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    Sustainable weddings – How to guide


    Sustainability is not just a buzzword; it has become an undeniable part of everyday living and is something we should consider at every opportunity.  As one of the most significant days in our lives, weddings offer an ideal opportunity to demonstrate not just a love for our partner but the world around us.  Amongst the myriad decisions we make when organising a wedding, the choice to be sustainable should be a simple one and there are many ways to achieve it from proposal to planning.  Here are a few of our top tips and thoughts.

           

    Sustainability starts with the proposal: What better way to demonstrate a commitment to the planet than from the very moment you get engaged.  Choice of a sustainable location etc are obvious but perhaps the most significant part of the proposal is the ring itself.  Rather than visiting the local jewellery store why not consider proposing with a piece of jewellery that is already in the family – perhaps your grandmother’s ring or similar?  If classic, vintage looking jewellery is not your thing you can even get old stones reset or have the metal melted and reshaped into something more your style.  Either option saves the use of new resources.  Speaking of which, if you do choose to buy new then check the source of the stones – particularly diamonds.  Sadly, many come from less reputable sources including areas of conflict and abuse of the miners.

    Venue Choice: Once you are engaged it is time to start planning.  Very often the first choice is the venue – something we know a little about here at BMA House!  Talk to your potential venues to understand their commitment to sustainability, what actions are they taking to protect the planet?  How will they support your sustainable choices.  Many of the subsequent decisions you make about your wedding will be based on the capabilities and options available at the venue, so ensure you discuss sustainability with them from the very beginning.

           

    Venue Décor: An area of significant waste at many weddings can be décor and theming.  Significant amounts are often spent on changing a room to meet the needs of the couple and these frequently include single use items that are thrown away after just a few hours of usage.  Surely a better option is to choose a venue in a style that suits your tastes and desires – why pay extra for décor when so many beautiful venues exist with a style all of their own?  This even includes the great-outdoors.  Many venues are either purely external or offer significant external spaces that can be used throughout the day – whether it is for your ceremony, reception or photos.

    Minimise Travel: Speaking of venues, there is amongst many couples a trend to use several venues, requiring transport from hotel – to ceremony – to drinks reception – to wedding breakfast – to party.  Each one of those journeys impacts the planet so we highly recommend minimising this as much as possible by sticking to one or at most two locations.  For those considering overseas weddings – travel sustainability and destination choice becomes an imperative.

         

    Reduce, Reuse and Recycle: This mantra is key to sustainability across all parts of our lives and as such can be reflected in wedding planning.  Firstly – use less, secondly, don’t use it only once, thirdly – recycle it for future use.  Clearly this is relevant in the décor and theming discussed earlier.  However, a few other key areas are invitations, flowers, food and favours:

    • Invitations are potentially a big waste of money and environmental resources. Consider whether they even need sending – or perhaps digital invitations would be a better option.  Next think about printing requirements such as sustainable ink and paper choice.  Finally, minimise waste by only sending out what is truly necessary.

     

    • Cut flowers by their very nature look beautiful but aren’t sustainable – you are quite literally killing them to provide decoration at the wedding. At the very least consider what is in season and local.  There are however many other more sustainable options that can be considered including pot plants or even herbs and small trees.

     

    • Food offers a significant potential for waste, particularly as it is one of the most expensive elements in the cost of any wedding. Here in particular it is vital to talk to the venue and caterers.  As a venue, along with our catering partner CH&CO. we have been delivering sustainable food options for a long time and could in fact write a whole article on just that topic.  For the moment though our key recommendations are to seek out local and seasonal food; order the right quantities and select menu options that have lower impacts on the environment.  And when it comes to drinks – try the local wine and avoid bottled water.

     

    • Favours are a lovely memento of any wedding but think about the long-term usage and how realistic it is that the attendees will keep or make use of whatever it is that you give them. Trinkets and tat are likely to gather dust and eventually end up in landfill, food stuffs are a far better option as are small plants, seeds and the like.

