iSpy - High-Tech Team Building in London

We had a brilliant time basking in both the sunshine and the atmosphere in London last week, running an iSpy for a fantastic group of clients.

One of our newest events, iSpy was created with high-tech gadgetry in mind - each team is armed with an iPad, radio, video camera and digital camera and tasked with a quest around their local city, tackling a range of entertaining challenges.

The teams had a great time playing with their new toys - the radio in particular providing the chance to indulge in childhood dreams of being a 'cop' - before the competitive streaks took over and they began their adventure.

As well as completing radio, video and photo challenges, the teams used GPS tracking on their iPads to locate costumed characters at popular London landmarks, who were ready and waiting with bonus clues:

London itself was looking fabulous - with the city still buzzing from the Games, it was the perfect backdrop for some competitive fun:

When the teams had tackled as many challenges as possible in the time they were given, we finished up at Browns in Covent Garden, where everyone was treated to some well-deserved drinks before the winners were announced - ending the day on a massive high.

If you'd like to hold your own iSpy, call 0845 006 06 06 to speak to the CCC Team.

Sports Day Team Build at Old Deer Park, Richmond

Our clients gave the professionals a run for their money on Friday, taking part in a Sports Day event at Old Deer Park in Richmond, Surrey - whilst the London Welsh rugby team trained alongside them! It was only a matter of time before our sporty set up attracted the attention of the players, and as soon as training was over they headed straight for a go on our Free Kick Frenzy:

Old Deer Park is a favourite venue of ours as it offers plenty of outside space whilst being only a stone's throw from Central London. Add to that the friendly staff and the clubhouse bar and you have the perfect venue for London-based clients after an outdoor team building day. Being home to the London Welsh Rugby Club, working at Old Deer Park means that we often get to see the players in action - although in this instance, our clients were the superior athletes of course:

As well as the Free Kick Frenzy, the six teams competed in a host of other challenges, including the always-hilarious 4x400ml Relay:

The whole group gave it their all, but at the end of the day there could only be one winning team - and they were delighted with their victory!

We left the group to enjoy some well-earned drinks at the bar, but not before promising to come back with another sporting event so that the winners could defend their title.

If you'd like to claim victory in your very own Sports Day, visit our website or call us on 0845 006 06 06.

Easy Office-Based Team Building Ideas #2

If you're looking for a small team build you can run yourselves, from your office, with minimum planning or fuss, look no further than our Easy Office Based Team Building Ideas!

Creation Through Communication

The aim of this activity is for each team member to create a piece of origami by being given only verbal instructions by their team leader. It is beneficial for groups who are having communication issues, as it encourages everyone to assess how they listen to instructions, how they interpret them and how they implement them. It's also a great way of looking at the art of giving instructions, and is a fantastic DIY team build because the only equipment it requires is paper.

To prepare this activity, trim some A4 paper into squares and print off some Origami diagrams. There are plenty of resources online but ideally you want something easy and without written instructions, so that the instructor describes what they see in their own words. We like Origami Diagram - try the Flutter Fly as it's nice and simple.

If you have a small group (ten or fewer), this activity can be run as one large group, with the person running the activity giving instructions. For more people, divide the group into teams of about four to six people and ask them to nominate a team leader who will be giving out instructions.

Give each person a piece of paper (using coloured paper is nice but not essential) and explain the activity. Ask the team leaders to give out a series of instructions to best describe the diagrams you have given them, which everyone should follow. People should avoid asking questions, but they can ask for instructions to be repeated or re-phrased. Do not let people know exactly what they will be making, although you should have one example already made up to reveal at the end.

Give the teams a time limit, depending on the difficulty of the design you have given them (fifteen to twenty minutes for the Flutter Fly would be ideal).

If you are working in teams, when the time is up come back together to de-brief.  Reveal your "Here's one I made earlier" example, and explain that it's okay if not everybody's is perfect - that's the whole point of the exercise!

Some points for discussion to consider are:

• How do the end products compare to each other? If there are noticeable differences, why do you think this might be?
• What did people find challenging about this exercise? Are these challenges similar to those you have when communicating at work?
• Do you think that if you could see diagrams of the instructions, or have an example of the end result, your product would look the same? This would have meant relying less on yourselves and your own understanding of the instructions - would that have been a good thing?
• Participants had to trust the person giving instructions - how did this feel?
• What can you feed back about how the instructions were given? Did those giving instructions speak clearly and slowly enough, waiting for everybody to be ready before they moved on to the next point, or not? You may find it's beneficial to repeat the exercise with different people giving out different instructions, so that everyone has the chance to work on these skills.
• What have we learned about communication - both listening and instructing - that we can transfer to our working lives?

