Meetings & Conferences

For most of the weekend, the West Coast main line will be closed between Hemel Hempstead and Milton Keynes. Passengers from Euston will transfer to coaches at Hemel Hempstead for the 25 miles to Milton Keynes. Journeys from London to Manchester are scheduled to take nearly four-and-a-half hours, compared with the normal two-and-a-half to three hours. In addition, passengers using London Underground to reach Euston may experience delays because of a planned weekend closure of the Metropolitan, Circle and Hammersmith and City lines between Baker Street and Farringdon stations.

Delays are also likely for conference participants travelling from the West Midlands or from the south of England via Birmingham. Closure of the line between Wolverhampton and Stafford means that some trains from Birmingham to the North-West will be diverted via an alternative route to Stafford and others will be replaced by buses as far as Stafford.

Catering for special diets

The conference organisers aim to cater for all special dietary requirements at the evening social events and at lunchtime. The conference booking form includes a space on which to give details of special requirements. Conference participants who have neglected to list their requirements should contact the conference organisers (see panel below) as soon as possible.

For those who wish to dine away from the conference, Manchester's many eateries include restaurants catering for special needs, including kosher, halal, vegetarian and vegan diets.

Jewish visitors have a choice of five supervised kosher restaurants — four meat and one dairy. A list of supervised restaurants can be obtained from the Manchester Beth Din (tel 0161 7409711; e-mail mbethdin@aol.com).

Islamic conference participants can find a choice of halal restaurants in Manchester, particularly south of the city centre along Oxford Road and Wilmslow Road.

Manchester also has a number of vegetarian restaurants and cafes, including a vegan cafe in the basement of the Manchester Buddhist Centre in Turner Street, just east of the city centre.

NAWP fringe session to pilot CPPE workshop on respiratory disease

Members of the National Association of Women Pharmacists are being invited to take part in a British Pharmaceutical Conference fringe session at which they will pilot a Centre for Pharmacy Postgraduate Education workshop on medicines management for respiratory problems. Participants will be asked to make suggestions for improving the workshop to make the final package more effective.

The NAWP event is scheduled to take place at the Manchester International Convention Conference Centre from 2 to 4.45pm on Sunday 22 September — the day before the official start of the conference. The workshop is open to all NAWP members, whether or not they have registered for the conference.

The workshop is free, but intending participants must notify the organisers in advance so as to obtain a CPPE pre-course assignment, which includes information on respiratory diseases, suggested reading and background information. The event will be preceded by an optional lunch at a cost of about £7. Those wishing to take part are asked to supply their names and addresses (for receipt of the pre-course material) and an indication of whether they require lunch to Brenda Ecclestone, Princess Royal Cottage, Butterow West, Rodborough, Stroud GL5 3UA (tel 01453 759516).

Conference club venue confirmed

The venue for this year's conference club has now been confirmed as Henry's Cafe Bar in Lower Mosley Street, Manchester. The bar is opposite the G-Mex exhibition centre, which is next to the conference venue at the Manchester International Convention Centre.

The conference club will be held on the Monday and Tuesday evenings as an alternative to the banquet and Lancashire evening or somewhere to go on to after those events. Food and drink will be available to purchase.

Harrogate for BPC 2003

The 2003 British Pharmaceutical Conference is to take place in Harrogate from 15 to 17 September. Preliminary information will be available at this year's BPC.

Administrative and organisational services for the 2003 conference will again be provided by Health Links, which successfully bid for the 2003 contract when the Society invited tenders earlier this year (PJ, 25 May, p747). The contract covers the full range of conference support, including planning and organising, publicity and marketing, and event management.

Conference essentials

Registration Conference registration forms were widely distributed early in the year. Further copies can be obtained from the conference organisers: Health Links, 3rd Floor, Windsor House, 11A High Street, Birmingham B14 7BB (tel 0121 248 3399; fax 0121 248 3390). Full conference details are also available on the Health Links website. Intending participants who have not yet registered are urged to do so as soon as possible.

Programme update Conference participants wishing to check the most up-to-date version of the conference programme should visit the British Pharmaceutical Conference website pages, which are updated regularly.

Information for conference participants Venue maps and other conference information are being mailed later this week this to those who have already registered for the conference.