VisitBritain - England, Wales and Scotland’s tourism and
visitor organisation - hosted its inaugural ‘Ambassador Reception’.
The recpetion recognised city
sector and academic ambassadors who continue to secure new international
business events in Britain.
The reception, held on Wednesday 13 September at the
Institute of Directors in London, brought together 50 attendees including
British nations, cities, local ambassadors, industry stakeholders and
representatives from the Department of Culture, Media and Sport.
British Tourist Authority chair Nick de Bois CBE opened the
reception followed by a welcome from Sir John Whittingdale, Minister of State
jointly in the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and the
Department for Science, Innovation and Technology.
Both highlighted the role ambassadors, and their cities have
in securing new business events.
Two panel sessions were held during the reception, moderated
by Martin Fullard, associate director at The Business of Events. The first
welcomed three city convention bureaus – Glasgow, Wales, and Leeds – who
discussed their experiences of creating ambassador programmes to secure new
business events.
The second panel saw three city ambassadors from London,
Sheffield and Edinburgh discuss their experiences of working in partnership
with British cities and the impact these events bring to their regions.
President of the European Society of Association Executives, Mike Morrissey,
also presented and shared his thoughts from a pan continental perspective.
De Bois said: “It is important that we come together to
recognise the enormous value of our world leading business events sector and
the critical role our cities and ambassadors play in bringing new events to
Britain.”
VisitBritain head of business events, Paul Black added: “We
hosted this event as a way of thanking and recognising the hard work and impact
our local ambassadors have had on our sector. From promoting Britain’s own
businesses to an international audience, to supporting regional development and
showcasing cutting edge expansions in our business sectors, their work
conducted on a voluntary basis has had a fundamental and undeniable impact on
bringing global events to Britain.”
A desire to travel led Holly Patrick to the business meetings and events world and she’s never looked back. Holly takes a particular interest in event sustainability and creating a diverse and inclusive industry. When she’s not working, she can be found rolling skating along Brighton seafront listening to an eclectic playlist, featuring the likes of Patti Smith, Sean Paul, and Arooj Aftab.
