Liverpool Arena and Convention Centre partners LJMU on employment

IMAGE: From back left; Kerry McLeish, Dr Lindsey Gaston, Professor Mark Power, Faye Dyer.

Liverpool’s visitor economy is set to benefit from a new alliance between the city’s world-leading Arena and Convention Centre and Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU).

The ACC Liverpool Group runs the multi-purpose event complex on Liverpool’s waterfront, which includes M&S Bank Arena, Exhibition Centre Liverpool and the convention centre and hosts pop concerts, conferences and even LJMU’s annual Fresher’s Fair!

And it is hoping to tap into talent graduating from LJMU’s successful Events and Marketing courses as well as share research in tourism, marketing, management and operations from the university’s Liverpool Business School.

Kerry McLeish, Event Manager at The ACC Liverpool Group, said: “We are really excited to be working in partnership with Liverpool Business School at LJMU and to be supporting students.  This will be a mutually beneficial arrangement where the business students of the future will research important industry topics for us and exchange research material. 

“We will use this intelligence to look at opportunities across our organisation and campus while the students gain invaluable insight and knowledge for their future careers.”

Since opening in 2008, the ACC campus has attracted more than 8.3 million visitors to around 4,500 events and generated £2.1bn in economic benefit for the local economy.

CEO Faye Dyer said the tie-up embodied the group's wider ambitions for the city region: “By working together, we can really capitalise on economic opportunity and make this city as attractive as it can be for visitors and residents, improving the quality of jobs and of life.”

Dr Lindsey Gaston, a senior lecturer at LBS said the new partnership had grown out of the LJMU Events Management programme’s student placement and research programme and would help retain talent in the city region.

He said: “As we saw with the best-ever Eurovision, Liverpool has a talent when it comes to the visitor economy which creates income, jobs, and growth. Our students love Liverpool and want to stay and work in the area. 

“This partnership not only improves student learning through co-created projects and work experience but also enhances their potential future employment. It’s win-win as sharing research and consultancy will be mutually beneficial to academics, students and The ACC Liverpool Group.”

The ACC Liverpool Group staff have been frequent visitors to the university, by providing guest lectures in areas like event operations, risk management and ethics. Events students have also been given opportunities to staff international conferences to gain work experience.

Davey Taverner, a recent graduate from the BA Events Management course worked voluntarily at the venue while a student: “I worked at the UKIFDA Expo 2022 and it really spurred me on. You really need to get first-hand insight into the management of a large-scale event.

“I worked alongside a range of professionals and put my hand to various jobs, which gave me the confidence and ability to trust in my skills and move forward with my chosen career as a Digital Marketing Manager.”

The ACC Liverpool Group and LJMU formally signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Thursday, 9 November.