Booking Policy and Price List

INTRODUCTION

The West Hub has a number of spaces within the building that are available to book. This policy outlines which spaces are considered bookable, how spaces can be used and when charges apply. This policy details how the allocation of these spaces is managed and where there are priority booking privileges for particular audiences who are key in achieving the wider aspirational goals of the West Hub and Cambridge West.

THE WEST HUB’S BOOKABLE SPACES

The bookable spaces at the West Hub sit across the first and second floor.

| FIRST FLOOR

There are 5 large bookable spaces – Room A, Room B, Room C, Room D and Room E. These are conference rooms that vary in capacity from 30 to 100 guests. For each room, capacity, equipment, and layout options can be found here on our website. Maximum capacities cannot be exceeded due to fire safety regulations. Catering deliveries can be made to these rooms. AV and IT support is available for all bookings.

| SECOND FLOOR

There are 12 smaller bookable spaces with fixed layouts that cannot be reconfigured. These rooms vary in capacity from 4 to 14 guests and are used at a higher frequency for shorter bookings.

Maximum capacities cannot be exceeded due to fire safety regulations.

AV and IT support is available for all bookings. Equipment available in all rooms can be found on our website.

Spaces not outlined above are public spaces allocated on a first come first served basis.

BOOKING MANAGEMENT

The West Hub welcomes enterprise arms, staff, students, site partners, commercial and public visitors. All audiences are welcome to use the open workspaces around the building. For booked spaces some of these audiences take priority booking status as explained below;

| CENTRAL ALLOCATION

Teaching is considered a core activity for the West Hub and is reflective of the University’s investment in the building. Each year the West Hub holds its term-time diary until the student registry team, who allocate teaching spaces to scheduled teaching sessions, have submitted their teaching bookings for the next academic year. This process is known as ‘Central Allocation’. The holiday weeks in between term-time will not be held and can be booked at any point.

The central allocation process is initially conducted by an expression of interest submitted by departments, across the university, who would like to apply for teaching space at the West Hub. Expressions of interest open in March and are submitted in April to the Student registry team as well as to the West Hub. The student registry team will consider the availability of all buildings across Cambridge West. Teaching allocated to the West Hub will be announced in July. Priority will be given to those who are based on Cambridge West.

| POST CENTRAL ALLOCATION

Following confirmation of Central Allocation, the West Hub will prioritise requests from the West Hub Library Services for onsite teaching spaces. This will be followed by the West Hub Events Programme booking requirements.

Following the allocation of these priority activities, preference will be given to paid bookings, recognising the importance of commercial income in supporting the operation of the West Hub and the delivery of its community and engagement programmes.

Next, notification will be given to those on the waitlist. Priority is given first to Cambridge West audiences aligned with the themes of Learning, Collaboration, and Community, helping to welcome diverse audiences to the West Hub and fulfil its strategic vision. Requests for teaching spaces that could not be centrally allocated will also be considered at this time.

Bookings then open to all new requests for space. Every attempt will be made to accommodate general University events, at the discretion of the West Hub staff and with guidance from the Steering Committee. One-off University events will be prioritised over recurring committee meetings.

Where possible, external events will be prioritised to ensure a stream of new audiences and revenue, supporting the Cambridge West community events programme.

The West Hub reserves the right to amend, relocate, or cancel bookings that do not fall within the priority booking categories outlined above where this is necessary to accommodate priority activities or paid bookings. While every effort will be made to provide reasonable notice and identify alternative arrangements, no guarantee can be given that non-priority bookings will be protected from displacement.

BOOKING FEES

| UNIVERSITY BOOKINGS AND EVENTS

Bookings and events organised directly by University of Cambridge members are free of charge. These events must be booked, planned and delivered by a University department. Bookings made by University members on behalf of third parties will incur venue fees at the site partner or commercial rate.

To qualify for free-of-charge use of West Hub spaces, organisers must confirm that all of the following statements apply to their booking:

• The event is solely for University of Cambridge business.
• No delegate fees or participation charges are being applied for attendance at the event.
• The event does not charge VAT on tickets, attendance, or participation.
• The booking is not being made on behalf of a third party or VAT-paying University subsidiary.
• The space will not be sublet, transferred, or used by another organisation.
• The space is not being used primarily for catering, refreshments, hospitality, receptions, or similar food and beverage services.