If you want to take your team building further, check out our website for ideas or call 0845 006 06 06 to speak to our fabulous team.

Saracens Rugby Academy Brave the Wilderness with CCC

With the aftermath of the Olympic hype leaving us pining for all things athletic, CCC were thrilled when Richard Hill, MBE, former flanker for Saracens and England Rugby Union, approached our team and asked us to work with the future stars of the rugby world.

Often portrayed as the 'silent assassin', Hill was legendary in Rugby Union circles and one of the most respected players in the world. After playing his last game for Saracens in 2008, Richard now coaches the Under 18s team in the Academy, developing the next breed of Saracens stars. He approached CCC wanting to test the team as part of their pre-season tour and felt that team building was the way to go - and who better to take on that challenge than the Team Building Company of the Year?

The Brief:

Richard was keen to see how his young athletes reacted to challenges that took them 'out of their comfort zones'. Training with the boys at least four times a week, Richard said he was well aware of how they behaved on the pitch and the dynamics of the group during a match, but he wanted us to delve deeper and push them to their limits to see what they were really capable of when they weren't playing rugby.

CCC's Solution:

Knowing that nothing brings a group like this together more than a bit of high-pressured challenge and instinctive survival action, we created a bespoke event based on our popular Bushcraft and Time Tracker events, and it certainly seemed to fit the bill.

The Activities:

On what was possibly the windiest, rainiest, most miserable of Wednesday mornings in Wales, the boys were introduced to some basic survival techniques; knife skills, fire lighting and spear throwing - and the weather at Hill End Campsite couldn't have been more realistic of a true test of survival!

The results of each task then earned the teams various ingredients for their own lunches (what better way to motivate a group of teenage lads than with the promise of food!)

After sausages, spuds and spices had been won, the boys were then challenged to work together with some very basic tools to cook their own outdoor lunch, which definitely turned out to be the furthest from their comfort zone they could possibly be - and seeing as we ourselves only had these meals to feast on, it certainly became the most frightening challenge of the day for us all!

When chatting with Richard a bit later he commented:

"It was very interesting, to say the least, over the lunch break when there were quite a lot of decisions to make. I don't know how many decisions there actually are to make about cooking sausages - it was certainly an alien concept to them!"

Once everyone had refueled, the second part of the day took the group through some orienteering skills, searching for checkpoints hidden all over the site and completing fast-paced, race-against-time challenges. Intrigued, Richard and the coaching team tried their hand at a few of the tasks, and I think they'd prefer that we didn't tell you that they needed more than a little help... but you didn't hear that from me!

The finale of the day saw the teams culminating all their new-found skills as we threw them into a high-pressured, role play scenario where they had to rescue 'casualties' from the sand dunes. The teams had to build a basic stretcher, bring their casualties back to base and then construct a shelter using limited tools. There were given next to no time to prepare so that we could observe how quickly the teams managed to make potentially life-saving decisions and if they were able to keep calm under the pressure of a panicked (and screaming!) casualty.

Revelling in the opportunity to play hero, the boys really stepped up to the mark on this one, sprinting into the distance without hesitation to get our 'casualties' back to base camp in a matter of minutes. There was a real sense of satisfaction seeing all the teams come together so strongly in their final challenge and there was plenty of entertainment from the 'casualties' dramatic performances.

The Outcome:

When asked about his expectations for the day Richard went on to say:

 "It's been a great day organised by CCC - they've come in, organised everything from the word go and they're very professional. We literally turned up with our team and have just gone with the flow - and it has flowed exceptionally well and we are really pleased with the outcomes today."

All in all it was a pleasure working with Richard and his team, and we look forward to cheering on some of the guys to victory in the starting line up next year (with their new-found team building skills of course!)

If you think you and your colleagues would benefit from this kind of event why not give our friendly team a call on 0845 006 06 06 and ask about our outdoors events, or you can have a look at our 75+ award-winning team builds on our website.

Team Building Venues: Horwood House, Buckinghamshire

As part of our day to day job we travel all around the country and see a lot of beautiful venues. They might be in city centres, by motorway junctions or in the middle of the countryside, but they each have something that marks them out from the others. In this new series of posts we want to take a look at some of our favourites - venues that due to location, history, staff, facilities, grounds, décor or something entirely different are the best of the best.

