Events held by the NewcastleGateshead Convention Bureau feed economic recovery in the region

NewcastleGateshead Convention Bureau, part of NewcastleGateshead Initiative (NGI), has generated over £1m in event enquiries, with 123 confirmed events across the North East in 2022.

The convention bureau, which provides a free service including venue sourcing and accommodation booking for events, meetings and conferences, has worked with over 200 enquiries this year, placing more than 60 per cent in venues across Newcastle, Gateshead and the wider North East, bringing thousands of delegates to the region, filling a total number of 5,358 room nights.

Conferences from the medical and life science sector have been a majority of those taken place this year, with events including the 43rd annual conference of the International Society for Clinical Biostatistics which saw 400 clinicians, experts and academics arrive in the region from 37 countries.

Other major events include the British International Studies Association annual conference which was attended by 600 delegates, and a further 150 national and international attendees online, as well as the UK Council for Student Affairs annual conference which attracted an extra 400 delegates to the North East across a three-day period in June.

Jen Rea, Head of Business Events and Trade, said: “This has been a strong year for our business events sector, with a healthy pipeline taking us into 2023.

“It is encouraging to see confidence continuing to build in face-to-face events across the UK, but especially in the North East which has seen a substantial amount of business being confirmed and carried out, contributing to the recovery we have seen across the region, including a strong 74 per cent of hotel occupancy in 2022.

“The team has also been working outside of booking conferences to help support the sector further by partnering with venues and key bodies across the region to upskill staff and build confidence in event organisers, with the Tyne to Get Back to Business campaign.

“The campaign, which was in partnership with the Meetings Industry Association (mia), recently won the innovation category at this year’s miaList awards, and is testament to our dedication at NGI to furthering the North East of England as a world-class destination for business events.

“We’re looking forward to 2023 where we will continue to support business events in the region, grow our international reach and welcome even more events and delegates to the North East.”

By Mark Adair – Correspondent, Bdaily

• Add me on LinkedIn and Twitter to keep up to date
• And follow Bdaily on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn
• Submit press releases to editor@bdaily.co.uk for consideration

Looking to promote your product/service to SME businesses in your region? Find out how Bdaily can help →