Bournemouth International Centre (BIC) and the Pavilion

Oral Health Conference Celebrates 60th Anniversary of BSDHT at BIC

The British Society of Dental Hygiene and Therapy (BSDHT) brought its Annual Oral Health conference and exhibition back to the Bournemouth International Centre (BIC) last week. Having last been at the BIC in 2007, this year marked a special celebration for the society, its 60th Anniversary.

It is the biggest event in the UK for dental hygienists and dental hygienist-therapists, of which the society represents over 3,500. Over the course of the two day event, well over 800 delegates attended each day, as well as around 185 exhibitors, which meant a boost of just under £600,000 for the local economy through delegate expenditure.

The Annual Oral Health Conference opened on Friday 16th October in the BIC’s Tregonwell Hall. An exhibition also ran alongside the main conference programme in the BIC’s Purbeck Hall featuring over 50 exhibitors including the leading national and international dental companies. The BIC’s Solent Hall was used as a catering area and the event also made use of the BIC’s multitude of break out space for VIP lunches and workshops, outside of the plenary meeting taking place in the Tregonwell Hall.

Ann Craddock of BSDHT says: “One of the great things about the BIC is its layout, including adjoining halls, which suits multi-room events likes ours. Whilst we nearly took over the venue - using three of its four halls - it remained open to other visitors. The fact that we had our own dedicated entrance at the back of the building made the event private and self contained. The BIC suits our event perfectly which is why we keep coming back and it was fantastic to celebrate our milestone anniversary here!”

Clive Tyers, Head of Conferences, Exhibitions and Events at the BIC add: “In the conference and exhibition business, long standing relationships are vital. We have spent the last 25 years building up a long list of clients who choose to return to us regularly because of our high quality facilities and customer service. It was great to see the British Society of Dental Hygiene and Therapy back in Bournemouth and bringing investment to the town. The medical association is an important market for us which we continue to do well in.”

Recent statistics value Bournemouth’s business tourism at £115m, of which the BIC and Pavilion contribute £65m annually through the conferences and exhibitions staged at the venues. The remaining £50m is a result of conferences, events and meetings at other venues in Bournemouth, often facilitated by the Bournemouth International Conference Bureau (BICB).