Take A Spook At This...

Things have been getting a little bit scary in the Conference Roehampton office this week, Renata only popped out to make her lunch but as she sat down to eat there was a scary surprise waiting to eat her!


Luckily it turns out that it was not a terrifying ghoul but just Emma’s friendly little monster Alfie paying the office a visit during half-term and thankfully he prefers the taste of pumpkin pie to conference co-ordinators!

We hope you all have a spooktastic Halloween and for those of you lucky enough to get one- enjoy the half term break!

Don’t Vote X Factor, Vote Grove House

Maybe it was our picturesque rose gardens, the grandeur of The Portrait Room or the delicate elegance of The Terrace Room, or maybe it was our infamous ducks! Whatever the reason here at Grove House we would like to say a massive thank you to the 18 newlyweds who choose our venue for their big day this year. It has made for a fantastic wedding season and we are delighted to have had the opportunity to host your wedding.


We loved seeing how happy you were on your wedding day and we know that beautiful Grove House as the setting was a big part of that.

Having reflected on how wonderful the year has been we have decided to enter The Wedding Industry Awards. We are inviting our couples to give us their vote FOR US FOR ‘Wedding Venue of The Year’ simply by visiting the website:

http://www.the-wedding-industry-awards.co.uk/vote/london-and-south-east/venue/grove-house

Thank you to those who chose Grove House over the last 12 months, it has been a fantastic wedding season and really was a pleasure. If you could imagine making your own happy memories, at a place filled with so many, then do get in touch!

We look forward to welcoming you.

Kind Regards,
The Grove House Ladies

For The Love of Dogs

Doctor Doolittle, Paul O’Grady – move over, there’s a new kid in town!

Susan in our team here, did her good deed for the day...week and no doubt year this weekend by picking up a stray whippet and taking it to the safe haven of Crawley Dog Warden.

Driving up the A22 from the M25 on Sunday afternoon, a whippet dashed out from hedging onto the dual carriageway nearly causing an accident. Susan, being the dog lover that she is, stopped the car and coaxed the dog over, only to find that as any dog does in the countryside, it had rolled in her favourite fox pooh!

Undeterred, Susan, got her in the car and headed up to the emergency vet in Caterham, only to find that the dog wasn’t chipped – Sacré Blue! So, after a few phone calls, a trip to the Crawley Town Hall was the agenda for the day but only after a trip home, a quick bath in the garden (the dog not Susan!!) and a bite to eat. Both were very keen on the last of the Hotel Chocolat chocolates on the kitchen worktop and it was a bit of a fight to see who would get to them first but Susan reigned supreme!

Later that afternoon the whippet was dropped off into the capable and experienced hands of Crawley out of hours Dog Warden and we all hope here that she has found her way home after her adventure.

The moral of the story is that the Conference Roehampton team will always be prepared whether it be on the M25 or at one of our venues!

Something’s buzzing at Conference Roehampton…

The lucky ladies in the Conference Roehampton office have been the first to taste the honey produced from our very own bees. After hearing from our environmental manager on all the remarkable green initiatives that have taken place over the last year and brainstorming ideas on how we can become even more green in the coming year, the girls sat down to sample the honeybees delights. 

I must admit, I am no big fan of honey and I certainly don’t know my manuka from my tupelo but not one to shy away from trying something new, I dipped in my spoon. I don’t know if it was the fact that this honey came from our own hives or if our beautiful grounds produce the most delicious nectar for the bees to feast on. Whatever it was, this was the best honey I have ever tasted. Now I know why they call it “the drink of Gods”.

We must say a huge “thank you” to Jonathan who allowed us all to take some honey home, we’re heading straight back to the office to make some scrummy honey lemonade. It’s so easy to make, why don’t you have a go yourself? We are going to use this recipe we found on ‘The Food Channel’.

Ingredients

• 1/3 to 1/2 cup honey

• 1 1/2 cups steaming hot water

• 1 cup fresh lemon juice

• Ice cubes for serving

Preparation

1. In a heatproof 1-quart pitcher or bowl, combine the honey and hot water and stir until the honey is dissolved. Stir in the lemon juice. Let cool for at least 10 minutes or cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Pour into ice-filled glasses.

I hope we have some more honey to share with you very soon, but you must all bee good!

The Grove House Fairy Godmother

It may seem a little early for the pantomime season but Carla Simmons has been transformed from events and conference co-ordinator into the Grove House Fairy Godmother after holding thirteen fantastic weddings at the venue over the past 12 months. Busy as a bee, organising conferences throughout the year, Carla never faltered at providing that Cinderella moment for all our newlyweds. In fact, Carla made the day seem so magical that there were rumours that it was more a case of the classic Cinderella syndrome that our events needed to finish by midnight than anything to do with our venue license! Magical moments aside, Carla is a practical and professional events co-ordinator whose skills and expertise have resulted in thirteen happy memories that will hopefully last even longer than the Grade II venue at which they were made. It has been a busy year for Carla and we are sure you will agree that she is an invaluable part of Grove House, particularly as we prepare to wave her off on her maternity leave (turns out it’s not a pumpkin she’s been storing)!!!


We are now looking for a suitable way to say thank you to our Grove House Fairy Godmother, and what better way to say farewell (for a while) and thank you, by voting for Carla as Venue Co-ordinator of the year at The Wedding Industry Awards. If you were one of Carla’s couples then we know you will agree with us that she is award winning material, so do keep those votes rolling in

In turn we will keep you updated on the outcome of the awards and her little pumpkin!

Best Wishes,
The Grove House & Parkstead Ladies

A Conference Team's Best Friend

The events team at Conference Roehampton are doing their bit for Guide Dogs for the Blind

It is Guide Dogs for the Blind Week this week and the conference team are doing their bit to promote GDBA by holding a sale of Christmas cards and gifts in the University Library today during lunch time.
UR is proud of its pro-active approach to ensuring access to all, which is highlighted by the fact that we have an ‘Access for Roehampton’ team that includes Pauline McInnes, a registered Guide Dog owner, who advises students and visitors alike from a first-hand perspective of life at Roehampton, PLUS she keeps us on the straight and narrow access path!

We are also inviting students and staff to donate their Andrex toilet roll wrappers to help aid the cause! Kimberley Clark are partnering with Guide Dogs to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Andrex puppy to provide funds and resources for GDBA, so everyone can do their bit by bringing along their unwanted Andrex wrappers!

http://www.guidedogs.org.uk/supportus/fundraising/fundraising-appeals/andrex-promotion/

The Dazzling Dozen

This past year Parkstead House has been proud to host some twelve weddings, each as spectacular as the previous and most importantly each newlywed couple as happy as the last! It has been a busy time and we would like to say a huge thank you to all for choosing Parkstead house for your wedding.


We organise events all year round and both love and know our House inside out but having a fresh pair of excited bride-to-be-eyes has seen our 14 acres transformed into twelve venues, personal to each bride, highlighting Parkstead’s flexibility. We have been your blank canvas and you have certainly experimented with a range of colours and themes to create the perfect picture for your special day.

Having hosted all these fabulous days we would like to recognise all of our staff’s efforts and are entering The Wedding Industry Awards. We will be approaching all concerned to nominate Parkstead House as ‘The Best Venue’. This involves a judging process following on from our Bride’s evaluation of selected criteria including; customer service and value for money.

For those of you who have just got engaged, unfortunately we can't take your vote this time but do get in touch and perhaps next year you could help us have another fantastic wedding season and be one of our dazzling dozen couples!


Best Wishes,
The Parkstead House Team