Birmingham, known for its industrial heritage, cultural diversity, and vibrant arts scene, is an ideal location for hosting conferences and events, due in no small part to its central UK location, excellent transport links, and world-class venues. The city offers a range of accommodation options and amenities, alongside a rich cultural scene that adds value to any event.
We look at the top 13 venues in Birmingham for events.
1. IET Birmingham: Austin Court
IET Birmingham: Austin Court is a purpose-built events venue situated on the edge of central Birmingham, benefitting from all the convenience of the city centre but with uniquely tranquil surroundings.
The Georgian Grade II listed building, located next to one of the city’s famous canals, has a history which can be traced back to 1803 and is steeped in Midland’s engineering heritage. As a result, the building offers a characterful backdrop for any event, with many original features giving subtle nods to its past throughout the building.
Today, there are 14 flexible event spaces equipped with cutting-edge AV facilities, including the Kingston Lecture Theatre which can cater for up to 150 delegates.
As part of the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), a registered charity, Austin Court is passionate about sustainability and the well-being of staff and customers. Most recently the venue was awarded the Gold Award by Greengage ECOSmart in 2024 and achieved Silver accreditation by Green Tourism.
3D tour available here: https://austincourt.theiet.org/our-rooms/explore-the-venue/
Website: https://austincourt.theiet.org/
Contact: (0)121 667 4403, Angie Devi adevi@theiet.org
2. The Grand Hotel Birmingham
The Grand Hotel Birmingham is a historic landmark hotel established in 1879. The hotel recently re-opened in May 2021, following a £50m refurbishment. The hotel features 185 guest rooms and suites, Madeleine Bar, Isaac’s restaurant, nine meeting and event spaces, including the iconic Grand Ballroom which has played host to rock stars and royalty.
The iconic Grand Ballroom sits at the heart of the hotel and has been restored to offer one of Birmingham city centre’s largest and most historic event spaces. The Grand Ballroom can hold up to 300 guests’ theatre style, 176 classroom style and 200 cabaret style.
From gala dinners to award ceremonies and from exclusive use events to board meetings, there’s a space suitable at The Grand Hotel Birmingham for an event of any size.
Just 11 minutes from Birmingham Airport and a short five-minute walk from Birmingham New Street train station, which has direct trains to London every 20 minutes, The Grand Hotel Birmingham is easily accessible for delegates coming from all corners of the UK and further afield.
Website:https://www.thegrandhotelbirmingham.co.uk/
Contact: Please email hello@grandbirmingham.co.uk
3. B:Music – Town Hall & Symphony Hall
B:Music is the music charity responsible for Birmingham’s Town Hall and Symphony Hall. Town Hall is an iconic venue conveniently located in the heart of Birmingham city centre. The Grade I-listed building has stunning period architecture and a breath-taking main hall, providing a captivating backdrop for any event.
B:Music’s other venue, Symphony Hall, is an Art Deco-inspired contemporary event space with world-class acoustics, designed to look as good as it sounds. You will impress delegates with this warm, luxurious space full of classical curves, polished surfaces, columns and tiers. You’ll have use of the foyers, which are spread over several levels – ideal for drinks receptions, networking areas and buffet points. There are also facilities for production offices, speaker rooms and dressing rooms.
Symphony Hall can accommodate up to 2,000 theatre style, 600 banquet style and 400 cabaret style. Town Hall can accommodate up to 900 theatre style (or 507 using stalls only), 270 banquet style and 216 cabaret style.
Contact: events@bmusic.co.uk
Website: bmusic.co.uk/venue-hire
4. Conference Aston
The Birmingham city centre conference hotel sits at the heart of Aston University’s campus, offering a choice of meeting, training and event spaces on the green, landscaped surroundings of the Aston Triangle. The welcoming venue is easily accessible, just ten minutes’ walk from New Street and Snow Hill train stations and five minutes from junction six of the M6.
Conference Aston offers 163 four-star standard bedrooms and 24 flexible conference, meeting and syndicate spaces, accommodating a boardroom from four up to cabaret for 120 and theatre style for 222 delegates, private dining rooms for 40 and banqueting space for up to 400 for a dinner dance, hotel bar and outdoor courtyard area. There’s additional meeting space at weekends, Easter, summer and Christmas periods, with 800 en-suite bedrooms and 70 meeting spaces for up to 650 delegates available for larger events across the Aston University campus teaching and accommodation areas.
Contact: info@conferenceaston.co.uk
Website: conferenceaston.co.uk
5. Edgbaston Stadium
One of Birmingham’s most prominent sporting venues, Edgbaston Stadium is a perfect place to host business meetings, conferences, training courses, banquets, weddings, Christmas parties and bespoke events. The venue’s versatile, multi-functional, award-winning spaces can accommodate anything from 10 to 800 people, making it a perfect fit for an intimate meeting to a large exhibition. With the majority of spaces at Edgbaston boasting a panoramic view of the iconic cricket pitch, attendees will be able to experience an event like never before.
As a venue, Edgbaston brings with it a distinguished legacy, creating unforgettable moments dating back to 1886. Looking ahead, the proposed Radisson RED Birmingham Edgbaston Stadium, part of the group’s RED lifestyle four-star brand – will feature 146 rooms including 85 with pitch-facing balconies. 18 of the pitch-view rooms will be fully convertible into hospitality spaces, while Level 4 will feature a rooftop restaurant and bar with a 160sqm outside terrace offering panoramic views of the Birmingham skyline. The hotel is the centrepiece of a project that includes the redevelopment of the stadium’s Raglan and Family Stands, and is expected to be finished by 2027 – in time for that year’s men’s Ashes Test against Australia.
