Anything but ordinary
- The UK’s second largest financial centre, Leeds has a strong reputation for business and legal services.
- An ideal conference destination that offers over 9,000 hotel rooms, excellent transport links and 300 bars and restaurants.
- Steeped in industrial history, Leeds is today known for its expertise in medicine and healthcare, professional services, digital, and manufacturing.
- Leeds is home to four leading universities - Leeds Beckett University, Leeds Trinity University, the University of Leeds and Leeds Arts University.
- The vibrant, cosmopolitan atmosphere of this compact city is made for great events.
Getting here
Located at the very heart of the UK, on the crossroads of the M1 and M62 motorways, Leeds is one of the country’s most accessible cities.
BY PLANE
British Airways flies to Leeds Bradford Airport from London Heathrow up to three times each day, with a journey time of one hour. Leeds Bradford Airport is located just 20 minutes outside of the city centre, with direct flights from 75 international destinations and eight UK destinations.
BY TRAIN
The city lies on the East Coast main rail line, offering direct train travel from London (two hours, 15 minutes), Edinburgh (three hours), Newcastle (one hour, 40 minutes) and York (30 minutes).
Rail links from other UK cities are also excellent, with direct trains several times a day to Leeds from Liverpool, Manchester, Birmingham and Cardiff.
BY CAR
Leeds and West Yorkshire are located at the crossroads of the M62 and M1 motorways. The M1 runs North to South and the M62 runs East to West, right through West Yorkshire.
Expertise
 |
Healthcare & researchLeeds Teaching Hospitals is one of the biggest NHS trusts in the country, offering a range of both general and specialist hospital services. It’s home to a global centre of excellence for Digital Pathology, scanning up to 250,000 clinical samples per year. Meanwhile, doctors and researchers in Yorkshire are collaborating on a new £4.5 million national data hub that aims to transform how cancer data from across the UK can be used to improve patient care. DATA-CAN is being funded by Health Data Research UK, the national institute for health data science. Researchers in Leeds are leading the way in involving patients and the public in the design and running of the project from the outset. This is ensuring that patients have a decisive say in how their de-identified health data is used for research. |
 |
FintechLeeds and the wider Leeds City Region have a number of inherent advantages when it comes to Fintech. These include, already being home to a large number of companies playing a pioneering role, including Panintelligence, Contis, WorldPay and Nostrum Group, and several leading universities producing a pipeline of high-quality graduates. Leeds’ financial services sector is the best in the UK outside London. The region has been home to leading financial institutions since the 18th century, when the first building society outside of the Midlands was established in the city. It is also the birthplace of the first telephone bank in the UK, First Direct. |
 |
Food scienceUniversity of Leeds is home to the The School of Food Science and Nutrition, selected by the World Health Organisation as the first collaborating centre in nutritional epidemiology. The school is leading an international team to improve farming resilience in Africa. The project is focused on creating evidence-based policy to develop sustainable, productive agricultural systems. The project, funded by the Global Challenges Research Fund, supports smallholder farmers in Africa to meet food security and economic development needs. The university farm leads training for UK and African agronomists, and the university’s Centre for Plant Science enhances understanding of root biology and how roots affect soil structure and health. |
Where to stay
Over 9,309 city centre bedrooms include internationally recognised brands such as Hilton, Marriott and Park Plaza, as well as boutique properties and university accommodation.
| 4* hotels | 2,695 bedrooms |
| 3* and under properties | 2,042 bedrooms |
| Other (student accommodation / home sharing) | 4,450 bedrooms |
Venues
From universities to historic houses, Leeds puts a wealth of venues at the planners’ disposal.
Incentives
Leeds prides itself on its ability to create unique and engaging incentive programmes, designed to reward, recognise and get the very best out of people.
ConferenceLeeds
The ConferenceLeeds city-wide conference proposition offers a truly superb experience to delegates through its collaborative approach with venues and key industry speakers. The friendly, professional and dedicated team also provide, a free online accommodation booking facility and fully-costed proposals within 48-hours of enquiry.
