Ahead of the curve: Arena invests in new event space to boost offer

A Midlands venue has expanded its meetings, conference and exhibition offer with the launch of a new 1,000 sq m space.

Coventry Building Society Arena has unveiled ‘The Curve’ as it continues to invest in enhancing its facilities whilst catering for increasing demand.

The new multi-functional space is suitable for conferences and medium-scale exhibitions, with capacity of up to 350 conference delegates.

It follows significant growth in the conference, exhibition and meetings area of the arena’s business over the last 12 months.

The venue hosted 573 exhibitions, large conferences, small meetings, awards events and gala dinners in 2024 – with a 48 per cent increase in the number of large conferences held at the venue and £2.8 million of new business brought through the doors.

The arena has also seen enquiry levels rise by 50 per cent compared to 2023 and has made the strategic decision to invest in creating The Curve to support high demand.

The space, which has been converted from an office area and is a unique curved design, features a reception area, breakout areas, conference space and dedicated catering for event organisers and delegates.

The Curve is now available for event organisers to book and has already been prebooked for a number of events.

Coventry Building Society Arena has more than 20,000 sq m of flexible event space and can host meetings from 10 to 7,000 delegates. The venue has 2,200 on-site car parking spaces and 75 per cent of the UK population is within a two-hour drive.

It has a track record of supporting the growth of events and The Curve will provide further space for events to expand at the venue.

The new space comes as significant investments continue to be made throughout the arena, including the full refurbishment of its on-site 121-bedroom DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel.

Jenni Ford, Director of Sales and Marketing at Coventry Building Society Arena, said: “We’re excited to be bringing The Curve to the market as we expand our conference, exhibition and meetings space for the first time in three years.

“We have experienced a rise in enquiries and new business coming into the venue over the last year, reflecting renewed confidence in the market, which has fuelled the decision to invest in this new space.

“This is the perfect time to open The Curve and we are confident that it will add a new dimension to our offer here at Coventry Building Society Arena.”

To find out visit www.coventrybuildingsocietyarena.co.uk

Shakespeare Distillery is raising a glass to international success following a prestigious win at the World Rum Awards 2025, where its Jester Aged British Rum (Sherry Expression) earned a bronze medal, officially placing it among the best rums in the world.

The limited-edition rum is the first aged rum blend from the Stratford-upon-Avonbased distillery, with only 120 individually numbered bottles available. Crafted from scratch using the team’s award-winning Jester White Rum, this bold new blend has matured for four years in carefully selected ex-Bourbon and Oloroso Sherry casks — resulting in a truly exceptional rum, bottled at 48 per cent ABV.

The World Rum Awards are among the most respected global accolades in the spirits industry, judged by an expert panel that assembles some of the world’s leading rum authorities. This year’s blind tasting took place in Norwich in early April, where Jester stood out as one of only four rums to receive a medal in its category – an extraordinary achievement for the independent Warwickshire distillery.

Among the tasting panel to determine overall category winners was Shakespeare Distillery’s Head of Sales and Customer Experiences, Sam Evans, who said: “It was an honour to sit alongside some of the most passionate and knowledgeable people in the industry and exchange views and insights. Having our rum recognised by our peers on the world stage is a huge testament to the dedication and skill of our distillery team here in Stratford-uponAvon.”

The Jester name takes its inspiration from Shakespeare’s iconic characters –bold, playful, and often scene-stealing. True to its name, this rum makes a lasting impression. Shakespeare Distillery remains one of the very few UK producers to create rum entirely on site, from fermentation to bottling.

Jester Aged British Rum (Sherry Expression) officially launched on April 30, priced at £45 (50cl). Pre-orders are now open at https://shakespearedistillery. com/product/aged-british-rum-sherryexpression/

All children deserve a memorable birthday party –and here’s how one business is making that happen

A Warwick business is helping bring birthday cheer to local families with affordable children’s parties that are already proving a hit with parents.

People Arches Ltd, the company that runs the Warwick branch of McDonald’s on Emscote Road, has brought back the much-loved McDonald’s party to provide a low-cost option for parents amid the cost of living crisis.

The initiative, which includes free party boxes and a decorated area of the restaurant, is already proving popular, with bookings and enquiries flooding in.

People Arches Ltd founder Dawood Ibtehsam said: “We’re always looking for ways to support our local community and given the cost of children’s parties is spiralling like everything else, it’s just not feasible for some families who are struggling. We wanted to provide a lowcost option that is great fun for all ages, without being prohibitively expensive.”

According to figures collected last year, the average cost of children’s birthday parties now runs into hundreds of pounds, making it impossible for some families to afford.

“It shouldn’t be the case that some children miss out on memorable birthday parties because they’re simply too expensive, so we hope we’re giving an added option that helps out,” added Dawood.

The initiative is part of an ongoing effort by People Arches to support the local community, including regular litter picks, as well as sponsoring local children’s teams and funding the purchase of 64 pantomime tickets for children in care and their foster families before Christmas so they could enjoy a festive day out.