resting in your nest onto our online Nature Diary – see the latest updates at http://www.naturediary.co.uk/ .

Our eco-friendly meetings package

The Meetings & Hospitality Industry is one of the most wasteful but at CCC we try our very best to reduce our impact on the environment as much as we can.

We bottle our own water on the Estate, all of our cleaning products and toiletries are sourced from Ecover, and we have planted over 19000 trees on the Estate in the last few years. We know that many organisations share our passion for minimising our carbon footprint. We offer an attentive team who all share your green values in a professional and dedicated business environment at all times.

For more details call Rachael on 0845 230 8580 or email rachaelb@cotswoldconferencecentre.com

BBC Countryfile visit CCC

Countryfile have recently done a piece to camera on the Estate for the introduction to their programme going out this Sunday 13th June featuring the Asparagus Festival and other activities in the Vale of Evesham at this time.

Travel to CCC by train for your next event

The Environment Agency have recently discouraged staff from taking most domestic flights to places inside the UK that can easily be reached by train. Paul Leinster, chief executive of the Environment Agency, said: "Our restriction on domestic air travel builds on previous and continuing action on business mileage, energy use, waste to landfill and renewable energy generation”.

To support greener business travel, CCC operates a free collection and return service whenever possible for delegates arriving for a residential event by train at either of our two local train stations. Email rachaelb@cotswoldconferencecentre.com for more details of greener business and training events at Cotswold Conference Centre.

Nature trail now available for delegates to enjoy

Early this morning Nick took his dogs and walked the lower part of our new nature trail through the Estate. We look forward to launching this in the coming weeks and it is now available and clearly marked for guests and delegates to enjoy.

Wildlife Camera

Our new Digital Trail Camera has arrived which we will be using to monitor wildlife on the Estate. We look forward to sharing some of the photos taken with you via our nature blog.

New Online Nature Diary at CCC

Take a look at our new online nature diary which captures information and photographs of some of the wildlife found on the Estate.

The online diary can be found at  www.CotswoldConferenceCentre.com/NatureDiary. Other photographs of the Estate can be found on Flickr www.Flickr.com/MeetCotswolds.

Farncombe Honey

As this is the time of year for bees we have certainly had our fair share. There are three swarms at Farncombe House at present that our local beekeeper is attempting to catch. This has given us the idea of keeping hives on the Estate so keep an eye out for Farncombe Honey in the future!

Taking team building from Conference to Canvas!

Business training venue Cotswold Conference Centre (CCC) has just launched a new ‘Confer and Camp’ package for residential delegates this summer.

Midlands venue CCC is uniquely located in 300 acres of Cotswold parkland, offering stunning views and a wide range of team building option for organisations seeking to develop and motivate their staff.

Whilst businesses might have needed to tighten their spending in recent months, training and HR personnel have already recognised the need to be ready for the upturn, and the importance of keeping their teams focussed and inspired.
CCC’s Head of Sales Nick Akerman explains “Companies that use CCC for business training continue to tell us how much their business benefits from our natural learning environment. Clients such as Balfour Beatty and Natural England return to us again and again for our dedicated focus and consistent approach with helping them get the best from their people. We feel that giving delegates the option to camp and appreciate our rural location will only enhance their team building experience. Of course, for the slightly more conventional conference we do have 53 ensuite bedrooms just in case!”

The Confer and Camp package is now available from CCC for events booked in 2010 and includes all camping equipment, indoor shower facilities and a free outdoor team building activity.

Having already achieved Bronze level, Cotswold Conference Centre and the Farncombe Estate are currently working towards a Silver award under the Green Tourism Business Scheme with a team target to achieve Gold in Olympic year 2012. CCC also received a Sustainable Tourism award at the Heart of England Excellence Awards 2009.
CCC is the only Conference Centre of Excellence in the Cotswolds and an Investor in People.
For further information about conference packages at Cotswold Conference Centre visit http://www.cotswoldconferencecentre.com/ or call 0845 230 8580.

PLANTING THE SEED OF ‘GREENER MEETINGS’ IN THE MIDLANDS

Cotswold Conference Centre Broadway has now introduced a new sustainable meetings package for organisations sharing a passion for minimising their carbon footprint.

CCC, a 300 acre training venue located in the heart of England, is well recognised for its proactive approach to environmental issues.

The new “greener meetings” package offers clients the option of paperless meetings, low food miles menus, outdoor team building and sensory evening walks.

Sales Manager Nick Akerman explains “The Meetings & Hospitality Industry is one of the most wasteful but at CCC we try our very best to minimise our impact on the environment locally. We bottle our own water on the Estate reducing bottle miles, all of our cleaning products and toiletries are sourced from Ecover to keep toxicity to a minimum, and we have planted over 19000 trees on the Estate in the last few years which the birds, deer and badgers love. We also offer a free collection service for delegates using public transport.”

Having already achieved the Bronze, Cotswold Conference Centre is currently working towards a Silver award under the Green Business Tourism Scheme, and recently received awards for Sustainable Tourism, Outstanding Customer Service and Best Conference Venue at the Heart of England Excellence Awards 2009.

New eco-meetings package from Cotswold Conference Centre

The Meetings & Hospitality Industry is one of the most wasteful but at CCC we try our very best to reduce our impact on the environment. Our new inclusive package includes a low food miles lunch and outdoor team building activities plus the option for a paperless meeting. For full details of greener meetings at CCC call Rachael on 0845 230 8580 or email Rachaelb@cotswoldconferencecentre.com.

When the rest of the country seems to have to come to a standstill this is how things look at CCC

Tree O'Clock

CCC successfully planted 90 new trees on the Estate as part of the national Tree O’Clock world record attempt on Saturday morning. Some of the CCC team and their families took part and we also had help from Broadway Girl Guides with parents and friends…

Big thanks to Tim and Colin from the Estate Team for the guidance and for doing some fantastic preparatory work which made the task very straight forward. Thank you also to the Kitchen Brigade and Operations for providing hot drinks and homemade biscuits!

The Cotswold Conference Centre team will be planting trees to help break a World Record

CCC is celebrating National Tree Week by teaming up with the BBC for an amazing one-off event. Tree O'Clock is a nationwide challenge to plant more than 600,000 trees within a single hour (11am - 12 noon on 5th December). CCC staff and their families & friends will be joining in with this challenge .

Every tree must be planted between 11am - 12 noon.

If you’re keen to grab your wellies, roll up your sleeves and join us in trying to set a brand new Guinness World Record - then give us a call.  

For more information about the Tree O'Clock world record breaking attempt visit the BBC's website www.bbc.co.uk/breathingplaces/treeoclock

Sustainable soaps now on sale at Cotswold Conference Centre

Guests might be interested to know that we are now selling gorgeous Naked Soap products at CCC - free from chemical surfactants, detergents and anything unnatural.

Naked Soaps are made in the nearby village of Bretforton, completely suitable for vegetarians and vegans, and holistically handcrafted.

Please ask at reception for more details 01386 858000 - or visit www.nakedsoapcompany.co.uk