Preston venue hire
At our Preston Campus, we have a wide selection of meeting, training and event spaces that are adaptable to suit your requirements. Find out more about our venue hire options below.
Find your venue
Based within walking distance of Preston train station, we offer spaces across a range of buildings on-campus. Our rooms range from small comfortable classrooms to large lecture theatres, with a maximum capacity of 470 delegates. Our specialist outdoor event spaces are also available throughout the year for corporate receptions, live music, community events, markets and more.
Situated in the heart of Lancashire, Preston boasts convenient accessibility, being well-connected by major transportation networks, including rail and road links. The city's rich history and architecture provide a unique backdrop for any event. Take a look at the spaces we have on offer below.
Outdoor spaces
The Rooftop Terrace on our Student Centre offers a relaxed event space overlooking Preston.
With a maximum capacity of 120 people, the terrace is ideal for summer parties and corporate events.
As part of our commitment to green spaces on campus, we have welcomed a population of bees to our Student Centre roof. Their hives are situated just outside of the roof terrace, meaning they are perfectly situated to pollinate the gardens.
There are some restrictions on when we can book out this space during term-time, please get in touch to discuss availability.
Located in front of our new Student Centre, the University Square offers a large outdoor space ideal for a range of events. Mains power available, suitable for event infrastructure. Premises Licence in place.
The square is approx. 2000m2 with capacity for up to 4000 people (dependant on event set-up).Rates for full-day or 4-hour hire available.
Located between Foster Building and the EIC Building, Foster Square offers a medium sized outdoor space suitable for a variety of events. Some mains power available, suitable for event infrastructure.
The square is approx. 1000m2 with capacity of up to 2000 people (dependant on event set-up).Rates for full-day or 4-hour hire available.
UCLan Sports Arena
Our Sports Arena is Preston’s premier multi-sports venue. We cater for a wide range of outdoor sports. We are also experienced in organising and delivering successful corporate events. We can tailor events to suit the needs of your organisation and there are a number of activities you can choose from.
For Sports Arena bookings, please contact the team via email or telephone
Indoor spaces
This central hub offers our students access to a range of support services and space to study while enjoying refreshments from the café.
We can book out spaces across this open plan building for evening events and at weekends during term-time. We have more flexibility for weekday events outside of term time.
Upper ground social spaces
Both of our Upper Ground Social Spaces are suitable for informal dining and networking.
With a capacity of 300, each space includes large round tables, fixed sofa style seating and some movable tables and chairs.
We encourage viewing of these spaces prior to booking.
Lower ground floor
Our Lower Ground Floor includes a café, foyer and Student Support area.
Booking of these spaces is restricted during term time, however, we have some flexibility during the summer months.
The Lower Ground Floor often works well as a base for an event registration desk, allowing you to easily direct guests to the Upper Ground Floor or Roof Terrace.
Foster Social Space is protected for student use during term-time. Outside of term time we can book it out for a range of events.
The furniture in the space is usually not movable. If you wish to do this, please let us know when you contact us.
The social space is also next to Foster Refectory, allowing more space for larger events.
We have a wide range of classroom spaces available. Our classrooms come with a range of seating capacities. The majority of rooms are fully equipped with presentation facilities.
Room layouts can be changed to suit your needs, for example, theatre style, cabaret or boardroom.
Capacities range from 1 to 120 people.
We have a wide range of lecture theatres available. Our lecture theatres have a range of seating capacities and are fully equipped with presentation facilities.
Capacities range from 36 to 470 people.
Sir Tom Finney Sports Centre
Named after a Preston and England footballing legend, the Sir Tom Finney Sports Centre is our multi-million-pound, state-of-the-art indoor facility located at the heart of our Preston Campus.
For Sports Centre bookings, please contact the team via email or telephone
As a University, we have a range of specialist spaces, from laboratories, performance spaces, clinics and training areas such as our crime scene flats and moot courtroom. Not all of our specialist spaces are currently available for hire, however, if you are interested in a particular venue, please let us know and we can look into options for you.
Preston venue hire pricing
We offer a personalised service and will provide you with a tailored quote on receipt of your enquiry.
However, we recognise that price is a major factor when booking venues, so, we have provided an overview of our pricing below.
Indoor spaces
Day delegate rate: £28+VAT
This is a good option for conferences and networking events.
Includes room hire for one main room, hospitality and presentation facilities.
Contact us to find out more about the packages available.
Classrooms: £150 to £400 per day (dependent on room capacity)
Lecture Theatres: £300 to £750 per day (dependent on room capacity)
Bookings held in our indoor spaces may require a 50% deposit to confirm your booking. Terms will be agreed upon confirmation of a provisional booking.
Outdoor spaces
Please contact us to discuss your requirements and allow us to offer a tailored quote.
For all bookings held on our outdoor squares, a 50% deposit is payable on booking and full payment is required before the booking commences.
