Cotswold Conference Centre bucks economic trend in record year

A luxury conference centre in the heart of the Cotswolds has cited its investment policy and award-winning standards as the key to a record year of results.

Cotswold Conference Centre has bucked the economic gloom with revenues rising by 13 per cent over the past year while October proved the most successful ever month at the centre, which has been open since 2001.

The four-star venue is based on the 320-acre Farncombe Estate, near Broadway. Its  bumper 12 months included opening a new £3.5m 32-bedroom courtyard complex, Maudslay Court, and unveiling a new £¼m dining area called the Willersey Room.

During 2012 the Conference Centre also won five Gold awards, including the prestigious Visit England Award for Excellence for a second time, which recognised it once again as the best business tourism venue in the UK.

Nick Akerman, head of sales at Cotswold Conference Centre, said: “There is no doubt that investing in the extra bedroom and catering capacity has enabled us to grow the business. However, what is particularly satisfying is that we have driven up standards – winning awards throughout the year.

“We use the Venue Verdict system to measure customer satisfaction and not only did we receive a Gold Award for outstanding customer service in 2012, we were also ranked in the top 20 of more than 300 venues in the country.”

Cotswold Conference Centre’s other titles in 2012 included the Green Tourism Business Scheme (GTBS) Gold Award, highlighting the centre’s commitment to sustainability, the Cotswold Tourism Award for venue of the year, and Worcestershire Welcome Award’s Business Tourism prize for the second year running.

Cotswold Conference Centre is part of the Farncombe group of businesses, which includes residential leisure provider Farncombe Courses, and the four-star Dormy HouseHotel.

For more information about Cotswold Conference Centre, call 0845 230 8580 or visit www.cotswoldconferencecentre.com.

Putting the 'team' into teambuilding

Teambuilding can be the perfect way to shake-up your staff and boost morale.

If you are holding a meeting or conference and can see staff begin to slouch in their chairs then it may be time for an energising teambuilding activity to re-invigorate your team.

Teambuilding events can often bring staff together who don't necessarily work that closely with each other, they can create lasting bonds and relationships and give staff something in common to talk about when they get back to the office.

Teambuilding activities are worth their weight in gold when they achieve a specific outcome whether that is to increase enthusiasm, mend rifts or strengthen teams.  Follow-up and analysis is key in making sure that the objectives of the activity have been met. Teambuilding can empower, motivate, create trust and increase productivity.

At Cotswold Conference Centre we offer both facilitated and self-facilitated teambuilding activities which range from ice-breakers to full day events.

For more information on teambuilding events, visit our website, where full details on all of our teambuilding activities can be found.

The pertect Venue for Training and Personal Development

At Cotswold Conference Centre we have been organising training events for over 10 years. Set in the midlands, half-way between Stratford Upon Avon and Cheltenham, Cotswold Conference Centre offers comapnies a unique training facility.

Organistations such as IMI and G4S has used Cotswold Conference Centre for their training events and have told us that the environment suits their business and event objectives.

We also offer on-site teambuilding activties as well as unique packages which can add an extra element to your event.

To find out how we can help organise your training or teambuilding event please call us on 0845 230 8580 or send us an enquiry via our website.