First up...

Horwood House, Buckinghamshire

10 miles from Milton Keynes and just outside the small village of Little Horwood, Horwood House is operated by Principal Hayley, predominantly as a conference venue. It has 35 meeting rooms with all the options you would expect from a top rate venue, and can seat up to 220 delegates in their Cook Suite.

The building itself is a beautiful Grade II listed building, built in 1912. It boasts 182 en suite rooms and is perfect for longer conferences - or just when you want to turn that away-day into an away-day-and-night!

It is set in 38 acres of land, much of which is lovingly landscaped, and this is what we particularly love about it. There are almost no events that we can't run at this venue!

Venue Finder Annie had this to say about Horwood House:

"It's a lovely venue and they have a great team there which is why we keep coming back year after year. The sheer size and variety of the beautiful grounds means it's perfect for a whole variety of events".

Give us a call on 0845 006 06 06 to discuss the venue possibilities for your next event.

Corporate Entertainment in Buckinghamshire - The Ultimate Quiz

We had the pleasure of visiting one of our favourite venues recently, Horwood House near Milton Keynes, to run our Ultimate Quiz event.

The Ultimate Quiz is a great way of winding down after a day of conferencing or meetings, and usually runs throughout a meal.

Teams are given electronic keypads which allow them to answer questions and see the results straight away. This keeps the pace quick, the results real-time and rules out any chance of cheating!

Event Manager Dave Hall said:

"I love a good Ultimate Quiz, and the teams get really into it. The quick fire rounds are tense, but my favourite is always the TV Theme Round - they're always on the tip of your tongue!"

Give us a call on 0845 006 06 06 or visit our website for more information on our evening corporate entertainment.

The Guernica of the Team Building World!

An enquiry comes in from one of our top clients to provide a creative team build for a group of 150 in a meeting room in Northampton which accentuates the need for communication, dedication and the whole group working towards one spectacular achievement. "OK, leave it to us!" we said. This will require creating a painting so big only Picasso could rival it we thought! Pablo Picasso was one of the World's greatest painters, and one of the most influential artists of the 20th century, with some of his most famous works including Les Demoiselles d'Avignon and Guernica. But these paintings are not only an outstanding expression of his thoughts, they are on a particularly grand scale! Les Demoiselles d'Avignon, which portrays five nude prostitutes from a brothel in Barcelona, stands 244cm tall and 233cm wide and is considered to be central to the development of cubism and modern art.

However, Guernica is a dark and moving representation of the terror and destruction of the German and Italian bombing, and the ultimate artistic anti-war symbol if ever I have seen one. The painting measures an outstanding 349cm high and 776cm wide! I have been lucky enough to view it in all its splendour and glory at Museo Reina Sofia, and it was truly magnificent.

So, what's this got to do with team building? Well, we have had years of experience of running successful team building days for our clients, finding them the best venue for their away day, and creating bespoke events, but to create a masterpiece usually only Pablo Picasso could be proud of is something that requires team work at its best.

Having commissioned a local artist, Kelly Penfold, to paint us our own 'Picasso style' work of art, we now set ahead to produce an 18 team event and scale it up to a 250cm high and 750cm wide masterpiece. Look out Picasso!

CCC Events have provided a wide range of bespoke Work of Art events for clients, and have commissioned artists to design branded images as well as abstract or modern art, but we don't often we get asked to provide a 750cm wide masterpiece (you require a pretty big meeting room for these!) The teams on the day had 75 canvasses distributed between them, and instructions on what their challenge was. But they had no idea what the complete image would be. Considering it was the hottest day of the year so far the Northampton Marriott staff were helpful in topping up cold water stations to keep our budding artists refreshed and cool. But the hard work paid off and the delegates couldn't believe their eyes when we did the big reveal at the end of a truly successful afternoon. And here is the masterpiece itself:

The client said:

"...feedback from all participants was extremely positive and it certainly helped the communication and networking theme around which our day was centred. While some of us are less artistic than others, cue some of the examples in the warm up exercise, it was a fantastic event which brought together many teams who work in different locations and never get to see or meet each other. It was arranged so seamlessly that it even managed to make me look good!"

For more information on our bespoke team building events, free venue finding service and creative options contact 0845 006 06 06 or visit our website.