         

    Where and What Next? The gifts and honeymoon also offer plenty of opportunities and pitfalls for sustainable choices.  A sustainable gift registry is a good choice as of course are donations to worthy charities.  Above all else you don’t want people spending money on items that are never likely to be used or are unsustainably sourced.  When it comes to the honeymoon – well that is a whole other article on sustainable travel and destination choices!

    Ultimately, making a wedding sustainable is not just a matter of ticking a few check boxes.  It needs to be carefully thought out and planned.  For some it seems like it is all a bit too much hassle – however, when you consider the lifelong journey you are setting out on together, surely it is worth a few extra minutes to ensure it starts in the most positive way possible.  Here at BMA House we believe that a sustainable wedding will lead to a sustainable marriage – what more could you want and what other reason do you need to place sustainability at the heart of your wedding?

    To find out more about holding your wedding in our stunning sustainable London venue, contact our wedding planners on 020 7874 7020 or email [email protected]

       

    Photo credit to Michal Gutowski

    Website: https://mgweddings.co.uk/

    Making a green show of it – our stylish, sustainable, adjoining Exhibition space


    BMA House might be best known as a fantastic event and conference venue, but we are also seeing a significant rise in small scale exhibitions, particularly those run alongside our larger conferences.  They offer a fantastic opportunity for organisers to generate additional revenue, bring partners onsite and overall add more value for attendees. In one recent example, which included an exhibition alongside the ABPI Conference, the medDigital team said: “It was also a lovely opportunity for a few of the medDigital team to spend some time in person with both new and old acquaintances. Thank you to the BMA House team who were the perfect hosts. They ran a flawless [event], ensured we were looked after and well fed …the canapes were amazing!”

     

    However, as with everything else at BMA House we are always looking for a sustainable angle – a way to ensure no matter what we do, it is with one eye on the environment.  Most of our historic advice and activities; ranging from transport and sustainable catering through to resource management and waste minimising are relevant for an exhibition.  However, here are three top tips we think worthy of mention.

    Sustainable stand build – whether its shell scheme, a pop-up or bespoke build, the single biggest opportunity for waste at an exhibition is the stand itself.  Think hard about how you are going to use the space you have booked, question the materials used, the print methods and every resource that has gone into its creation.  Cost is important during financially tough times, but so is the environment.  Single use bespoke stands are a fundamentally awful idea but multi use modular bespoke options that can travel the world can be truly creative and exciting.  Shell scheme doesn’t need to be three grey walls but it also doesn’t need to be covered in single use plastics.  Exhibitors, we urge you to think before you invest… organisers we urge you to point your exhibitors in a sustainable direction – or even make it a part of your t&c’s.

    Stand giveaways – does anyone really need yet another plastic branded pen, mouse mat, notepad, USB stick… the list goes on.  And so does the level of wastage!  Ask yourself where the value is in such a giveaway?  Surely the most important giveaway is knowledge and information that will be of value to the potential customer.  If your stand team are doing a good job, talking to the right people, qualifying them and only focusing on quality then a cheap plastic pen that will last 500 years beyond the end of the event is a terrible waste of resource.

     

    Ditch the paperwork – it feels like Covid might have been the nail in the coffin for business cards, doesn’t it?  Is there really a need to hand over a piece of card / paper to be looked at, potentially filed and probably binned within a short period of time?  There are now so many networking apps, social tools and simple contact features on our phones, tablets and computers that it is time to move on from the card.  And whilst you are at it, you might as well ditch all those leaflets and catalogues that normally go out of date within a few weeks.

     

    Exhibitions are a fundamentally superb way of making new connections, spreading your messages and developing relationships.  But we must all think about how best to approach them, and how to ensure they deliver not just for us but also for the planet.

    For more information on enhancing your event with adjourning exhibition space, contact our caring planners on [email protected] or call 020 7874 7020.

    Team building has never been so important


    You might be surprised to learn that BMA House is a popular venue for Team Building events – then again, when you consider our fantastic location and superb facilities it makes complete sense.