Roof Terrace
We welcome you to visit our roof terrace and meet with one of our specialist team. This will allow us to discuss your requirements and bring together a tailored quote.
Sports Facilities
For information on sports facility pricing, please contact:
Bookings and Enquiries
To make an enquiry please complete the form linked below and a member of the team will be in touch.
Contact the teamQuestions about Venue Hire at UCLan
We are happy to discuss individual accessibility requirements and work to see these are met. However, as an overview, all our buildings are wheelchair accessible and have accessible toilets. You can find all building access information on our AccessAble site. We have a selection of rooms with a fitted induction loop and can support you in booking BSL interpreters.
As teaching is our main priority as a University, we can only advise on building/room availability once we have received your enquiry with date(s), time(s) and attendee numbers. Please complete this short form and we will come back to you on venue availability.
Our venues are flexible allowing you to use a variety of different spaces for your booking (dependant on availability).
To access our buildings on campus your delegates will require visitor swipe cards. We will provide these on arrival. You will be asked to return them at the end of your hire. There is a small fee payable for any cards not returned, to allow us to replace them.
Classrooms and Lecture Theatres - 1 to 470 delegates.
Student Centre:
- Social Spaces – 300 in each space
- Other spaces in the building vary depending on room layout. Please contact us to discuss options.
Foster Social Space – 200.
Outdoor spaces:
- Student Centre Roof Terrace – 120
- Foster Square – 2000
- University Square – 4000
Sir Tom Finney Sports Centre:
- Sports Hall – maximum capacity of 950. Bleacher seating for 250.
- Studio Blue – 75
- Studio Red – 50
The Sports Arena offers a wide range of facilities, the capacity of each varies depending on the sports activity taking place:
- Two 3G pitches
- Seven grass pitches
- One all-weather hockey pitch
- Four tennis/netball courts
- Six five-a-side AstroTurf football grids
- Indoor meeting room – seats 30 theatre style
Parking is not available on campus during the academic term. Outside of term time, we can often offer some parking, however, this may come at an additional charge. There are public pay and display parking options available nearby.
Preston Train Station is situated on the west coast mainline and along with Preston Bus Station, is a short 5 to 10-minute walk from the Preston City Campus. There are also taxis directly outside the train station.
We can provide a variety of catering options to suit any event, from working lunches, dinners, champagne receptions and outdoor vendors.
Our modern rooms include presentation facilities, Wi-Fi, as well as some in-house solutions for hybrid events. For large events, our experienced team can advise on event infrastructure options and liaise with suppliers if needed.
A range of our venues have a Premises Licence, but not all.
Any licensable activity on campus must first be approved by our in-house licence holders.
Where you would like to host licensable activity in a venue without a licence, a TENs application will have to be made. We will liaise with you on this.
To query licensing on campus, please get in touch.
The majority of our buildings are open from 8am to 9pm Monday to Friday.
We have some availability at weekends. Please contact us to find out more.
Events held outside of our usual opening hours require prior approval from our Security Team. Please get in touch and we can request this.
Events held on our outdoor spaces must adhere to the terms of the licence in place for the event.
Utilities:
- University Square offers a wide range of power options, from 13amp sockets to 63amp.
- On University Square greywater is available for filling water weights. For sustainability reasons, we encourage the use of alternative weights for temporary structures where possible.
- Foster Square offers 13amp and 16amp sockets.
- Our Roof Terrace has a selection of 13amp sockets.
- Drinking water is not accessible in any of our outdoor spaces.
- Use of generators require review and approval by our health and safety team.
Toilets:
- Our Roof Terrace has two toilets in its foyer area.
- For events on University Square of 1999 attendees or less, toilets are accessible in our Student Centre from 9am to 4pm on weekdays. Use outside of these hours must first be approved by our Security Team. If you need this access, please just let us know and we will request it.
- We cannot facilitate indoor toilet access for events with 2000 or more attendees due to capacity limits.
- There are no indoor toilet facilities next to Foster Square.
- You are welcome to hire in portable toilets where needed.
Technology:
- Wi-Fi connectivity is available across all our spaces. We can offer access to a private network for food/drinks vendors to help ensure good connectivity for purchasing systems. Please request this in advance.
- Our roof terrace has an inbuilt PA system. This can be used to play music only. Please request use of this in advance.
- You are welcome to bring in PAT tested, outdoor suitable electrical equipment for your event.
Please note, access to power, greywater and indoor toilets may come at an additional charge.
We have CCTV and 24/7 security on campus. For large events or events that involve alcohol, you may be required to provide additional event security. We will review this with our Health and Safety and Security Teams as required.
We are committed to delivering sustainable events and can work with you to identify sustainable event options. Find out more about our organisational sustainability goals and processes.
Where requested in advance, our buildings team can rearrange the furniture in most rooms to suit your requirements. Please inform us of any venue set-up requirements when you enquire.
We can also hire in additional furniture and event infrastructure where needed, please contact us to discuss your requirements.
We are unable to host weddings and family parties on campus.