LONDON FOR ASSOCIATIONS HANDBOOK conventionbureau.london 1 LONDON CONVENTION BUREAU Welcome to the London for Associations Who we are Contact us The London Convention Bureau is part of London & Partners Handbook. London & Partners, the Mayor of London’s 6th Floor, 2 More London Riverside official promotional agency. We promote London London, SE1 2RR In this guide, you will find helpful information to everything internationally as a leading city in which to invest, that London has to offer you. work, study and visit. +44 (0)20 7234 5833 www.conventionbureau.london London is the city to convene a global community. We How we can help [email protected] celebrate innovation and aim to be the best place in the As London’s official convention bureau, we help world to create, build and research ideas. event professionals, meeting organisers and London_CVB associations achieve the most out of London’s London_CVB London has vast experience of delivering world-class events, from major association iconic venues, hotels and support services. congresses to smaller business meetings, leading exhibitions and city events. Our impartial team provides free advice to help you unlock city gems, plan site inspections and However it is not just the city’s passion which sets it apart. Its infrastructure, logistics connect you with the right venues and solutions to and expertise in hosting large events means the capital has the capacity and capability meet your needs. to deliver outstanding experiences for every delegate, speaker, sponsor and partner attending a congress or event in our city. Our London for Associations Handbook provides a step-by-step guide to assist you in navigating and harnessing all the information you need in order to bring your association event to London. Whether you are planning a large or small event, we are here to help. Visit our website to discover what’s new in London, to find useful resources and contact information, and to submit an RFP. Suzanne Singleton Head of Associations conventionbureau.london 3 CONTENTS LONDON CONVENTION CONFERENCE VENUES 42 BUREAU SERVICES 6 Venues over 1,000 capacity 44 Quick guide 8 Venues up to 1,000 capacity 52 Useful websites 9 Venues up to 500 capacity 62 London at a glance 10 SOCIAL VENUES 66 WHY LONDON 12 LONDON ACCOMMODATION 72 ACCESS TO LONDON 16 Citywide hotels Getting around London 18 London Underground Map 20 EVENT SUPPORT SERVICES 82 Think Green, Think London 22 Group housing services PCO’S SECTORS Event insurance Medical London 24 DMC’s Tech London 28 Urban London 31 PARTNER INDEX 88 Finance London 34 Creative London 36 CALENDARS – 2019-2026 102 LEGAL, FISCAL & NOTES 110 REGULATORY GUIDANCE 38 VAT 39 VISA applications 40 4 conventionbureau.london How we can help We support you from the start, right through the completion of your event. From helping craft a successful bid, to providing letters of support from leading civil and corporate figures, as well as liaising with the hotels, venues and service providers to give you and your delegates the best experience. Bid support letters The London Convention Bureau can facilitate letters of support from local government (City Hall) as well as central government, via Visit Britain. LONDON www.visitbritain.org/business-events CONVENTION Free and impartial advice to unlock London’s BUREAU potential SERVICES Who we are We are the official London Convention Bureau. Our team As London’s official convention of professional and experienced association specialists offer a free and impartial service to help you unlock bureau, we are here to help you create a London’s potential. truly inspiring conference for your delegates, from successful bids What we do With our unrivalled network of contacts, we can open to hosting your event. doors to the widest range of venues, hotels and support services across London. We pride ourselves on knowing new, unique, quirky and historic venues in London and can help you find the ideal setting for your event. We also have extensive experience in helping to find the right accommodation, from five-star hotels to low-cost university rooms. We can connect you with the best support services in the industry, including professional conference organisers (PCOs), destination management companies (DMCs). 6 conventionbureau.london conventionbureau.london 7 LONDON CONVENTION BUREAU SERVICES Useful information Quick guide to our services Quick guide • Free and impartial advice Weather London Informations, Tours & • Site inspection coordination www.metoffice.gov.uk Theatre shows • Citywide accommodation searches • Visit London www.visitlondon.com Use our free, world-class • London Accommodation Charter Transport • Visit London App (for Android and promotional assets • Bid production • Citymapper www.citymapper.com Apple) www.visitlondon.com/london-app Set the bar high for your event by using our free, • Free promotional toolkit • Thames Clipper • See Tickets www.seetickets.com professional-quality resources. The event planners’ • Discounts on Visitor Oyster Cards