    The best team building events are those that truly engage the participants, bringing them together in an unforced style that involves everyone.  To do so, the setting needs to be relaxed enough to ensure everyone is comfortable, whilst providing all the necessary facilities – access to “more than just a meeting room” is also a huge bonus.  This is a big draw for us as team building activities can extend out to our Garden, Courtyard or even the streets of London beyond.

    The best teambuilding events also make the most of their location by drawing themes from the venue and surrounding areas into the activities.  For us here at BMA House this particularly means a focus on the environment and world around us.  Where better to hold a team building event to improve environmental credentials than a multi-award-winning sustainable venue?

    We saw a substantial increase in team building bookings through 2022.  In particular, we saw significant use of our outdoor spaces this summer.  Some made use of the quiet seclusion of the Garden, where teams can escape the hustle and bustle to think, plan and create; others preferred the more expansive Courtyard, which offers space to move and develop bigger and more elaborate ideas or even physical challenges.

     

    Importantly though it is not just the content of the day that ensures a successful teambuilding event – the coffee breaks, lunches and dinners are where relationships are cemented, and successes toasted.  Great food and drink are vital here as they allow the attendees to focus on the events of the day, which is where our fantastic partnership with caterer CH&CO. is so important, as they deliver creative and interesting receptions, buffets and sit-down meals.

    With so many people working from home and unable to spend as much time with colleagues as they did historically, there has never been a more important time to gather teams and help them develop into successful cohesive units – and we think BMA House is the perfect place to do so.

    Contact our caring team of planners to help you get started with your next team building event.

    Tel: 020 7874 7020

    Email: bmahouse.org.uk

    BMA House wins Best Venue for Hybrid Events!


    The Venues team picked up a prestigious award last week at the London Venue & Catering Awards 2022.

    During a fantastic afternoon at The Oval, we were delighted to take home a trophy for ‘Best Venue for Hybrid Events’. These awards recognise excellence, creativity and dedication needed to deliver outstanding service and expertise to customers.

       

    Furthermore, we were shortlisted for ‘The Sustainability Award’, which in itself is a great achievement. There was some tough competition in this category, however we have not lost faith and will put all our efforts into taking our venue to the next level where sustainability is involved; next year we’ll be a stronger contender to take home an award.

    Our Hybrid and Virtual event packages came to life over the pandemic, a period which saw our venue close for a considerable period. However, this drove us to investing in state-of-the-art technology to ensure we could still run some events safely despite being closed for larger events, furthermore establishing ourselves as a leading Hybrid London venue.

       

    Up against strong competition from Olympia London, Friend’s House and Barbican, we felt very lucky to win this prestigious award, and couldn’t have done it without some key people at BMA; a special thanks goes to Chris Littlemore and the AV team, Estates, and for those who provided testimonials to support the submission, you’ve helped make BMA House the successful and reputable venue that it is.

    We’re so proud of our achievements and in the competitive London market it is a challenge to stand out from the crowd – we have proved our ability to do just that!

    The winners from all award categories can be found here: https://londonvenueawards.co.uk/

    For more information on our Hybrid & Virtual packages, please contact the team on [email protected] or call 020 7874 7020

    Real tips & advice from BMA House’s very own professional Wedding Planner; meet Sasha!


    At BMA House we are well known for our personal touches.  Our team are regularly mentioned by name by brides and grooms for their outstanding work, particularly as they work with couples all the way from initial enquiry to the wedding day itself and beyond.

    With this personal approach in mind, we asked our very own Sasha (Senior Venue Sales, Events & Wedding Planner), who is currently planning her own wedding, what some of her top tips would be.

    Q. Let’s start with a nosey question – How was the actual proposal?

    “We were away in Amsterdam for a few days in August 2020. We hired bikes one day and rode to a park for a picnic, Dan suggested going to look at the band stand which was overlooking a lake and as the clock tower behind us struck 11am (11 is our lucky number) I turned around to see he was down on one knee with the ring.  I was very surprised that he had finally popped the question – I had been waiting 10 years!”

