Wednesday 29 April
14:00 Registration Desk opens
15:00 Walking Tour of Nottingham with Robin Hood!
Meeting at 3 pm at the National Justice Museum - Nottingham's independent museum in the historic Shire Hall and County Gaol on High Pavement in the Lace Market, where visitors explore real courtrooms, gaols and underground cells through immersive exhibitions and experiences that trace the story of justice, crime and punishment from the past to the present. The Walking Tour with Robin Hood is a lively, story-packed stroll through the city led by a charismatic “Robin” who mixes humour, theatre and local knowledge to bring Nottingham’s legends to life. As you follow the outlaw trail through key city-centre sights, you’ll learn how the Robin Hood tales grew from medieval ballads into a global legend, pick out the real history behind the “Hooded Man,” and uncover the bigger story of Nottingham’s past—its people, power-brokers, rogues and hidden corners. The tour will include the following points of interest: Nottingham Contemporary, St Marys Church, Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem, and finishing at Nottingham Castle.
** This activity is being organised by Visit Nottingham and only open to in-house and agency event professionals. **
Transport from/to the Orchard Hotel/EMCC will be provided – further details to follow after registration.
Price: Free
To book: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/walking-tour-of-nottingham-tickets-1982423099857
15:00 - 17:00 Terrarium Workshop
A hands-on, creative session where participants build their own terrariums – miniature gardens inside glass containers. Designed to encourage collaboration, teamwork and creativity as teams work together on their designs. Participants learn about sustainable practices and receive tips on maintaining their terrariums with minimal environmental impact. At the end of the workshop, everyone takes home a finished terrarium to display at home or in the office. To book, select this option when registering - an additional £30 (incl VAT) fee for materials will be charged. Capacity is limited - places are available on a first come, first served basis.
15.00 - 17.00 Traitors and Team-Building!
A team-building challenge where groups work through mentally stimulating puzzles, tasks, codes and clues while trying to succeed as a team. The twist is that one participant is a hidden “Traitor” whose goal is to undermine the team’s success, creating a game of strategy, trust and deception. Teams compete to accumulate the most gold by completing challenges and must also identify the traitor before the end. The event builds teamwork, communication and strategic thinking under pressure, with prizes for both the best team and the successfully undiscovered traitor. Any similarity to a well-known TV show is purely coincidental! To book, contact mattstalker@abpco.org after you have completed your event registration. Capacity is limited - places are available on a first come, first served basis.
15.00 - 16.30 The Chief Event Officer’s Strategy Workshop with Sasha Frieze
In an AI-first world, in-person events are increasingly vital. And transformational events are designed to align with organisational objectives. Association events are where we bring our organisation, purpose and values to life and deliver community.
Roll your sleeves up to this practical interactive session, where you’ll workshop your events with frameworks that explore your Event Purpose Proposition, Audience Curation Strategy, Event Outcome Design, Welcoming Planning and more. You’ll also receive a signed copy of The Chief Event Officer’s Playbook.
To book, contact mattstalker@abpco.org after you have completed your event registration. Capacity is limited - places are available on a first come, first served basis.
18.30-19:00 ABPCO First Timers Pre-Meet
We encourage first-time attendees to join us at the Orchard Hotel where you can meet other ABPCO newcomers.
19:00 - 21:00 Networking Supper with Exhibitors
At Nottingham Venues - East Midlands Conference Centre
Thursday 30 April
08:00 Registration Desk opens
08:00 - 08:45 Informal Agency PCO meet-up
08:00 - 08:45 Informal In-House PCO meet-up
09:00 Welcome and Opening
09:10 Get to Know Matt - an interview with ABPCO's new Executive Director
ABPCO Treasurer Kate Sargent interviews Matt Stalker, ABPCO’s new Executive Director.
09:30 Opening Keynote: Geoff Ramm - Delivering 'Celebrity Service' at your events
Like you, Geoff knows that great customer service leads to lucrative, repeat business but a greater experience leads to global recognition. So how can you design a customer experience that has you talked about for decades to come? You will experience the award winning ‘Celebrity Service’ philosophy to ensure you are craved by your customers, envied by your competitors and raved about in your industry.
10:30 Refreshments
11:05 Let's Fix Networking Together!
Anita Macdonald, Meet Cambridge; Andy Williamson, Welcome Brain; Sian Thomas, UCISA; and Raymond Elferink, Kubify.
Networking is often the highlight of an event, but many people find it awkward, forced and difficult, and for neurodivergent attendees, it can feel anything but inclusive. This session explores how event professionals can design networking experiences that work for everyone, using evidence, empathy, and creativity. Can we together come up with some new meeting design formats that would support networking in a more natural and welcoming way? Understand how neurodiversity shapes networking preferences and experiences and learn practical strategies to create inclusive, engaging networking opportunities.
