Best Conference Venues in Birmingham

How to Choose a Birmingham Conference Venue

Here are some of the things you’ll want to think about when choosing a venue:

Facilities can make or break your event.

Think about things such as whether there is parking available, whether the Wi-Fi is strong, whether the venue has the audio-visual equipment you need, and how convenient the venue is for those with disabilities.

The date.

Birmingham is a busy city home to numerous big-scale events during the year, and you may be better off choosing a venue away from the hustle and bustle of whatever else is going on. Having a few dates in mind will also help you find an available venue that meets your needs.

You don’t want to hire a conference venue for 200 people if it only needs to accommodate 20, and vice versa. We have a selection of smaller Birmingham conference rooms as well as large venues, so you shouldn’t have any trouble finding something suitable for you.

The location.

If you’re hosting people who aren’t familiar with the second city, you may want to choose a venue in a place that’s easily accessible by car, or close to public transport links.

Planning to Perfection 

Our catalogue of Birmingham private hire venues is extensive, and we take pride in offering our users as much choice as possible. 

In order to help you hone in on the best venue for your needs as quickly as possible, we recommend that you take the time beforehand to work out exactly what you need for the kind of conference you want to put on.

Whether you will be inviting 10 people or a 100 to your Birmingham conference, the city has plenty of options for you to consider.

Once you have all the obvious stuff out of the way - how many people are coming, what will you be doing with them, who will be speaking etc - you can then begin to think about the more abstract requirements you have. 

Perhaps you are specifically looking for a space in which attendees will feel more relaxed. If you want them to forget they are at a business conference, don’t choose a venue that is too formal and uninviting. 

It is always a good idea to visit the venue in person if you can. Not only will this help you to ensure that you’ve made the right choice, but it also gives you an opportunity to do a dry run and work out all your logistics. 

Why You Should Choose Birmingham For Your Next Conference 

Birmingham today is a vibrant, bustling city and like other major cities in England, it has its own distinct identity. Culturally and economically, this place is hugely important for the UK and is an excellent location for a business conference.

Birmingham’s location in the Midlands also makes it a convenient meeting spot if you have people coming in from all over the country. Trains run frequently between Birmingham and London, with a journey time of a respectable two hours. Getting to Birmingham from the north of England is also straightforward with regular trains from Manchester and Liverpool.

Of course, you always have the option of flying in to Birmingham Airport, which has easy access to Birmingham International train station and the rest of the city in turn.

Getting Around Birmingham 

Any city that you pick to host a conference needs to be easily accessible, and Birmingham is most certainly that. It’s a vital transport hub and once you are in the city, you can take advantage of a public transport network that includes trams as well as the usual buses and trains. Or, if you prefer, there are numerous cycle paths and that you can use to get around. 

Buses and trains in Birmingham use Swift Pay As You Go, a card that you can top up and then use to purchase tickets on public transport. If you don’t want to do this then you will need to carry cash with you as bus providers in Birmingham don’t support contactless payments yet. 

Finding the Right Space 

The largely residential area of Selly Oak is a great place to stage an event away from the hustle and bustle of the city centre. The area has its own retail park, in addition to dozens of potential conference venues in Birmingham. 

If you’re looking for a relatively laid-back and chilled conference venue, your perfect location could be The Buzz. One of our venues in the Selly Oak area, The Buzz is a multi-functional space and can be rapidly and easily adapted for any kind of meeting. 

Heading north and just a short walk from Birmingham New Street is Digbeth; a bohemian neighbourhood overflowing with independent shops, arts venues and other cultural curiosities. People talk about Digbeth in 2020 the same way they used to talk about Peckham in London - which went from having a questionable reputation to being one of the hippest parts of the city, attracting young creatives and rejuvenating itself over just a few years. 

VenueScanner has a diverse selection of formal, casual, and completely unique venues for hire in Digbeth. So if you’ve got your eyes set on conference venues in Birmingham city centre, this might be the option for you.

Whether you have been to Birmingham before or not, the city centre is a sight well worth seeing. The Sparkbrook area should also be explored - that’s near to Bordesley train station - and among the featured spaces on VenueScanner is Birmingham City Football Club, home of the Blues, which includes a 60-capacity boardroom you can hire.

Regardless of the specific details and style of your event, we’re confident our range of Birmingham conference venues will have something for you. With a clutch of great spaces located throughout Birmingham, our offerings run the entire gamut of what the city has to offer. Check out our catalogue today to find your dream location.

Want some further reading? Check out five of the best conference venues Birmingham has to offer for more inspiration.