    Q. How did you make your venue choice?

    “We wanted the wedding to be an outdoor, countryside style so we started our search with this type of venue in mind. We visited 2 venues in Kent/Essex but neither of them offered enough outdoor space and focused too much on the traditional sit-down wedding breakfast inside. When visiting my family in the midlands an advert popped up on my Instagram for Belcote Farm, it was a brand new ‘Tipi’ wedding venue that had just opened in a village near where I grew up. We arranged a site visit for the next day and instantly fell in love with it – it was in the perfect setting, offered dry hire and had a brilliant package with so much included.”

    Q. You have a child, how have you incorporated this into your wedding day?

    “Our little boy Chester and nephew Casey will both be our Page Boys, they will be 2 ½ at the time of the wedding. We would like them to walk down the aisle together before the bridesmaids, but I think we will see how confident they are closer to the wedding. We are going to book some family style entertainment if our budget allows – a magician or something similar, there are also lawn games included as part of our venue package so I think they will have fun with these. We haven’t thought as far ahead of who will look after him on the day of the wedding, probably a few hours with the girls getting ready then he will go to the venue with the boys for photos before I arrive.”

    Q. What are you disagreeing with when it comes to planning the little details with your fiancé?

    “Nothing… at the moment!!!

    We are pretty much on the same wavelength when it comes to the wedding, we have each taken control of different elements – we both researched and narrowed the choices down to a few options and then made the final decisions together. So far we have booked the venue, band, photographer/videographer and caterers.”

    Q. What aspects have you most enjoyed?

    “I have honestly enjoyed everything so far! I think as we both work in events, we understand the booking processes and how to work with suppliers which takes the stress out it. Finding our perfect venue was a highlight which made me very excited and going dress shopping with my mum and mother-in-law was a really lovely day and made it feel very real.”

    Q. If you had an endless budget, what would you do with it for your ultimate dream wedding?

    “I would have a two-part wedding. Part one would be jetting off with our closest family and friends abroad for an intimate wedding on an exotic beach (maybe Thailand or the Caribbean) followed by a big wedding party at our current venue with lots of different entertainment throughout the day.”

    Q. What advice would you give others planning their wedding?

    “Don’t make decisions based on what you think your guests would prefer – everyone has different opinions so you will never please everyone, make decisions that are right for you and your partner.

    Keep track of your budget – Sticking to our budget is very important to us and it is very easy to go off track and forget how much everything is amounting to. We have created a budget tracker in Excel which we have divided the total budget between different elements, and we are adding to that as we go – we have had to reign in a few of our ideas to keep within budget.

    Share the load – I think sometimes Brides take on the stress and workload involved with a wedding.  Write down a list of everything that needs to be done and divide it between you and your partner and maybe get some family/friends involved too, it isn’t as daunting if the Wedding planning is split into little tasks.”

     

    Thank you Sasha for these fantastic tips, we wish you all the luck with the rest of your planning, and hope your wedding is everything you dreamed it would be.

    If you’d like to speak with Sasha for more advice, or require some information on holding your wedding at BMA House, please email [email protected] or call 020 7874 7020 

    As featured in Conference News – our Sustainability wins and advice!


    ✨ We are very excited to share our feature in October’s Conference News publication where our venue marketing manager, Rebecca Hurley talks about some of our sustainability achievements for BMA House and how we keep up with supply chain expectations. Head to pages 12-15 to read the full article ✨

    https://lnkd.in/exGmhdnu

     

     Steph and Alex's Wedding 2 - Lucie Watson Photography

    It’s not just about wearing white


    Summer has most definitely been and gone but weddings are still in full swing, and BMA House will regularly play host to weddings over the months ahead.  Weddings are a wonderful time to celebrate but there is also a wealth of traditions and etiquette that are worth remembering for guests.

    Firstly, and perhaps most important is to remember that cultural diversity means etiquette changes depending on the type of wedding – but there are a few generic do’s and don’ts that are universal.

    Steph and Alex's Wedding 2 - Lucie Watson Photography  Steph and Alex's Wedding 2 - Lucie Watson Photography

    Check out the dress code and make sure you adhere to it.  No bride and groom want their photos ruined by someone completely out of touch, whether they are too relaxed, too formal or have made a poor colour choice.  White is generally the colour to avoid of course but there can be other pitfalls – if in doubt just ask.  If you are lucky enough to have been invited it means you have a good enough relationship with someone in the wedding party to be able to ask a stupid question.

