Having recently won the ‘Manchester Large Hotel of the Year’ award earlier this year, Marriott Worsley Park beat off stiff competition from the winners from Liverpool, Cheshire, Lancashire and Cumbria to win the coveted regional award.

Judging was based on a number of criteria including standards of customer service, training of employees, work in the local community, environmental focus, investment and a mystery shop for all finalists. The hotel has recently completed a £4 million refurbishment and is consistently recognised as one of the best performing Marriott hotels in the UK through its guest satisfaction scores, contributions to local charities such as Manchester Children’s Hospital Appeal and the recent silver award for environmental policies from the Green Business Tourism scheme.

The Marriott Worsley Park Hotel and Country Club now represents the Northwest in the England Awards of Excellence held in April 2009 and will be one of only 8 hotels with a chance to win the national final.

Over the years, the hotel has played host to many high profile events including professional golf tournaments, blue chip corporate conferences and is a regular base for professional club and national sports teams when they visit the Northwest.

For more information about Marriott Worsley Park, visit MarriottWorsleyPark.co.uk or call 0161 975 2000.

Nick White, head of tourism at Bolton Council, said: “We’re really pleased with this result especially because we still have six months of the financial year to go.” “We currently have a number of booking enquiries that are pending confirmation. These alone are expected to be worth an additional £347,000 to the economy. Given the current financial situation, it’s a remarkable achievement for the whole group.”

The M61 Group features a range of venues including major hotel brands, sport and entertainment facilities and historic properties, each offering great value for money.

In total the M61 Group offers around 1,000 bedrooms and over 130 meeting suites capable
of welcoming up to 10,000 guests for conferences, meetings and training events.

To access the fast, free and friendly venue location service provided by the M61 Group, call 01204 334094, email enquiries@m61group.com.

Don’t forget that this autumn The M61 Group can save you money as well as time with our great value offers. With the build up to Christmas fast approaching, it’s often difficult to find the time to do everything, so why not let the M61 Group take the pressure off and help you find the venue you’re looking for that last minute conference, meeting or event?

This month you can cash in on great day delegate rates at our hotels…

Monday Madness and Funky Fridays

The Ramada Bolton is offering you the chance to take advantage of a massive 25% off the DDR on Mondays and Fridays, if you book a meeting or conference between 1st December 2008 and 28th February 2009.

DDR includes:

• Principal meeting room hire
• Flipchart with paper and pens
• Stationery containing notepads, pens and name cards
• Fresh seasonal fruit basket
• Complimentary sweets
• Unlimited self serve tea, coffee, hot chocolate and speciality beverages (available in the room or in a designated break-out area at a specified time)
• Morning break-out basket featuring biscuits, flapjacks and a selection of mini sweets
• 2-course lunch in the restaurant or choice of one of four working buffet lunches or sandwich lunch in your meeting room
• Afternoon tea / coffee and selection of cakes

At the Ramada Bolton, there are 10 Summit conference rooms suitable for small boardroom meetings or conferences up to 300 delegates. The hotel is just off J6 on the M61 and is within easy reach of the M62, M65, M60 and M6.

All rates are subject to availability, minimum numbers and venue terms and conditions.
Please make all enquiries via The M61 Group and quote ‘OctSales08’.

Seasonal special…

During October and November 2008, Holiday Inn Preston is offering you the chance to get 2 delegates free when you book a conference or meeting for between 10-30 people. The package includes:

DDR is £33 per person* inc VAT and includes:

• Unlimited tea and coffee
• Themed refreshment breaks
• 3-course hot and cold deli lunch or working buffet lunch
• Room hire
• LCD Projector
• Mineral water and sweets
• Wi-Fi access
• Complimentary on-site parking
• Dedicated meeting host

*Please note that this must be for a minimum of 10 delegates.

Also, half price meeting room hire available – starting from £50.00 – subject to size of room requested.

All rates are subject to availability, minimum numbers and venue terms and conditions.
Please make all enquiries via The M61 Group and quote ‘OctSales08’.

Stop press!
Special Local Authority / Not for Profit rates are available at many of the M61 Group venues - just ask.

Just give our enquiry desk a call and we’ll arrange everything for you.