Team Building at Cannizaro House, Wimbledon

Last week Event Managers Kate and Kye ran an epic Monte Carlo or Bust team build at the gorgeous Cannizaro House in Wimbledon. Teams went head-to-head in the race to design, build and race life-sized concept cars, letting their imaginations run riot and their inner F1 drivers come to life!

Cannizaro House was the perfect backdrop - glamorous, sophisticated and boasting beautiful grounds, it wouldn't look out of place in Monaco.

After building their chassis, the group was let loose on the CCC Shop, which was bursting with materials for the body of the car. As always, the teams came up with a plethora of wacky designs - including a Flintstones-themed car, a Batmobile, and even a riff on the Pope-mobile!

We threw a spanner in the works when we announced that as well as designing the car itself, teams would also be required to make matching costumes - a task which everyone threw themselves into, with hilarious results.

Once the designs had been paraded and presented to the rest of the group, the cars were put to the test in a race of speed and agility, prompting much competitive banter between teams.

The day finished on a high when the winners were announced and the champagne prize awarded - and like true F1 drivers, the team couldn't resist spraying it everywhere!

If you'd like us to run a Monte Carlo or Bust for you and your colleagues, call 0845 006 06 06 or have a look at our website for  more team building ideas.

Happy 5th Birthday Ann!

CCC HQ is abuzz with excitement as we celebrate the lovely Ann, who has been running our Venue Department for five years today!

Ann does a fantastic job of sourcing venues which meet all of our clients' needs - her hard work over the past five years has built up an extensive database of venues all over the UK, meaning that she can find and book the perfect location for any event, no matter the group size or budget - all at no extra cost to our clients.

More than that though, she is a fabulous lady to work with - Annie brightens everybody's day, and always has the office in stitches.

We'll be spending the day spoiling Lady Ann, kicking off with some goodies this morning!

So Happy CCC Birthday Annie, and a big thank you from all of us for the past five years!

Going for Gold: Team Building in London

After an amazing fortnight in London, we've all been suffering from withdrawal symptoms and eagerly awaiting the Paralympics. Luckily, we needn't have felt so blue - only a few days after the closing ceremony, CCC Events was running its own 2012 -themed day in London!

We began the day with an opening ceremony to rival anything Danny Boyle could come up with, including an inaugural lighting of the flame. The group then got competitive with jazzed-up versions of traditonal sports, including Giant Shot-put, Junkyard Javelin, Giant Penalty Shoot-Out and the ever-hilarious Water-less Synchronised Swimming!

The final activity was a brilliant 4x400ml Relay, in which we swapped out the traditional baton for water-soaked sponges! Teams raced to gather as much water in their team container as possible by tossing the sponges to one another - trying not to get too soaked themselves:

Event manager Kye commented,

"The 2012 spirit is still going strong today - there's been plenty of banter and the teams are even more competitive than Team GB!"

If you'd like to hold your own Games or Sports Day, visit our website or call 0845 006 06 06 to speak to Team CCC.

Activity Day - Team Building in Devon

Last week we headed to the seaside for an Activity Day at the fabulous Langstone Cliff Hotel. Our clients got to grips with Archery, Rage Buggies, Laser Clay Pigeon Shooting and Geese Herding, with magnificent sea views as a backdrop. Starting off with Archery, CCC staff were extremely impressed with the skills of everyone involved - including one sharp shooter, who managed to split his first arrow with his second!

We then moved on to Geese Herding, which involves directing a real sheepdog and geese around the course, often with hilarious results!

Next was Rage Buggies to kick adrenaline levels up a gear - a fast-paced thrill ride which had the teams buzzing.

We finished the day in a slightly more gentrified manner, with a spot of Laser Clay Pigeon shooting. Team GB's recent success in Shooting events at London 2012 inspired the teams to give it all they had, and we saw some brilliant scores as a result.

All in all, it was a great way to spend an afternoon by the sea - for our clients, and for us! Event Manager Steve commented:

"I love this event because it's a chance for our clients to get to do activities they might not otherwise. There's always plenty of banter about highest scores and who's going to win, and it's always fun to get out of the meeting room and into the great outdoors."

If you fancy holding your own Activity Day, visit our website or call 0845 006 06 06 to speak to our amazing team.