    Show up!  It might sound a little obvious but don’t be that person who says they will attend but doesn’t show.  The couple will have spent a huge amount of time (and quite a bit of money) planning their day around a specific number of people, often personalising elements to each individual, so don’t ruin all that hard work by not being there.  It is of course also worth noting the fact that you shouldn’t randomly bring children or a guest unless they have been invited too.

    Steph and Alex's Wedding 2 - Lucie Watson Photography  Steph and Alex's Wedding 2 - Lucie Watson Photography

    Show some restraint with the free bar and don’t be that person everyone is talking about the next day.  Drinking too much and making a fool of yourself is a great way to upstage the couple – they need to be what everyone remembers, not your stumbling effort on the dancefloor and feet poking out from whichever bush you fall asleep under.

    Put your phone away and let the professional photographer do their job – and if you do happen to take some pictures, under no circumstances share them on social media until the couple share their own.

    Steph and Alex's Wedding 2 - Lucie Watson Photography  Steph and Alex's Wedding 2 - Lucie Watson Photography

    Finally, say thank you to pretty much everyone in the wedding party.  Back in the dim and distant past most weddings would have been paid for by the bride’s father.  However, times have changed, and the bill could be footed by anyone from the couple to crowdfunding – so play it safe and make sure everyone knows you appreciated their hospitality.

    Enjoy the special occasion.

    Steph and Alex's Wedding 2 - Lucie Watson Photography  Steph and Alex's Wedding 2 - Lucie Watson Photography

    Why not give us a call and see our magical venue for your venue own eyes?

    Email: [email protected]

    Tel: 020 7874 7020

    Images courtesy of:

    Photographer Lucie Watson (luciewatsonphotography.com)

    How To Make Your Christmas More Sustainable At Your Corporate Event Venue


    Christmas is one of the most wonderful times of the year. It is an opportunity to gather, share joy and celebrate.  Whether this is with family and friends or colleagues and even strangers who just happen to be in the same corporate event venue, the festive period includes a multitude of opportunities to attend events and is a vital event to thank staff for all their hard work over the year.

       

    It all sounds fantastic doesn’t it – who wouldn’t want to attend?  We must however remember that all this fun and laughter comes at a cost.  The obvious costs are financial (particularly for those boozy affairs), after all someone needs to pick up the bill at the end of the night.  However, all too often the environment also has a bill to pay when the bar shuts and everyone goes home.  In our understandable focus on the fun, laughter and Christmas spirit we forget that it is all too easy for our festive partying to impact not just our corporate event venue, but the world around us.

    So, what can we do to ensure our partying isn’t done at the detriment to the planet?  At BMA House this year we are dreaming of a Green Christmas that ensures every aspect of festive events are as kind to the planet as possible, whilst ensuring the event is exceptional.  With this in mind, here are five tips to consider:

    • Consider first how you and your guests will get to the event, what are the public transport links like, is it possible to walk perhaps? Admittedly on a dark and cold winter’s night in party clothes the idea of walking isn’t always that appealing but it can be an option if local or onsite accommodation is used.

     

    Realistically to ensure sustainability, transport should be considered right from the outset when booking the venue.  Ask yourself where the guests will be coming from and is it accessible to them?  If “in town” how close is it to bus, train and other infrastructure stops?  If further afield, can you book private buses or local rail tickets?  Ultimately, the way we get to or from any event is one of the biggest environmental factors and needs to be considered from the very beginning.

    • It is all too easy to become focused on the concept of “single use plastics” but remember that anything “single-use” does have questionable ramifications for the environment. Just one example is wrapping paper – even if you choose a recycled option, it ultimately still uses various natural resources.  I am not suggesting you don’t wrap anything, but I would suggest you consider all the different elements of your Christmas party and establish whether they truly add value if they are single use.  One of the best examples here are Christmas Crackers – are they really worth all the packaging, content and materials for a quick bang and a dodgy hat that is only going to be worn by 20% of the guests for 20% of the party?
    • In addition to single use – also think about what can be made multi-use. Décor and theming is a key consideration here.  Does it truly add value to create bespoke theming, costing both money and resources for one event on one night?  I am sure many of the guests will be delighted by the creativity of your ideas and how they are realised through decorations, trees and plants, fake snow, staging, props, lighting and sound.