www.thamesclipper.com • London Pass www.londonpass.com toolkit on our website is tailored to the needs • Visa guidance • Uber www.uber.com of conference organisers. It has high-resolution • Transport for London www.tfl.gov.uk Useful numbers imagery, videos, infographics and PowerPoint • Emirates Airline Cable Car Non-emergency police line – 101 presentations ready for you to download and use. www.tfl.gov.uk/modes/emirates-air-line Non-emergency medical line – 111 conventionbureau.london/resources Emergency (life-threatening) police and Event Services medical line – 999 Citywide Accommodation • Slido (Q&A and Polling platform) If your event needs more than 1,000 rooms, take www.sli.do Visa & Immigration advantage of London’s Accommodation Charter. • Eventbrite (online event registration) www.gov.uk/browse/visas-immigration Designed to help organisers secure blocks of hotel www.eventbrite.co.uk rooms for major congresses, so you can get the • Moore Staffing Services (event staff) most appropriate and convenient hotels for your www.moorestaffing.com delegates Visa information Delegates travelling from outside the UK may need a visa. As rules can change, contact your local British embassy for the latest information or check and apply online at: gov.uk/apply-uk-visa Security matters The UK is a world leader in counter terrorism. Police, emergency and intelligence services work with the Border Force to ensure London is a safe and secure city to visit. 8 conventionbureau.london conventionbureau.london 9 Over 18,400 LONDON rooms 72 to be built by 2022 Michelin stars 18,100+ places to eat 478 6 Airports Art galleries AT A 400 International destinations within a 143,000+ direct flight to London Hotel rooms GLANCE 192 Museums 14 main stations 11 lines covering 402 km 1,000+ and serving over 270 stations Diverse venues 6 lines run a 24-hour service 4 UNESCO World heritage sites 882,000+ people working in more than London’s creative economy 22,500 London Tech Week hosts music performances over 300 events and a year across London’s 1,000 venues attracts over 55,000 233 51,600 776,000 including the O2 arena – the world’s £14.4bn attendees foreign digital tech people employed in most popular music venue Annual turnover languages businesses in London's financial generated by spoken London, contributing services and related London-based life 263,000 jobs services 10 conventionbureau.london sciences companies conventionbureau.london 11 WHY LONDON? London is a city of creative energy. With hundreds of years of rich culture and an open, free-thinking mindset, London has a history of welcoming people from all over Dynamic and innovative Tech High-quality, affordable the world. Now, as a centre for fintech, life London is the launchpad for tomorrow’s accommodation sciences and creativity, there has never London has a deep pool of talent technology, with 181 incubators and across the financial, technology, life accelerators, the largest developer Hotels been a better time to bring your congress sciences and creative sectors. The population, the highest concentration of With more than 143,000 hotel rooms to London. Here’s why... expert speakers, delegates, exhibitors tech companies in Europe. to choose from, London has plenty of and media interest that are essential accommodation options to suit to the success of any major event are Life sciences all tastes and budgets. here. London is a hotbed for life sciences research and innovation. Its universities Restaurants Finance and centres include UCL, King’s, From sophisticated fine dining to local, London is a centre for around 250 Imperial, the Alan Turing Institute and the family-run gems and a vibrant street foreign banks. The UK has the largest Francis Crick Institute. food scene, the city is home to more insurance industry in Europe and is the than 8,000 restaurants – 72 of which are world’s largest centre for cross-border Creative Michelin starred. banking and borrowing. Close to a million people power London’s creative economy, across video games and esports, adtech, fashtech, retailtech and visual effects. 12 conventionbureau.london conventionbureau.london 13 WHY LONDON The world’s top city for One of the world’s most leading universities cosmopolitan cities London has more top-rated universities London is a vibrant international city than any other city in the world. Among where everyone can feel at home. its 47 highly respected institutions are four of the Times Higher Education’s Diverse global top 40: London’s population is globally diverse and welcoming: the city’s inhabitants • Imperial College London speak more than 230 languages. • University College London • The London School of Economics Connected • King’s College London With six major international airports and direct flights to 400 destinations, as The city is a hub for cutting-edge well as one international train station for research: many of the most respected, Eurostar trains to mainland Europe, it’s exciting and inspiring academic simple to get here - wherever you are.