11:05 Stronger Together: The Bid Team Advantage
Nicola Williams, Seren Events; and Linda Best, West Midlands Growth Company
Seren Events recently partnered with the West Midlands Growth Company to win an international bid and bring a major conference to Birmingham in 2027. Learn how an effective team approach can improve your chances of winning conference bids.
11:05 Event Marketing through to 2030 - a Data Led Approach
Rob Eveleigh, Brightelm
Event Marketing is a specific discipline that is often misunderstood, or deprioritised by marketing professionals in membership. On top of that, getting people's attention and commitment is becoming harder and harder. The session will help you understand available marketing channels in events, available data and measurement, and the growing importance of personalisation. Attendees will work in groups on real-life case studies to suggest solutions on how to improve the performance of the marketing, reporting back to the rest of the room with discussion. The session will end with a review of a ten-point marketing healthcheck that attendees can use to help future-proof their marketing.
11:55 Delivering Meaningful Impact Events Through Proactive PCO, Association and City Collaboration
Aileen Crawford, Glasgow Convention Bureau; Jo Brown and Roger Knaggs, British Pain Society; and Margaret Sherry, In Conference.
This engaging and interactive panel session, moderated by Glasgow Convention Bureau with representatives from the BPS and its PCO partner, will share the Society’s Legacy Journey, from Glasgow Nottingham, and beyond. Delegates will gain insight into how proactive collaboration between a host city, association, and PCO can create meaningful, measurable outcomes that last well beyond the meeting.
11:55 Access for Everyone
One in three delegates identifies as having a visible or non-visibility disability and 93% report encountering barriers at events. This session goes beyond the statistics. Real life experiences of exclusion and inclusion will be shared together with the emotional and practical realities of disabled attendees. Case studies from EICC, Glastonbury and ICC Wales will demonstrate how venues can bridge the gap and deliver positive experiences for those with disabilities, giving you actionable steps to embed inclusion across event planning and delivery to enhance delegate experience, and insight into how accessibility drives broader audience engagement and business growth.
12:25 Lunch
13:30 Food for Thought: Closing the Gaps for Dietary Inclusion
Anita Macdonald, Meet Cambridge; Sammy Connell, NASUWT; Clare Beach, Azura Events; and Lori Cobley, SEC.
Building on industry research, this session will mark the first public launch of tools designed to set a new standard for dietary inclusivity. Delegates will be among the first to see a brand-new glossary and icon set that creates a shared language for dietary requirements. We will also introduce two exclusive, industry-first checklists: one for PCOs and one for venues and caterers, designed to close communication gaps and ensure safer, more consistent, and inclusive catering across the events sector. By the end of the session you will Understand the current gaps and challenges in managing dietary requirements, learn how to apply tools and frameworks that support inclusive, consistent catering and explore ways to collaborate across the supply chain to deliver safer, more equitable delegate experiences.
14:00 Work Smarter, Not Harder: Tools and Frameworks that Give Event Teams Their Time Back
Johnny D. Martinez, CrowdComms.
Budgets are tightening. Teams are leaner. Expectations from clients, delegates, members and stakeholders are higher than ever. So how can organisations across the association and events ecosystem continue to innovate, deliver exceptional experiences and meet rising demands – all without burning out their teams or breaking the bank?
We'll explore how adopting agile thinking (rooted in flexibility, feedback and focus) can empower associations, event organisers, venues and suppliers to deliver more with less. You’ll learn practical frameworks and accessible tools that streamline planning, simplify decision-making and create space for what matters most: people, relationships and meaningful outcomes.
14:00 Refocus, Rebalance, Reimagine - A Strategic Look at Your Event Portfolio
Richard Morris, Active Media Events
Association events often evolve to meet member needs—some grow, some diminish, and others cease to exist. This session will help you strategically assess your event portfolio, identifying early indicators for events that warrant investment, consolidation, amalgamation, or even closure. We will step away from the daily operational challenges to provide a broader perspective on opportunities and to pinpoint any "vanity projects" that are consuming excessive resources without yielding significant returns.
14:00: When Creativity meets Sustainability...Good Things Happen
Penny Banks, Creative Director, GES; and Jo Austin, Compass UK&I.
It's a well-discussed notion that sustainability needs to be ‘baked into’ organisation. To do this takes input from creatives and operational talent. In this session, we bring together both, with case studies that look at two aspects of event production: Infrastructure and Food. You'll learn how creative thinking can create sustainable value, take a fresh look at Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG), experience live examples of creative sustainability in action and gain a better insight into the creative process around event design.