Easy Office-Based Team Building Ideas - #1

Here at CCC Events we understand that it's not always possible to get your whole team out of the office for an 'official' Team Build as often as you'd like. That's why we're proud to introduce our new blog series, Easy Office-Based Team Building Ideas! Whether it's your first foray into the world of team building, or you are looking for something to tide you over until your next away day, we'll be posting a series of small team builds that you can run yourselves, from your office, with minimum planning or fuss.

The Scavenger Hunt

A Scavenger Hunt is an easy way to get everybody working together in a fun frenzy of activity. Use it to get over the mid-day slump or before a meeting and your staff will be buzzing with excitement - especially the winning team.

The aim of The Scavenger Hunt is for each team to try and find as many of the items on the list as possible within a set time limit. This is an office-based activity, but if you work in a city or near a park, you may want to allow teams to get out and about as they search for items (if you trust them to come back!)

Begin by dividing the group into teams - three to six people per team is perfect. A mixture of senior/junior, male/female and different age groups in each team is a great way of getting people to mix with those they might not otherwise. Alternatively, simply pick names from a hat.

Once everybody has found their team, hand out a list of Scavenger Hunt Items. A range of easy and difficult items is good - here are some of our favourites:

• Coin dated 1999
• Cassette Tape
• Picture of the MD
• Your company logo
• Safety pin
• Stress Ball
• The Queen
• Novelty hat
• Stuffed animal
• Golf Tee
• Balloon
• Promotional Item
• Company Award

Encourage teams to think outside of the box - items don't have to be literal. A hand-drawn caricature of the MD, for example, is more creative and will provide more laughs than a printed photo from your website! Give the teams a time limit - 15 minutes if you're looking for a quick motivator, or up to an hour if if you really want to get the teams working together (adjust the number of items on the list accordingly).

When everyone has returned, get the teams to present the items they managed to find - the team that got the most is the winner!

Award a small prize or treat to the winning team, and if you want to get your office looking ship-shape again, consider giving another prize to the first team to return all of their items to where they found them.

If you want to take your team building further, take a look at our website or call 0845 006 06 06 to speak to one of our fabulous team.

Sun, Sea and Sand for CCC at Yellow Wave Cafe

The CCC team are still finding sand in all sorts of places today after a fantastic day spent team building at the superb Yellow Wave Cafe in Brighton.

Situated on the heart of Brighton Beach, Yellow Wave offers volleyball and beach sport facilities, as well as chilled out, refreshing, beachy vibes in their gorgeous Barefoot Cafe full of homemade goodies. It's an instant hit with everyone and has fast become one of our favourite home town venues.

Event Manager Zoe commented:

"With it's washed out decking and amazing chilled out atmosphere, this is one of the nicest places I've visited in Brighton. For clients it's a really unique venue experience because you can begin a Team Adventure from the cafe in the morning,  and then finish the day with a friendly volleyball match, followed by barbecue and drinks - all with a sea view!"

The CCC Team were treated to a mighty feast of a barbecue on our return from the event, followed by a team coaching session from one of the resident volleyball experts and of course, a few ciders in the sun - from some of the friendliest and most relaxed staff around.

It's only a short walk from Yellow Wave to Brighton Pier and The Lanes but if you're feeling really indulgent, you can pop next door and hop on the famous Volk's Victorian Railway and enjoy a ride on the 'world's oldest operating electric railway'.

We will certainly be back (if only for their incredible smoothies) to spend some time enjoying our glorious city.

If you and your team fancy a day beside the seaside and would like to take advantage of our free venue finding service, give us a call on 0845 006 06 06 or visit our website for more info.

Team Building On the High Seas - Near Brighton, East Sussex

If you're stuck for ideas for a way to enliven your team's conference this year, why not think about a trip out in a yacht!

Such was the thinking for the team from Danone recently, and we arranged for them to take to two yachts and sea what all the fuss is about.

Unfortunately the wind had dropped to almost nothing, as you can see from the photos - believe it or not, that smooth, glassy surface is in fact the open sea! Not letting something like a lack of wind put a halt on proceedings the teams chose to take full advantage of the sunny weather and take a swim.

After a dip it was time for a bit of competitive fishing, while the crews took turns power boating up and down Brighton's coastline - we are assured that the choppy waves caused by the speedboat was the reason for the fish not biting!

So if you find yourself thinking that team building is all about building bridges out or twigs in the rain, why not give us a call on 0845 006 0606 and let us give you some new ideas.

