Hi.  Just got back from managing the Creative Partnerships Conference and Arena in Manchester.  Miriam will give you a full update on the event but I just thought I’d write a quick summary from my point of view!  The event was certainly a challenge to manage but a great personal experience.  There were so many elements involved in this event - 800 registrants, children, 15 breakout sessions (the bane of any Event Manager’s life!), 3 venues, actors….the list is endless.  It took every bit of experience we had and a great team from TCP and the venues to ensure that all last minute requests were seemlessly met!!Everyone involved should be very proud of themselves for being part of such an exciting project! 

I joked about working with children in my last blog but they were great fun!  It was so refreshing to see them getting involved and being excited about their part in the event.  There were banners of their photos on display, they interviewed speakers, designed the menu, produced sounds to move delegates from one place to another and filmed delegates.  Even I got interviewed by an enthusiastic teenager!

My next trip is to the Dominican Republic assisting Matt and Kate during the Abcam event.  I’m really looking forward to being involved in this event especially as I am extending my time out there by 10 days and enjoing a pre-Christmas holiday!  Hopefully then I’ll be fully rested in preparation for Christmas festivities and the New Year when I really hope to be moving to Brighton! (to keep you uptodate we haven’t had any interest in our flat so far but I must be patient!)

That’s all for now - need to go and pack!