Venue
The Eastside Rooms, Birmingham’s new Conference Centre
Eastside Rooms is conveniently located near Birmingham’s major transportation hubs, making it easily accessible for attendees. It also benefits from being near to Birmingham’s cultural attractions, dining options and hotels, making it convenient for attendees travelling from out of town.
Eastside Rooms: the neighbourhood story
The Eastside of Birmingham City – affectionately known as the ‘The Knowledge Quarter’ is currently undergoing major redevelopment, as part of the wider ‘Big City Plan’ for Birmingham. The plan details the expansion of the City core towards the east, with the Eastside City Park acting as the main focal point of the area.
Historical excavations in the area suggest that the area was used as farmland in the Medieval period. It is known that a significant area was bought by the English monarchy and was used as a deer game park. Following this the land was sold and slowly began to develop once again as farmland.
During the Industrial revolution, the area was home to a vast complex of factories and workshops, which were serviced by the extensive canal network in the City, most notably the Digbeth Branch, which was constructed in 1790 and now runs along the back of The Eastside Rooms where it joins the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal. In the late 1800s as the industry subsided, the area fell into decline and many of the original factory buildings became derelict, the old Victorian buildings were never maintained and the canals became dirty and clogged.
Curzon Street Railway Station was a major railway station during the 19th century and served as a goods station, unfortunately it was unsuccessful as a passenger station and shut down as a goods station in 1966.
Plans for the regeneration of the area were unveiled to the public in the late 1990s, this comprised of a number of large-scale projects, involving the renovation, demolition and rebuilding of key buildings in the area. The first of these projects to be completed was Millennium Point which was completed in 2002 to replace the Birmingham Science Museum.
Located just opposite The Eastside Rooms sits the Sir Doug Ellis Sports Centre, formerly the Woodcock Street Baths, statutorily listed in recognition of its historic importance as one of the oldest baths in the country constructed in 1860. The pool is still in use today and retains many of its original features.