Telephone: +44 (0)1204 334094
Email: enquiries@m61group.com

The M61 Group offers a great selection of Christmas party nights to suit all tastes and offers real value for money.  With themes from 60’s and 70’s nights to show evenings packed with entertainment and dining experiences to remember plus top-class food and drink - whatever your preference or budget, you’ll be catered for.

For more information, please click here and select a venue to find out what‘s on offer.

If you’re looking to book a last minute meeting and need a venue in a hurry, remember we‘ll get back to you with a full brief in 8 hours, just call 01204 334094.

Fully integrated into the Reebok Stadium, home of Bolton Wanders FC, Whites provides a memorable location for any type of meeting, conference or event. With 170,000 conference/event guests last year, it is an increasingly popular venue for delegates all over the world. “We are really delighted to have won this award” says Sarah Gander, GM of Whites, “We provide not only excellent conference and training facilities, but a complete venue, so delegates can perform and also enjoy the De Vere Venues experience. There is no other venue like Whites.”

Ex-Leicester player Alan Birchenall MBE, Liverpool legend Jimmy Case and Snooker Champion Mark Selby presented the awards which were hosted at Leicester City Football Club. The Conference & Events Marketing Award was sponsored by Market Research Agency BDRC.

Judged by an independent conference professional, the Conference & Events Marketing Award demonstrates Whites’ impeccable service and venue excellence. With a mystery shopper as part of the judging process, the award reflects how the Whites’ team creates a bespoke package for each client, looking after their needs every step of the way - from the planning process to the end of the event.

With an on-site health club, the Pure Bar, an internet café, and a renowned brasserie, it is not surprising that Whites is an award-winning venue. And then there are the conference facilities…! These consist of 47 executive boxes, 8 flexible conference and event rooms (for between 2 - 550 people) and a Premier Suite with 2300 sq meters of conference, exhibition and banqueting, with a capacity for up to 3000 people.

Whites were also finalists in the Stadium Experience Match Day Hospitality Experience Awards and Manchester Tourism Awards for the Large Hotel of the Year category.

Well done Whites!

To date, 39 members of the current Holiday Inn Preston team have successfully attended the course and have been presented certificates following the completion of their action plans.

Jonathan King, General Manager, is delighted with the way the training programme has motivated so many of his team to deliver excellent customer service to the Holiday Inn’s guests and also to each other.

The team at Preston Holiday Inn is united in their commitment to ensure customer service is a top priority…  The Welcome to Excellence training clearly shows that support and co-operation between team members and departments is the way to achieve even greater success.

The training has also helped many of the hotel’s employees gain a better understanding of the fantastic service and facilities available to visitors staying in Preston and North Lancashire. The training is paying off and many business guests to the hotel have returned to the area with their families for weekend breaks having learned about local visitor attractions from Holiday Inn employees.

Two venues from the M61 Group won awards on the night whilst two additional venues and the group itself were short-listed for recognition.

The winners were Smithills Hall in Bolton who collected the small visitor attraction of year award and the Marriot Worsley Park Hotel and Country Club who picked up large hotel of the year.

The M61 Group was shortlisted for the business tourism award whilst De Vere Whites and the Holiday Inn Bolton Centre each received a nomination for large hotel of the year.

Nick White, head of tourism at Bolton Council said: “I’m so pleased that we had such a strong presence in the final shortlist and to win two awards is fantastic.

“I’d like to congratulate Smithills and the Marriot Worsley Park on two very well-deserved achievements. Their success reflects the core value of the M61 Group, which is to provide top quality facilities and services to customers across the country.

“The fact we were also nominated as a group for the business tourism award is a tribute to the hard work and commitment of all our members and I’m very pleased for De Vere Whites and Holiday Inn Bolton Centre who were also nominated for the large hotel of the year award.”

The M61 Group presently offers 1,000 bedrooms and over 130 meeting suites capable of welcoming up to 10,000 guests. The group assists with planning events, booking accommodation and arranging hospitality. Themes available for businesses include corporate meetings, sporting events, theatre and diverse team-building activities.

For more information on the free venue location service run by the M61 Group, please call 01204 334094, email enquiries@m61group.com or visit: www.m61group.com