When Your Venue Has Another Day Job: Planning Events in Working Spaces

Some of the most interesting event venues were never designed solely for events.

Churches, museums, galleries, theatres, universities, members' clubs, sporting venues, visitor attractions and workspaces can all provide extraordinary settings for conferences, dinners, receptions, launches and celebrations. What makes them interesting is often precisely the fact that events are only one part of what happens there.

But booking a working venue requires a slightly different approach.

A hotel ballroom or dedicated conference centre is generally designed around the needs of events. A working church may have services taking place earlier that day. A museum could remain open to visitors until shortly before guests arrive. An office venue may have hundreds of people working elsewhere in the building. A theatre could have a performance scheduled the night before your event.

None of this makes them difficult venues. It simply means understanding how the building operates before you start planning how your event will operate within it.

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Understand what else happens in the venue

Before falling in love with a space, understand its primary purpose and how that will interact with your event.

Ask what normally happens in the building on the day of your booking, whether other areas will remain operational and whether there are activities immediately before or after your event.

This can affect considerably more than guest access. It might determine when production can begin, where equipment can be stored, when suppliers can arrive and how quickly everything needs to be removed afterwards.

It is also worth asking what takes priority if normal operations change. If you are hiring an active church, for example, there may be services, pastoral requirements or other activities that cannot simply be moved because an event has been booked.

The earlier you understand those parameters, the easier it is to plan around them.

Do not assume venue hire means all day access

This is probably one of the biggest considerations when using a working venue.

You might be hosting dinner at 7pm, but that does not necessarily mean your production company can arrive at 8am.

If the venue is being used for its normal purpose during the day, your setup window could be considerably shorter than it would be in a dedicated event space. Loading may also have to happen at particular times or through specific entrances.

That does not automatically rule out an ambitious production. It does mean the production needs to be designed around the access available.

Ask for exact timings for supplier access, setup, sound checks, catering preparation, guest arrival and breakdown before finalising your plans. If a venue needs to return to normal operation the following morning, you may also have a firm deadline for getting everything out that night.

Find out what can actually be changed

A beautiful venue can quickly become frustrating if your event concept depends on doing things the building will not allow.

Historic and listed buildings may have restrictions around fixing items to walls, floors or architectural features. Active workplaces may have rules about branding in shared areas. Churches and heritage venues may place restrictions on particular types of entertainment, decoration or content. Museums and galleries can have strict requirements around lighting, temperature, security and proximity to exhibits.

There may also be limitations around candles, confetti, smoke effects, amplified music, staging and heavy equipment.

None of these questions are particularly glamorous, but finding out the answers after you have designed the event is considerably worse.

Start with the venue's restrictions and create within them.

Think about the spaces you are not hiring

When you hire an event space within a working venue, it is easy to concentrate entirely on the room itself.

Your guests will experience much more than that.

They need to arrive somewhere, enter the building, find registration, leave coats, use toilets and move between different parts of the event. Some of those spaces may be shared with the venue's normal users.

If a museum remains open while delegates arrive, how are event guests distinguished from visitors? If an office is still operating, will employees use the same entrance? If a church remains accessible to members of the public, which areas are exclusively yours?

A brilliant event room can still produce a poor guest experience if the journey around it has not been considered.

Walk through the venue as a guest would, rather than only looking at the space you are hiring.

Talk about noise early

Noise works in both directions.

Your event may need to work around the venue's normal activities, but the venue also needs to understand what your event involves.

A drinks reception with background music is very different from a product launch with a DJ, live entertainment and substantial production. Likewise, a conference taking place inside a working cultural venue may need to consider noise coming from elsewhere in the building.

Be specific about what you are planning rather than simply asking whether music is permitted.

Ask about amplified sound, live music, DJs, sound limits, curfews and any restrictions that apply to particular areas of the venue. If sound is fundamental to the event, establish this before progressing too far with the booking.

Understand catering and supplier restrictions

Working venues often have established ways of operating with external suppliers.

Some will have an exclusive caterer. Others will work with an approved list. Some will allow external catering but place restrictions on cooking equipment, preparation areas or where food and drink can be served.

The same can apply to production companies, florists, entertainment and security.

If you want to bring in your own suppliers, ask before assuming you can. Equally, if the venue has preferred suppliers who work there regularly, there can be a real advantage to using people who already understand the building, access arrangements and operational restrictions.

Do not forget security

A private event inside a building that remains operational requires careful thought around security.

Who can access the event area? Are other parts of the building open to the public? Can guests wander into areas that are not included in the hire? Will additional security or stewards be required?

This becomes particularly important when alcohol is being served or when the event includes high profile guests, valuable equipment or confidential content.

The venue will normally have established procedures, but your event may introduce requirements that do not exist during its everyday operation.

Respect what makes the venue different

There is a temptation when taking an event into an unusual space to try to turn it into a conventional event venue.

Often that misses the point.

If you have chosen a centuries old church, spectacular museum, working theatre or landmark attraction, the building itself is part of the experience. You do not necessarily need to cover every surface with branding or completely transform the room.

The strongest events often work with the character of the venue rather than against it.

This is particularly important in spaces with cultural, historical or religious significance. Understanding what the building represents and treating it appropriately is not just about complying with venue rules. It can lead to a much better event.

Ask the questions before you sign

A working venue should be able to explain clearly how events fit alongside its everyday operation.

Before committing, make sure you understand access and setup times, breakdown requirements, shared spaces, noise restrictions, catering arrangements, supplier rules, security, branding limitations and anything else that could materially affect your plans.

If something is fundamental to the event, get clarity on it before contracting.

An unusual venue with a few restrictions may still be a far better choice than a conventional space with complete flexibility. The important thing is knowing what you are working with from the beginning.

Some venues are worth working around

The fact that a venue has another purpose should not be seen as a disadvantage.

Quite the opposite.

Many of the spaces guests remember most are memorable because they were not created as anonymous event rooms. They have history, character, atmosphere and a reason for existing beyond the event taking place that evening.

That can require a little more planning, but it can also give you something a purpose built event venue simply cannot replicate.

At Match My Venue, we look beyond whether a venue has enough space for your guest numbers. We consider how it will actually work for your event, including access, timings, production, catering and the practicalities that can make the difference between an interesting venue and the right venue.

Looking for something a little different? Send us your brief and we'll help you find a venue that works for the event you actually want to create.