Contact: events@edgbaston.com
Website: edgbaston.com/events
6. Millennium Point
Millennium Point is an award-winning iconic landmark and a unique venue in the heart of Birmingham. It features 11 fully flexible spaces, which are suitable for almost any event. There is a mixture of spaces from state-of-the-art to simple to suit your budget and requirements, with small meeting rooms right up to a 354-seat giant screen auditorium. The venue also has a range of hybrid and virtual events and a skilled audio-visual team, which can help maximise the reach and impact of your event. The venue is owned by the Millennium Point Charitable Trust with profits from commercial activity being invested in projects, events and initiatives which support the growth of science, technology, engineering, and maths (STEM) in Birmingham and the wider region.
Contact: events@millenniumpoint.org.uk
Website: millenniumpoint.org.uk/venue-hire
7. NEC Group (the ICC, the NEC, the Vox, Utilita Arena, bp pulse LIVE)
NEC Group is the UK’s leading live events business operating in exhibitions, conferences, music, sports, family entertainment and hospitality.
The International Convention Centre (ICC) Birmingham is located in the heart of Birmingham city centre, offering versatile spaces and flexible layouts across its 10 meeting rooms and 10 conference halls, making it an ideal venue for events up to 3,000 delegates.
The National Exhibition Centre (NEC), the UK’s largest event venue, offers 18 versatile event halls, 32 purpose-built conference suites and 186,000sqm of covered space, with blank canvases that are flexible, futureproofed and a perfect fit for events big or small.
The Vox is a unique and attractive offering to the conference market, situated within Resorts World Birmingham, the UK’s first leisure and entertainment complex. The venue has five multi-functional suites for up to 900 delegates that combine or divide to suit your event requirements.
Utilita Arena, located in Birmingham city centre, is one of the busiest, large-scale indoor sporting and entertainment spaces in the world, hosting everything from music, sport and comedy, to family entertainment and live theatre. It has a flexible capacity of almost 16,000 spectators.
Known as bp pulse LIVE from 1 September, the venue formerly known as Resorts World Arena is another of the world’s top entertainment destinations, with a flexible capacity of up to 15,700 for music, sport, comedy and family events.
Contact: info@theicc.co.uk
Website: theicc.co.uk
8. Park Regis
Park Regis Birmingham is a four-star luxury hotel that offers a range of extensive business and corporate meeting and event facilities in Birmingham city centre. Conveniently located on Broad Street in the very heart of the city, Park Regis is easily accessible from both New Street and Five Ways train station by foot or taxi. Along with the additional space for refreshments and break out areas and a dedicated reception, the hotel not only offers excellent meeting space, but prides itself on quality service to make your event a memorable one. The hotel – which opened its doors in 2016 – is a stunning addition to Birmingham’s skyline and has 11 function rooms, catering for up to 300 people.
Contact: events@parkregis-birmingham.com
Website: parkregisbirmingham.co.uk/meetings-and-events
9. The Eastside Rooms
Launched in 2021, The Eastside Rooms has quickly made its name as a contemporary, easy, and classy place to do business, and a stunning backdrop for events of every kind. Home to some of the largest event spaces in Birmingham, its mission is to create value for the city by fuelling its visitor and business economy. The venue has 23 flexible meeting rooms and a stunning main suite, the 880sqm, pillar-free Affinity, which is the perfect location for conferences, banquets and exhibitions. The Eastside Rooms is conveniently located next door to the Aloft Birmingham Eastside. Part of the Marriott family, the hotel boasts 195 guest rooms, a cocktail lounge and 120-seater restaurant.
Contact: events@eastsiderooms.com
Website: eastsiderooms.com
10. Unique Venues Birmingham
Unique Venues Birmingham provides all of the space and quality you need to complement the moments that matter, but with the added style and uniqueness that make your events memorable. The UVB portfolio includes auditoria presenting huge dramatic and creative possibilities, a spectacular five-storeys high rotunda, and a beautiful roof terrace with panoramic views across the city. For slightly more traditional requirements, you’ll find an array of suites and rooms complete with all of the audio-visual technology you could ask for, but set within architecturally splendid spaces, such as the Library of Birmingham and Birmingham Repertory Theatre. UVB has 30 meeting spaces, catering for up to 800 (theatre), 240 (cabaret), 600 (banqueting) and 1,000 (drinks reception).
Contact: enquiries@uniquevenuesbirmingham.com
Website: uniquevenuesbirmingham.com
11. University of Birmingham
At the University of Birmingham, discover a campus full of unique venues, contemporary conference and meeting rooms, hotels and wide green spaces, just two miles from the city centre. Meeting spaces include The Bramall, a contemporary concert hall with high-end acoustics, The Great Hall, a grand late-Victoria hall with stained glass and decorative ceiling, Lapworth Museum of Geology, featuring a geological collection and a unique venue for a drinks reception, and the Sports and Fitness, a flexible arena for sports events.
For conferences and exhibitions, the University also has a number of spaces including the Muirhead hospitality suite, a private suite at top of Muirhead tower with spectacular views across the city, Green Heart, a 12 acre eco-friendly outdoor space at the heart of campus, The Vale Village, an outdoor space with accommodation, bar and catering in lakeside parkland, Lecture theatres, both tiered and flat-floored across the whole campus, and the Teaching and Learning building, an innovative learning space designed for collaboration and communication.
The Exchange – University of Birmingham has recently been transformed with a reflecting pool beside the distinctive Library of Birmingham. Retaining many of its unique period features, The Exchange’s varied rooms give you the flexibility to transition from important meetings and breakout discussion to press announcements, ceremonies, receptions and dining, all in one central venue.
Contact: info@conferences.bham.ac.uk
Website: conferences.bham.ac.uk/
