Megan’s May Monthly Roundup

May has been one of those months that remind me exactly why I love what we do at Horizon Leeds.

The venue has had such a fantastic buzz about it lately, not just within our walls, but across Leeds as a whole. There’s been a real energy in the city, and it’s definitely filtered through into the events we’ve hosted and the conversations we’ve been having.

Busy days and brilliant events

We started the month with some of our brilliant regular training clients back in the venue, making great use of Inspire@ and Think@. Inspire@ is my favourite room in the venue, so I always love seeing it in action. One of the best things about that space is the variety of people who use it. One day it’s a focused training session, the next it’s a creative workshop or strategy day. It’s flexible, welcoming, with so much natural daylight, and it just has a lovely atmosphere.

Tuesdays and Wednesdays have been our busiest days recently, and we’ve had some fantastic exclusive-use events across the month. I always enjoy seeing how organisations use the venue in completely different ways. That’s the beauty of exclusive use: it gives people the freedom to move away from a traditional conference setup and create something that works for them.

Yes, you might still have your structured plenary session in the morning, but then the afternoon becomes much more collaborative. We’re seeing more organisations move away from “sit in the same room all day” formats and instead create spaces where delegates can properly network, move around, have meaningful conversations and work less formally. We absolutely love that.

One thing I’ve particularly enjoyed recently is seeing our refreshment area being used as a breakout and collaboration space. It completely changes the feel of an event and creates such a natural flow throughout the day.

UKREiiF brings Leeds to life

Then came UKREiiF week, and wow, Leeds absolutely came alive.

Even though the weather wasn’t quite as glorious as the previous year, it didn’t stop people from getting out and about. The whole city had that buzzing atmosphere from the moment people stepped off the train. Being based down in Brewery Wharf, so close to Leeds Dock and the Royal Armouries, means Horizon Leeds is perfectly positioned during UKREiiF week.

Honestly, as a fringe event venue, it’s an easy decision. We’re around a seven-minute riverside walk from the Royal Armouries, and because you’re constantly passing people you know along the way, the networking never really stops. We had clients hosting breakfast seminars, lunchtime events, and drinks receptions, but we also had businesses using Horizon Leeds as their base for the week, somewhere to escape the chaos slightly, hold meetings throughout the day and regroup between sessions.

That worked brilliantly because one thing we kept hearing from people attending was how difficult it could be if meetings were spread across the city. Nobody wants to spend half their day trekking from one side of Leeds to the other during a busy event week. Horizon Leeds being right on the doorstep made such a difference.

And honestly, that week just makes me so proud of Leeds.

Championing Leeds businesses

A huge amount of our business comes from outside the city, but it’s important to recognise just how many incredible businesses we have right here in Leeds, too. There’s such a strong business community here, and I really want to continue building stronger relationships with more local organisations.

Our healthcare and NHS events business in Leeds is already incredibly strong, but I’d absolutely love to see even more Leeds-based companies using the venue too. Whether that’s for a six-person board meeting, a team away day, an internal comms event or a sales conference, for up to 220.

Friday coffee chats and new connections

One of my favourite things this month has been something simple: coffee chats on Fridays.

For the last few Fridays, I’ve opened my diary after my BNI meeting and worked from the venue all day, inviting people down for a coffee, a catch-up and a look around the space. I’ve had so many lovely conversations. Although I do think I need to swap some of the flat whites for herbal tea soon!

Some of the people I’ve met already have events they know they need to organise. Others just have ideas forming in the background and don’t really know where to start yet. And honestly, I love those conversations most.

Sometimes it’s about helping connect people with the right partners. Sometimes it’s about collaborating on ideas together. Sometimes it’s simply helping somebody realise that an event doesn’t have to feel overwhelming to organise.

That collaborative side of what we do is such a huge part of Horizon Leeds. It’s never just about hiring a room. It’s about creating experiences, ideas, and opportunities.

Because Fridays tend to be a little quieter in the venue, they’re the perfect time to visit. You can properly explore the space, chat through ideas and see how the venue could work for your business.

Extending our Leeds postcode offer

And because we really want to support local businesses, we’ve decided to extend our Leeds postcode offer into June and July too. Any organisation with an LS postcode can receive 10% off bookings taking place in June and July. That could be a simple team meeting for remote workers who want to reconnect in person. It could be a workshop, strategy day or client event. Or maybe you just want a change of scenery away from the office for the day. We’re close by, flexible, easy to work with, and we genuinely understand Leeds business culture.

We’ve had clients use us as a temporary base after office emergencies, businesses needing larger meeting space for team days, and organisations bringing together regional sales or product teams. The flexibility of the venue means we can often accommodate events at fairly short notice too.

Our instant book option on the website works brilliantly for quick bookings, but equally, Tracey and I are always happy to just have a chat and work through options with people. We regularly have clients booking the day before an event, and we’ll always do our best to help.

And when you combine that with £5 all-day parking nearby, a seven-minute walk from Leeds train station and some brilliant bars and restaurants right on the river for post-event drinks, it really does make Horizon Leeds a fantastic base within the city.

So, if you’re a Leeds business and you haven’t visited us yet, please do get in touch.

Looking ahead

I’m incredibly proud of what we’ve built here at Horizon Leeds, but I’m even more proud of the community around us – and we’d love to support more local organisations over the coming months.

Now it’s time for me to take a couple of weeks off with the kids before heading straight to NHS ConfedExpo. Looking forward to telling you all about it in next month’s roundup.