The UK’s leading sales and marketing consortium, Venues of Excellence (VOE), has announced a 10% increase in new member venues during the first quarter of 2026, reinforcing its position as a trusted collective of exceptional, independent venues across the UK.
With a consultative and highly selective approach to membership, Venues of Excellence continues to attract a diverse range of venues recognised for both the quality of their facilities and their unwavering commitment to outstanding customer service. The consortium, owned by CEO Mandy Jennings, is renowned for its strategic business-focused model, ensuring members are positioned at the most effective exhibitions, networking opportunities and presentations to showcase the very best of the portfolio.
Reflecting on the growth and evolving membership strategy, Mandy Jennings, CEO of Venues of Excellence, commented: “Membership of Venues of Excellence continues to evolve in line with the needs of today’s meetings and events industry. We are seeing increasing interest from venues that not only deliver exceptional facilities, but also share our commitment to innovation, collaboration and customer-centric service. Our consultative approach, combined with strong business profiling and a focus on diversity within the portfolio, is attracting venues that truly represent excellence. This growth is not about volume, but about curating a collection of outstanding venues that complement and strengthen the overall proposition for our clients.”
Creating the right collection of venues within the commercial portfolio remains a meticulous process, with quality audits ensuring only the highest standards are maintained. While difficult decisions are sometimes required, the consortium’s continued success is driven by clearly defined business development objectives, the recently launched VX Find by Venues of Excellence team, and a commitment to the philosophy that “there is never one shoe to fit all.”
New members benefit from a comprehensive induction process, ensuring alignment of business goals and effective use of resources, alongside invaluable networking opportunities through the annual conference, member forums and sales and marketing workshops.
In recent months, VOE has welcomed five new venues into its portfolio: The Eastside Rooms, Eton College and Dorney Lake, The Sheldonian Theatre in Oxford, and The Milner York. This diverse mix further strengthens VOE’s unique positioning within the MICE sector.
Rachel Lucas, Head of Sales and Marketing at Eton College and Dorney Lake, commented: “Joining Venues of Excellence is a natural step for Dorney Lake. With our unique heritage and commitment to delivering exceptional experiences, we are keen to collaborate with like-minded venues and industry leaders who share our focus on quality, innovation, and service excellence. Membership offers a valuable opportunity to continue evolving while also contributing to the wider events industry.” Alistair Otto, Commercial Director for Eton College and Dorney Lake added “I am delighted to see us take another step forwards to realise our ambitions around our venue hire portfolio as we join the Venues of Excellence community. Both our venues offer something genuinely distinctive — from the heritage and character of Eton College to the Olympic-standard setting at Dorney Lake — and we’re excited about the opportunities this partnership creates for clients seeking something truly special. Thank you to the Venues of Excellence team for the warm welcome, and we are looking forward to what we build together.”
Tim Sparrow, General Manager at The Eastside Rooms, added: “Joining the Venues of Excellence community marks a significant milestone for The Eastside Rooms. We have long held ourselves to the highest standards in conference and hospitality delivery and membership of this group is both a recognition of that commitment and a platform to build upon it. Through this network, we look forward to benchmarking our offering against the best in the industry, accessing new professional development opportunities for our team and ultimately delivering an even greater standard of service to our clients.”
Victoria Poole, Director of Sales at The Milner York, said: “Joining Venues of Excellence is a natural step for The Milner York as we continue to strengthen our presence in the UK meetings and events market. Being part of such a respected network gives us the opportunity to showcase what makes our venue unique, build valuable industry partnerships and further enhance the experience we offer to our clients.” Andy Barnsdale, General Manager, added: “Becoming a member of Venues of Excellence is an important milestone for The Milner York. The organisation’s reputation for quality and its strong network of like-minded venues aligns perfectly with our own values and ambitions. Through membership we hope to expand our reach within the meetings and events market, build meaningful industry relationships and showcase the exceptional experiences we deliver for our clients.”
For Venues of Excellence, membership represents more than a commercial relationship—it is about being part of a collaborative community that shares a vision to deliver the very best the hospitality sector can offer to conference and event planners.
Now comprising 53 venues across the UK, with strong interest from prospective members, 2026 is shaping up to be one of the most exciting years yet for the consortium.
Venues of Excellence will be exhibiting at Hospitality Live at The Royal Armouries, Leeds, on Monday 20th April, and at The Meetings Show at ExCeL London from 24th–25th June 2026.