'The Apprentices!' team build gets a technological makeover in London

It wasn't just the mid-summer heat wave that had our teams fired up in London this week - The Apprentices! event had teams running around the city, haggling for the best prices and filming TV commercials to win the challenge and avoid those famous last words; 'You're fired!' We had the pleasure of working from the luxurious St Ermin's Hotel in central London where the staff couldn't have been more helpful and the decor was immaculate. We even got a sneak peak of the Olympic torch from our conference room window!

Teams were kitted out with iPads, digital cameras, HD video cameras and two-way radios to help them fight it out over who would be hired and who would be fired at the end of a very hectic day!

Our experienced front man Terry Bird had the teams begging for forgiveness when they arrived late and making final pleas in the board room - putting them through their paces in a battle of race-against-time business challenges.

Event Manager Katrina commented:

'The clients wanted something business focused, using the latest technology, whilst still being good fun - The Apprentices! event is perfect for just that. We tailored the event to have teams answer ridiculous radio requests from our tycoon, shoot their own TV commercials and create final pitches on their team iPads - it worked really well.'

Having the opportunity to tailor our award winning events with some of our in-house technology keeps us all on our toes in the office and we love to see a good plan come together - here's what our clients had to say:

'Thanks so much for the activity, really good fun. Sir Terrence was excellent, everyone enjoyed it, many thanks to you all!'

Think that your team would fare against our 'terrible tycoon'? Think you've got more business savvy than your colleagues? Want to see your boss grovelling for forgiveness? Then give our team a call on 0845 006 06 06 or visit our website for more info.

CCC's Bushcraft expert stars in new series - Jimmy's Forest

Edible or deadible? asks our Bushcraft expert Heath Dawson, as he holds up two rather innocent looking bits of shrub from the forest. "Edible" cries one of the team members. "Then I'm afraid you would be dead within an hour if you ate this!" replies Heath. Heath Dawson is an absolute legend in the woodland, and the very best of our CCC Events Bushcraft instructors. Over the years he has taught bushcraft and nature skills to thousands of people from businessmen in corporate team building days, children, hen & stag parties, to park rangers and scout groups. And it is Heath's vast expertise and welcoming nature that makes CCC Events Bushcraft days so popular!

He is, in fact, so knowledgeable that he is now set to appear in the new series 'Jimmy's Forest', starting tonight at 9pm on More4 with Jimmy Doherty. Jimmy's Forest takes viewers on a modern boy's own outdoor adventure deep inside a pristine Norfolk woodland. Country boy, farmer, insect lover and natural history enthusiast Jimmy Doherty is in his element high up in a spectacular tree house, fully equipped with its own suspended walkways, zip wires and science lab.

Joining him around the camp fire and in the lab are friends and experts who help him make new discoveries and carry out experiments to understand the inner workings of a British forest. The series charts the seasonal transformation of the forest and the challenges and pleasures it holds for Jimmy.

Jimmy, also well know for being a good friend of Jamie Oliver and rare-breeds farmer, has had a string of successful TV hit series including the most recent Jimmy and the Giant Supermarket, A Farmer's Life for Me and Jimmy's Food Factory.

So if the skills of a bushman interests you, then tune in tonight and keep your eyes peeled for Heath! He's due to appear in -

Episode 1 - Spring. Broadcasting on 6th August @ 9pm on More4

Episode 3 - Autumn. Broadcasting on 20th August @ 9pm on More4

Episode 4 - Winter. Broadcasting on 27th August @ 9pm on More4

And for those adventurous corporate groups out there who like to break away from the norm and get out in the wilderness, contact CCC Events for more information on our Bushcraft skills days or weekends on 0845 006 06 06.

Tessa Turns 30!

It's not every day one of our Senior Sales & Events Co-ordinators turns the big 30 so here at CCC HQ we thought we'd make a fuss!

Tessa has been with CCC for nearly 5 years and is one of our most experienced sales & event coordinators selling over 200 of our award winning events!

With her jolly Yorkshire accent and infectious laugh, our clients always love working with Tess - and so do we. Tess had always wanted flowers delivered to work so we all pitched in and made it happen for her - aren't we a lovely 'bunch'?

If you would like to talk to our super-friendly team about organising your next team building event why not give our lovely sales co-ordinators a call on 0845 006 06 06 or visit our website for more info.

The Stakes are High at The Studio, Birmingham

The Studio is a great modern venue in central Birmingham and was the site for a recent and very successful High Stakes Horse Racing Event.

