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

Work begins on £3.5m project at Farncombe Estate

“This is the beginning of a very exciting new chapter for all of us on the

Farncombe Estate” - Mark Philip-Sørensen

Mark Philip-Sørensen



GREEN AGENDA DRIVES FARNCOMBE’S MULTI-MILLION NEW BUILD

Work began this week on the £3.5m building of a 32-bedroom facility for Cotswold Conference Centre on the Farncombe Estate. The event was marked by recently appointed Managing Director Mark Philip-Sørensen turning the first clod of earth on the 2-acre site. Farncombe Estate’s commitment to local sourcing was endorsed by the appointment of local Willersey groundwork’s firm Hemmings Services and midlands builder - Carters. Materials, wherever possible, have also been sourced locally including stone from a nearby Cotswold quarry and wood from Hillbarn Sawmills, Snowshill.

The design by Evesham based Ward and Dale Smith is that of a single story building surrounding a feature courtyard (see artwork for visual).

Mark chose to take on the running of the Farncombe Estate which specialises in 24/7 training and learning for the corporate and leisure markets when his father, Jorgen Philip-Sørensen died earlier this year. Mark said of the decision: “We have superb facilities here and a great team of people. The environment we have in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty is also complemented by the ‘can-do’ culture of our long serving staff. In such a positive environment we are able to put on better and more effective courses both for business and pleasure, hence enabling clients to get a good return on their objectives. What you need for efficient learning is plenty of natural light, no distractions, fresh air and an inspiring environment. We certainly have an abundance of all these here.”

Farncombe currently holds a bronze award in the Green Tourism Business Scheme and Mark is committed to personally taking the company forward to eventually earn silver and gold standards. He said: “I’m personally committed to making Farncombe one of the greenest venues in the midlands. When it comes to sustainability, we’re using the best materials and the best technologies to make sure heat loss is reduced in this very exciting project which we’re delighted to be working on with reliable local companies”.

Despite the economic downturn, Farncombe has seen increased demand this year for the facility and has been able to both recruit new staff and commit to increasing its bedroom stock. A refurbishment programme will also see four new family suites come on line next year and with the new build, total bedrooms by the autumn 2011 will nearly double to 89.

Nick Akerman, head of sales at the facility said that 75% of business is repeat which is a testament on its own. He added: “We are always adapting and evolving in this rapidly changing commercial environment. We often refer to it as dancing with our customers – being able to move in time using the right steps with our partners. As a dedicated niche venue we are providing specialist support and services to specific industry sectors during the week and offering the perfect leisure learning environment at weekends and the facilities just keep getting better and better.”

Greener Conferencing in the Midlands

It is easy to assume that being surrounded by a glorious landscape of outstanding natural beauty and supporting the needs of the local community as an important stakeholder in the development of the business activities is all you need.

But the team here really are passionate about this environment and as local people themselves, they care about the impact CCC has on the local economy and the people who live close by.

Over the last few years the centre has also planted 19,000 trees to help support the local environment, and has taken steps to incorporate fresh local produce into the restaurant menu.

Eco-minded organisations with a strong interest in ‘Corporate Social Responsibility’ can rely on the Cotswold Conference Centre as an ethical partner. Companies including Waitrose, who use the centre for teambuilding events regularly do so in the confidence that this supplier shares the same ethics.

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 Moreton-in-Marsh (7 miles) or Evesham (7 miles). Moreton-in-Marsh is on the London Paddington to Hereford line via Reading and Oxford. From Birmingham, Evesham is best served via Worcester.

To request collection from either of these stations, please call CCC Reception on 01386 858000 and, if possible, give at least 78 hours notice of your arrival time.

Cotswold Conference Centre, Meeting and Training Venue, Midlands

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