Ocean Media Group, organisers of The Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) annual conference and housing exhibition has signed a contract to host the CIH annual conference and exhibition at Manchester Central Convention Complex, in a move that will bring around £2 million to Manchester in business tourism each year.

Paula Lorimer, Sales and Marketing Director at Manchester Central, said: “We are absolutely delighted to welcome the Chartered Institute of Housing as one of Manchester Central’s clients. We have worked extensively with CIH and Ocean Media Group over the last three years to develop the move to Manchester and I am sure it is the right one.

“Our venue offers the ideal space for this prestigious event. Our £30million redevelopment, completed in 2010, has created state-of-the-art facilities with three top quality foyers and a host of meeting rooms. Manchester Central is perfectly equipped for hosting the Institute’s annual conference and exhibition, and we are very excited about the prospect of bringing more delegates to Manchester’s already vibrant conference destination.”

Sarah Webb, Chief Executive of the CIH, said: “The CIH annual conference and exhibition is the flagship event in the UK housing calendar. It provides a unique opportunity for the whole of the housing sector – public, private and non-profit – to come together in one place to learn, improve and influence.

Moving to Manchester will enable us to provide a better conference and exhibition, make the most of the state of the art facilities at Manchester Central and provide improved access and accommodation for exhibitors, delegates and visitors.

“I’m delighted and excited that CIH has been able to work with Ocean Media Group and make this long-term commitment and investment for the whole housing sector.”

The three-day conference and exhibition, to be held in June each year, will bring an estimated 4,500 delegates to Manchester, generating an estimated £2million in economic impact each year that it is in the city.

Sir Richard Leese, Leader of Manchester City Council, said: “It’s fantastic news that this prestigious organisation has chosen the city for its annual conference and we look forward to giving a real Manchester welcome to the Chartered Institute of Housing.

“Our investment in creating world-class conference facilities at Manchester Central means Manchester’s standing as a major conference destination continues to grow – generating essential investment and jobs.”

Paul Simpson, Managing Director of Visit Manchester, the tourist board for Greater Manchester, added: “The Chartered Institute of Housing Conference and Exhibition is a prestigious event and we are delighted it has chosen Manchester as its host. Business tourism is incredibly important to the city – worth around £573million a year. We look forward to welcoming their delegates to the city.”

CIH will use the entirety of Manchester Central; joining an ever-growing client list who do so. Others include both the Labour and Conservative parties for their annual conferences, the Chartered Institute of Personal Development (CIPD), and the British Dental Association.

The Chartered Institute of Housing exhibition will be held in the venue’s famous Central Hall; a landmark in Manchester’s skyline for more than 100 years. Around 250 exhibitors will showcase their products in the historic hall.

The conference will be held in Manchester Central’s purpose built auditorium. Seating 804 delegates, the auditorium is acoustically designed for the spoken word, affording speakers, as well as organisers, the best quality space for their event.

A series of break out rooms, situated across the venue, will provide the setting for smaller speaking events, discussion groups, and seminars.

CIH will take its first residency at Manchester Central on 12, 13 and 14 June 2012.

Source: Manchester Central

On June 1st TAP Portugal announced the launch of its inaugural flight from Manchester to Lisbon.  The launch event was attended by Angie Robinson, chief executive of MIDAS.   

The new route has opened up a wide range of potential business links with destinations in Europe and further afield in South America such as Madeira, Porto, the Azores, Rio de Janeiro, Natal and Recife.

Angie Robinson, Chief Executive of MIDAS, said: “TAP Portugal’s new route is a fantastic addition to the Manchester Airport route network. It’s extremely important to Manchester – in terms of projects, Europe currently generates the most Foreign Direct Investment for the region. The business class flights from Lisbon will offer a great opportunity to develop links with Portugal.

“The Lisbon connection also opens up destinations further afield, in particular those in South America. Manchester has already been working closely with Brazil for example, to promote Soccerex – the world’s international football convention, which has staged its last two European Forums here and its Global Convention in Rio de Janeiro. The increased connectivity now available via TAP Portugal can only help to enhance such business relationships between these destinations.”

Carlos Paneiro, Vice President Sales for TAP Portugal, said: “The United Kingdom is the number one market for Portugal in terms of inbound tourism. Thus, the launch of direct operations between Manchester and Lisbon is very relevant to us as an airline, as Manchester is an important economic and industrial city in the UK, served by an efficient airport with a strong presence of major network carriers and able to accommodate air traffic expansion in the future”

The airline will run six non-stop flights a week offering full services in business and economy class. Early indications show that the new flight has received solid support from the market with a 75% load factor on the first service and approximately 15,000 customers booked over the coming months.

Andrew Harrison, Manchester Airport’s Managing Director, said: “Having TAP Portugal announce a route to Lisbon from Manchester will not only give passengers access to Portugal’s capital city but TAP are also one of the largest carriers of passengers to South America from Europe and that opens even more destinations to our customer base in the North West. This adds another large European capital to our route network and we know it’ll prove popular with passengers from Manchester.”