     

    It is far better for the environment to work with your venue and suppliers to ensure the theming is multi-use.  Perhaps the venue has a seasonal theme, perhaps the production company will use the décor elsewhere.  Whatever option you choose, there is no excuse to chop down 20 trees for just one night – nor is there a reason to buy 20 fake plastic trees for them never to be used again.

    • Numbers matter – so make them count. One of the biggest areas of waste and environmental impact at an event is food waste.  A simple way to minimise this is catering numbers.  Talk to the venue about minimum numbers, be realistic about how many will attend and ensure you stay on top of your registrations.  You might hope to have 300 people attend, but if you only have 200 registered on the morning of the event there is no point the venue catering for the additional 100 people who won’t show up.
    • Menu choice and event style can also be an ideal way to manage and minimise food waste. A sit down three course meal for a fixed amount of people generates different levels of waste to a buffet with five choices, which in turn creates different levels of waste to a buffet with one choice.  Your venue will know the best way for its catering team to decrease waste so seek their advice – and if there are left-overs, you might find creative uses such at the various chutneys produced by our caterers here at BMA House from unused vegetables etc.

       

    There are so many ways to ensure your Christmas event is not just a success but also a sustainable success – you could even go meat free!  Whatever your choices and ideas though, make sure you communicate them with your corporate event venue and caterers right from the start as they are best placed to turn your Christmas wishes into Christmas reality. One way you can get your eco-Christmas rolling is to choose our ‘Greenest Christmas Dinner’ package where you’ll expect plant-based bubbles on arrival, a festive two-course set menu with hand selected dishes to reduce your carbon footprint, vegan wine, sustainable centre pieces, LED uplighters and much more!

    For more information on holding your Christmas party at BMA House, contact our event planners on [email protected] or call 020 7874 7070.

    Originally published on Go Ask eve.

    Sustainability in Action Part 2 – focus on food


    In a recent blog we started to explore and detail some of the incredible work we are doing at BMA House to ensure we remain at the forefront of sustainable conferencing and events.  However, we wanted to provide a truly comprehensive description of what we do here to look after the world around us.  With this in mind, we have detailed below even more examples of the great work our team alongside CH&CO. has done to be more sustainable.

     

    BMA House has a true partnership with our catering partner, CH&CO., they support us throughout all our sustainability policies, enhancing them and bringing their own ideas.  Our joint achievements in this area include tracking the weight of food wastage, the sourcing of sustainable suppliers and close consideration of all our working practices, which include:

    • We ask for final numbers to be confirmed before the event so that we can make adjustments to production – reducing wastage.
    • Food is seasonal and built around local suppliers, with information throughout our menus on food sources, including a map to show food mileage.
    • We have reduced beef dishes and increased plant-based options, which include not charging more for non-dairy based milk alternatives.
    • We have introduced new Hot Fork Buffet Set Menus, which are set by day so we can produce the same menu for all events, minimising waste, whilst passing cost savings to the client.
    • We have reduced buffet choices from 3 to 2 options, which further reduces food waste.
    • Food waste and coffee waste is collected by Paper Round and used for energy production.
    • A significant increase in disposable coffee cup prices has driven a successful “bring your own cup scheme.”

     

       

     

    • Staff lunches use leftover or repurposed food.
    • Soups are made using leftovers and food that might normally be thrown, whilst other unused and untouched leftovers / peelings are used to create our in-house chutney – 200 jars since January 2022! Additionally, bread and pastry product leftovers are used to make bread and butter pudding.
    • Sandwiches and salads are now made to order in café rather than in advance to keep wastage down.
    • Cakes are made, portioned and then frozen so that smaller numbers are used.
    • During the pandemic we provided tinned and packaged food that was close to going out of date to local food banks.
    • Through Ellis Wines, we offer a variety of organic, biodynamic, sustainable and vegan wines on our “Wine with a Conscience wine list.” All Ellis Wines are transported by train and boat rather than air, including our most popular entry level Spanish wine.
    • And finally – any leftover cakes are taken to the teams within BMA House as a treat, which is great for morale!