Events that involve delegate fees are subject to the West Hub University event rate. The West Hub reserves the right to review bookings where the scale, funding model, or external participation falls outside the scope of typical academic activities. Organisers may be asked to provide information on delegate fees, external partners, and the intended beneficiaries of the event to ensure the appropriate rate is applied.

Where a University department makes an onward supply of dedicated space to an external organisation, it is the department’s responsibility to determine the VAT liability of any onward rental charges. As the West Hub is subject to an Option to Tax, many such supplies will be subject to VAT at 20%, although exceptions may apply. Departments requiring advice on the appropriate VAT treatment should contact the University VAT Team.

Catering charges will apply to all University booking requests where catering is ordered from University Catering Service (UCS) or an approved external catering supplier.

The West Hub Media Lab service is free of charge to University members for projects requiring up to 1 hour and 30 minutes of studio and post-production time (inclusive). Additional studio or editing time will be charged at £47 per hour thereafter.

Every attempt will be made to accommodate University events, at the discretion of West Hub staff and under the guidance of the West Hub Steering Committee. One-off University events may be prioritised over recurring meetings where space availability is limited.

All bookings are issued with an Event Agreement Form outlining the applicable terms of use.

| BOOKING FEES

All prices are subject to VAT at the prevailing rate.

Minimum Booking Period
The minimum booking period for all spaces is one hour. Bookings of less than one hour will be charged as a full one-hour booking. Any additional time will be charged in accordance with the applicable hire rates.

Discounts
45% for University Bookings (Monday to Friday 8am to 7pm)
30% for Site Partners** (Monday to Friday 8am to 7pm)
50% discount on Support Spaces when booked in conjunction with any of the main rooms: Rooms A, B, C, D or E.
For multiple room bookings, the highest-value room is charged at the full applicable rate, each additional room receives a 25% discount.

*Weekday out-of-hours bookings are subject to a minimum hire price of £250, while weekend bookings are subject to a minimum hire price of £750

**Site Partners are organisations with permanent or semi-permanent physical presence on Cambridge West. Their eligibility for Site Partners Fees must be confirmed by the host organisations (with whom relevant contracts are signed), e.g. Estates Division, Departments, Maxwell Centre and ideaSpace. Eligibility is reviewed and verified on an annual basis.

For all chargeable bookings, the full facility fee is required 1 month in advance of the event.

MOVING, AMENDING AND CANCELLING BOOKINGS

Any request to amend, postpone or cancel a booking must be submitted in writing.

For chargeable bookings, cancellation charges will apply based on the notice provided:

• More than 6 months before the event: No charge.
• Between 6 months and 3 months before the event: 25% of the booking value.
• Between 3 months and 1 month before the event: 50% of the booking value.
• Less than 1 month before the event: 100% of the booking value.

Non-chargeable bookings that are cancelled with less than 1 month’s notice, or where the organiser fails to attend without prior cancellation, may be charged the applicable room hire rate for the space booked.

In some circumstances, it may be necessary for the West Hub to relocate a booking within the building to accommodate operational requirements or additional bookings. Where this occurs, the booking organiser will be notified in advance.

Non-chargeable bookings may be moved or cancelled by the West Hub to accommodate a priority audience or a fee-paying booking.

If the organiser or attendees have not arrived within 15 minutes of the booked start time, and no prior notification has been received, the West Hub reserves the right to release the space and allocate it to another user.

The West Hub reserves the right to require organisers to vacate a room at the scheduled end time of their booking. Due to the busy nature of the building, all bookings are expected to finish on time to avoid disruption to subsequent users.

The West Hub reserves the right to refuse future bookings where there has been repeated non-attendance, persistent overrunning of bookings, or inappropriate behaviour towards staff or other building users.

POLICY QUERIES AND COMPLAINTS

The West Hub is operationally independent from adjacent departments.

Its booking policy is the prerogative of the Steering Committee made up of Cambridge West audiences. Complaints or questions around the Booking Policy should be directed to the West Hub Steering Committee who own the policy and drive the strategic direction of the West Hub under the terms of their governance.

The contact point for policy queries and complaints is westhubevents@admin.cam.ac.uk