Academic vs Commercial Venues

Having always focused on commercial venues it was a bit of a culture shock when in a recent venue search we had to target Further Education Colleges ahead of commercially driven properties.  To say we were pleasantly surprised by the standard of college event space would be an understatement.

Whilst not hundreds to choose from - not all colleges offer space to hire out - the ones that did offer external events the opportunity to use their space have clearly thought about what makes an event work - something that can not always be said their commercial counterparts.  Being honest I expected the majority of colleges to offer tired, inflexible space - the complete opposite has been true.

Venue space at most colleges I have viewed is easily accesible, bright, modern, flexible and ultimately a top event space.  Admittedly they often don't cater for the largest events but for those with numbers around 150 there are a number of great options.  South Bristol Skills Academy (part of the City of Bristol College) and The Learning Exchange (part of Liverpool Community College) are two that particularly impressed me.

College space still has the obvious draw back that it is least available in term time, which is when the vast majority of B2B events take place.  However those in charge of event space at Further Education Colleges often proved to be ultra helpful in trying to move classes, etc to fit our event - didn't always prove successful but demonstrates our educational establishments realise (or at least are starting to realise) the importance of hiring out available space to external companies.

Having another available avenue for impressive event space is a huge bonus, especially in the current economic climate, as college spaces are vastly more cost effective than their commercial counterparts (understandbly).  Another financial positive of utilising college space is that it creates another revenue stream for those establishments, which is more rewarding than simply lining the pockets of a multi-million pound hotel or conference centre.

I acccept we may have got lucky in the FE Colleges that we have viewed but despite that, Connect Events for one will openly and actively suggest college spaces to clients with events of the right type moving forward.