     

    BMA House sees thousands of visitors each year for conferences, events, parties and meetings.  In addition, we welcome hundreds of visiting members from the British Medical Association.  We believe it is our job to continually demonstrates sustainable success and best practice to everyone who walks through our doors, which is why we constantly promote sustainability at events such as the Sustainable Events Show, and the launch of the Sustainable Event Buyer’s Guide, which we hosted.  We have also achieved a Gold accreditation with Green Tourism; and was one of just two venues that went straight to Platinum level in the new ECOsmart Accreditation.

    Ultimately, our team lives, eats and breathes sustainability – it has made us and our venue healthier and a better place to be – we love to share that success.

    As mentioned in the last blog – you can also see some great examples of our sustainable approach in our case studies of EIN and London & Partners events.

    Contact our caring Event Planners for more information on holding your sustainable event with us.

    Email: [email protected]

    Tel: 020 7874 7020

    Sustainability in Action Part 1


    BMA House has an incredibly strong focus on being sustainable, it is something we have worked hard to achieve over a long period of time, resulting in changes to infrastructure, working practices and team ethos.  Much of this would be easy to achieve in a brand-new building, designed based on modern regulations using the latest in architectural research.  However, BMA House is a beautiful, listed historic building – which makes such changes rather harder to achieve.

    So, what have we been doing to make BMA House more sustainable?  Through this blog and another to be posted shortly we are going to detail and explore some of our incredible hard work.

         

    To see some of the following in action you can also check out our case studies from EIN and London & Partners, plus a very recent achievement to be named Top Ten Sustainable Conference Venues in London, by Hire Space.

    Above all else we see it as our goal to breakdown the presumption that Grade II Listed buildings cannot be sustainable.  This is demonstrated through headline figures such as a 69% reduction in delegate carbon footprint and a 5.4m litre reduction in water usage; as well as:

    Transport / Location

    • In addition to our superb location, which makes the journey more sustainable, we promote a “Clean Air Walking Route” from Kings Cross, taking guests off Euston Road onto backstreets with 57% lower pollution.
    • More than 40% of staff cycle to work (encouraged by additionally installed showers) and we provided 176 hours of free bike maintenance in 2019.
    • The iconic first sight of BMA House is our Courtyard, with its biodiverse lawn. This is complemented by our Garden – an intimate space, planted with medicinal herbs that are used in our catering.

         

    Property and Infrastructure

    • We monitor and report on gas, fuel and electricity usage, which are all sourced sustainably from renewable sources.
    • We have devised an overarching carbon descent plan, which includes exploring environmental heating options and increased insulation. To aid this we have also implemented the “dead band” in offices where where heating is set to 19 degrees (max) and cooling to 25 degrees (min).
    • All lighting has been replaced with LEDs and PIR (passive infra-red) lighting systems since 2014.
    • We use Office 365, allowing us to save and archive files and folders to the cloud, reducing
    • computers and associated energy consumption. We have rationalised data requirements and moved to specialist data providers where economies of scale and environmental impact are maximised.
    • We have achieved a zero-to-landfill status since 2017 and promote a paperless/e-first way of working.
    • Intelligent water management urinals have been installed alongside environmentally friendly toilet paper and dispensers are used throughout.
    • High-capacity cleaning systems turn tap water into stabilised aqueous ozone – nature’s most powerful cleaner.
    • Eco friendly products from carbon neutral flooring and wall coverings, with eco-friendly fabrics have been installed throughout.

    Collapsible coffee cups are made using our leftover waste to create a truly sustainable giveaway / product!

         

    Contact our caring Event Planners for more information on holding your sustainable event with us.

    Email: [email protected]

    Tel: 020 7874 7020