By Steve Taggart
It’s back to school and back to the boardroom. If you are organising a small or large meeting this autumn and don’t want to blow your budget before the Christmas party season kicks there’s no need to spend a fortune – here’s our pick of some of central London’s frill-free and functional meeting spots – a good place to start scaling back expenses without any detrimental effect on business.
Here are the top eight affordable meeting spaces in London
Holiday Inn London – Camden Lock
Holiday Inn London – Camden Lock’s Mezzanine suites offer flexible space for 8 to 24 delegates and although they come in at the higher end of the list its good value for money.
You’ll have a dedicated Meetings co-ordinator on hand to help things run smoothly, and the refreshment and equipment offering is very competitive. These sound proofed rooms are ideal for smaller meetings, interviews, brainstorming meetings and intimate private dinners.
A selling point is the trendy Camden Lock location – you’re probably going to need a drink after and you’re not short of a decent watering hole in that neck of the woods!
Day delegate rates start from £50pp + VAT.
http://www.hicamdenlock.co.uk/
Park Crescent Conference Centre
Park Crescent Conference Centre offers spacious rooms with high ceilings and windows, creating a sense of grandeur for a reasonable price tag. There are eight versatile rooms accommodating between 12 – 300 delegates. The conference centre offers traditional and modern rooms with views over the beautiful Park Crescent Gardens, full AV equipment in each room and Wi-Fi throughout the venue.
Meetings at Park Crescent Conference Centre with some fun perks including afternoon sweets and slushies! You’d better get in there quick as the afternoon slushy deal finishes at the end of September. The rooms are versatile, and they offer bespoke packages which allow you greater control over the budget.
Park Crescent Conference Centre (PCCC) is located in the end terrace of the Park Crescent Nash buildings in a prestigious location opposite Regents Park and within walking distance of five tube stations covering six different tube lines.
Day delegate rates start at £45pp + VAT.
www.Pccc.co.uk
BMA House
BMA House offers a unique setting for classier meetings in central London’s Bloomsbury yet this stunning character property has also got some reasonably priced hidden gems to offer. The venue includes 23 event spaces and purpose built meeting rooms catering from small meetings for 2 to large conferences for 300, dinner for 200 and cocktail parties for 320. This includes the simple and affordable Edward Jenner room, a steal at £325 for the day for 16 people boardroom style. If you want to make an impression, The David Carter room’s wood panelling and high backed chairs give a more executive feel is a good choice if you’re looking to seal an important deal. Make sure you explore The Courtyard and The Garden during your lunch break.
DDR starts from £70
www.bmahouse.org.uk
The Abbey Conference Centre
Discover central London’s top value-for-cost meeting and conference centre, rooms are light and airy, by far the most affordable prices in Whitehall or Victoria. The centre is conveniently located near Parliament Square in the heart of Westminster. Their high-tech (but low-budget) meeting rooms suit groups from 2 to 200 for training, AGMs, meetings and conferences.
Offering superb transport links: just a short walk from Westminster and St James’ Park Tube stations and close to Victoria, Waterloo and Charing Cross train stations, delegates will be near London’s top tourist attractions: Big Ben, The Houses of Parliament, Green Park, Buckingham Palace and The London Eye. Best of all, some of the proceeds from booking a room go towards the centre’s charity work in the community.
Prices start from £120 for the day (2-8 people)
http://www.theabbeycentre.org.uk/venue/
20 Bedford Way
The Institute of Education has spent £2.4 million launching meetings venue 20 Bedford Way in Bloomsbury. The venue now offers several large spaces for conferences and exhibitions including the Logan Hall theatre which seats 930 people and 23 flexible seminar rooms, ideal for hosting meetings without breaking the bank. Standard rooms all come with fitted AV, or premium rooms are available with high tech interactive ‘working walls’ and a range of catering options are available to suite any budget. Ideally located in Euston, 20 Bedford Way is easily accessible from Kings Cross Station, Euston station and Russell Square station.
Day delegate rates start from a competitive £35pp + VAT.
The London Canal Museum
London Canal Museum is the sort of off the wall venue that you can imagine a trendy start up favouring. It’s quirky and functional, with simplistic meetings rooms and a passable offering of equipment. Delegates get basic self-service refreshments (hot drinks and biscuits) but for anything beyond that the venue suggests bringing in outside catering. Attendees can have a wander around the museum during breaks; a nice perk for longer meetings or training days.
Prices from £95 for the day (up to 10 people)
The Space Centre
The Space Centre is a venue with a convenient Kings Cross location which has the sole purpose of hosting meetings and training days. Its largest capacity room, simply known as ‘Room 1’, can accommodate up to 25 people and has complimentary WiFi and refreshments. It is equipped with a whiteboard and projector and more equipment is available on request for a small extra cost. Best of all they often run special deals; the current offer is 25% off the smaller room if you book two rooms on an evening or weekend!
Room 1 is £349 for a full day.
http://www.thespacecentre.com/
ORT House
Another great central London venue, ORT House has a range of rooms accommodating 2-200 delegates with day delegate rates starting from £30 per person. With lunch and equipment included in this price ORT House is really good value. There’s also an option to hire room only (without catering) for a reduced cost. Ideal venue for board and sales meetings, product launches, lectures, interviews, seminars, training and conferences.
Our favourite thing about this venue is the fact that it has a garden where you can have your lunch if you wish.
Day delegate rates start from £30pp + VAT.
http://www.orthouse.co.uk/