14:45 Refreshments
15:15 ABPCO 2025 Excellence Award Winner Case Studies
Jessica Davies, Pensions UK; Caroline Windsor, TFI Lodestar; and Ben Campbell, Royal Amouries.
Join Jessica Letters from the ABPCO Learning Taskforce as she interviews some of our 2025 Award winners to learn more about their succesful projects. You'll hear about TFI Lodestar and BSG Live, winner of the Best Event by an Agency PCO award; the PLSA (Pensions UK) Investment Conference, winner of the Best Event by an In-house PCO award; and The Royal Amouries with UKREiif, winner of the Best Partnership award.
15:40 The Chief Event Officer's Playbook: Reimagining Association and Non-Profit Events
Sasha Frieze, Managing Director, The Business Narrative
This session explores how associations can leverage their deep purpose to articulate the meaning their events deliver.
How do you create transformative gatherings that align with and deliver organisational goals, member engagement, and sector influence? Sasha will reveal a practical blueprint and you will leave with ideas to:
- Articulate clarity of purpose
- Put participants at the heart of the experience
- Align event outcomes with organisational strategy and mission
- Explore approaches to curating content that are purposeful and story-driven, creating memorable moments
- Reframe success metrics beyond delegate numbers
You will leave this session ready to adopt a Chief Event Officer mindset, and to speak the language of the boardroom. Far from another “best practice” checklist, the Chief Event Officer’s Playbook is a candid, interactive session designed to provoke reflection, encourage peer dialogue, and equip delegates to lead with confidence in uncertain times.
16:20 Closing Remarks
16:30 Close of Event
Delegate Terms and Conditions
Delegate Terms and Conditions
Cancellation or postponement of event
In the unlikely circumstance that ABPCO has to cancel the event, we will refund the full cost of any pre-paid registration fees. ABPCO shall not be liable for reimbursing the cost of travel or accommodation arrangements booked by those attending an ABPCO event.
In the event of a postponement, all tickets will automatically be valid for the new date, or transferable to someone else in the same ticket pricing bracket. Refunds will be available if you are unable to make the new event date.
ABPCO reserve the right to change the event venue within 10 miles of the advertised venue.
Cancellation of attendance at an event
Please let us know if you cannot attend an ABPCO event as soon as possible by emailing hello@abpco.org
Where a fee has been charged, you will be reimbursed as follows:
For cancellations on or prior to 28 March 2026, a 50% refund will be given.
For cancellations received after 28 March 2026, no refund will be given, but name substitutions can be made at any time.
To cancel a booking email hello@abpco.org
Name changes
Tickets are transferable: it will be possible to amend the name on your ticket to a colleague within the same ticket pricing bracket at any time.
To arrange for a name change contact hello@abpco.org
Payments and payment methods
From 1 April 2026 onwards, only credit card payments will be accepted for new bookings. If we have not received payment to cover the total cost of all bookings under your contact details on or before 22 April 2026, we reserve the right to refuse entry to the event.
Force Majeure
For the purposes of these terms and conditions, "force majeure" means any cause beyond our reasonable control including, but not limited to, war, acts of terrorism, governmental requirements, acts of local or central government or other competent authorities, acts of God and industrial disputes.
We will not be liable to you for failure to perform any obligation under these terms and conditions or in relation to your booking to the extent that the failure is caused by force majeure.
Conditions of attendance
You must comply with instructions and directions given by staff, ABPCO and stewards and agents of the venue (where relevant) and any applicable policies and procedures of which you are notified.
We reserve the right to refuse access to, or remove any delegate from any ABPCO event who, in our reasonable opinion has, or is likely to affect the experience of the other delegates, in our reasonable opinion is acting under the influence of alcohol or drugs, or who uses threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour or who behaves in a manner which may cause a breach of the peace.
ABPCO is dedicated to creating and maintaining a positive event experience where everyone is treated with dignity, courtesy and respect.
Any discriminatory language and imagery are not appropriate at any ABPCO event, including in presentation material. Violation of these rules could result in exclusion from the event without a refund.
ABPCO are committed to and actively encourage diversity and promote inclusion and accessibility at our events.
We value the participation of each individual and want everybody to have an enjoyable and fulfilling experience. All communication and behaviour should therefore be appropriate for a professional audience.
By attending an ABPCO event, you’re agreeing to respect and be kind to everybody, regardless of their gender, race, religion, age, sexual orientation, disability, or any other aspect of what they look like, where they come from or who they are.
For further information and our full code of conduct please visit our website here.