The stakes were high as 100 guests sat for dinner and the races commenced. In High Stakes Horse Racing teams use electronic keypads to place bets on a series of races, that are then shown 'live' on the big screen.

The computer does all the hard work and guests can enjoy the thrill of the races from the comfort of the dinner table.

 The event was compered by the great Mike Reddy, who throws himself into every role with abandon.

Event Manager Mike Horner said:

"Mike always puts amazing effort into his characters, whether he's acting in a murder mystery or simply presenting a quiz or racing event. For this character he styled himself the true Victorian dandy, down to pocket-watch and monocle, and had even learned 'tic tac' - not just a small mint it turns out, but the complex series of hand gestures that bookmakers use at the races to signal odds."

The finer details of Mike's hand gestures and racecourse slang were lost on many, but that actually contributed to the enjoyment, and laughter rang out for the entire evening!

For more information on High Stakes Horse Racing, or any of out events, give us a call on 0845 006 06 06

Two days of Team Building at Pendell House

The CCC Events team set off for a two day extravaganza of fun team building activities in Surrey at a privately hired estate. As a flexible team building company not only do we offer a free venue finding service for our clients, but we can adapt and fit in with privately hired grounds and manor houses. Pendell House in Bletchingly was a prime example of one of these events.

As we drive up the long and winding gravel driveway we are greeted by a smart team of service staff in their crisp shirts and bow ties. The house is breathtaking! Pendell House is something special: a Grade I listed country house designed by the architect Inigo Jones.

Friday night after the clients finish their sumptuous 3 course supper with champagne we led them to the lounge, where we had set up The Ultimate Quiz Show. Our compere for the evening, and one of our most experienced actors, Terry Bird, led them through musical, TV and general knowledge rounds using interactive voting technology from the comfort of their sofas!

After the winner is announced the clients retired to their rooms to save their energy for the next day's challenges. The company had chosen countries and have requested to run their own 2012 Games in teams out on the back lawn!

France, Brazil, Japan and Jamaica are now set to compete in a series of outdoor fun games - playing for Gold Medals! The teams had a fantastic time, despite the drizzle, grabbed their rain macs and fought to the bitter end! And the winner was France...although sabotage and foul play was suspected by the competing countries!  Overall, a successful two days of team building in Surrey and another happy client.

For more information on free venue finding, or team building events in Surrey please call 08450 06 06 06 or visit our website.

CCC Joins Compton Hospice Fundraising Day in Wolverhampton

Team CCC recently had a great day working for the fantastic Compton Hospice Charity, in West Park Wolverhampton, where they were trying to raise money and awareness for the hospice by putting on a family fun day. It's just the kind of thing that the Team Building Company of the Year like to do with their weekends...

The Compton Hospice does some really amazing and selfless work and so it was a charity that CCC were very happy to be working for.

Compton Hospice has been supporting patients facing a life-limiting illness, and their families, for 30 years; Our purpose is to make a difference to people’s lives when their illness is no longer curable; We do this by treating people, not conditions, whether their needs are physical, psychological, social or spiritual.

I was more than happy to get involved in the day, travelling up north with my team, loaded up with off-road radio controlled cars, giant board games, archery, laser clay pigeon shooting and of course, our enormous mobile climbing and abseiling tower!

On the day we were not totally convinced that our British summer weather was planning to be on its best behaviour, so we took plenty of provisions to keep the public (and ourselves!) dry - but the heavens were smiling on us and the majority of the day was actually sunny!

We saw thousands of families from Wolverhampton throughout the day coming to have a go at all the activities - most impressively many children who were brave enough to reach the top of our 40 foot climbing wall - one seven year old even informed me that it was 'no big deal' and that he would 'triple somersault off the top if we let him' - kids eh? For some reason I decided not to tell him that I had only made it half way up that morning...

Our experienced climbing instructors took each participant through a one-on-one session all the way to the top of the tower making sure everyone made it safely and with a new found love of climbing.

Even our staff got involved in the action - here you can see Kenny, one of our most experienced team members, looking particularly proud of himself for making it all the way to the top!

All in all it was a marvellous day to be a part of and we can't wait to get involved in the next one - perhaps we'll even win the raffle this time!

If you think your team are brave enough to face our climbing wall or even try our abseiling or death slide events why not get in touch and talk to one of our team about our outdoor events on 0845 006 06 06 or visit our website for more details.