Published November 2023

Our mission is to:

Provide high quality food that meets the needs of all our customers and their allergen and dietary requirements.

Our aims are to:

• Support the needs of our customers with allergy or dietary requirements.
• Manage food safety risks including those presented by allergens.
• Ensure that foods are labelled accurately and information on menu ingredients and allergen content is available.
• Ensure as far as is reasonably practicable that foods are free from specific allergens wherever requested.

Warwick Conferences is not an allergen-free environment. Our dishes are prepared in areas where allergenic ingredients are present and therefore, we cannot guarantee that any of our food, serving items, utensils or glassware are free of allergens.

Our team are available for support and advice during the preparation for your event and will work with you as the Event Organiser to ensure that all delegates with allergens or dietary requirements are catered for and managed appropriately.

Warwick Conferences acknowledges that customers from time to time may request allergen information or dietary requirements in order to protect their safety and well-being, or as part of their life-style. For this reason, the following categories of allergens or dietary requirements are recognised, and we will support with advice and provision where possible.

• Food allergies
• Coeliac disease
• Food intolerance
• Life-style and / or Religion
• Controlled intake

Examples of the afore mentioned may be found below, however these are by no means exhaustive. If delegates require any of the identified diets or indeed one that has not been identified within the list then your Events Manager for Warwick Conferences will be only too pleased to discuss any such requirements. Please could you communicate to your delegates the different types of dietary requirements and how they are managed during the event.

Please note: Warwick Conferences would stress that any requests received from delegates in respect of allergens and dietary needs will be communicated to all teams involved in the preparation and service of food across our venues. However predisposed persons owe themselves a heightened ‘duty of care’ and therefore must make themselves known to a member of staff prior to consuming food during their stay, our team is always available to discuss a delegate’s individual requirements and answer any questions the delegate may have regarding their food provision.

Providing information

There are two ways you can provide Warwick Conferences with the allergen and dietary requirements
for your event.

• The most accurate way for us to manage the requirements is for the information to be provided in a spreadsheet format detailing who is eating at each meal service and their relevant allergen and dietary requirements.
• Alternatively, the information can be shared on the rooming list detailing any allergen and dietary requirements. This is then inputted into our booking system for the operational team to work from. This would cover all residential delegates and we would also need any requirements for any day delegates attending the event.

If you have a delegate attending your event who has very specific allergen and dietary requirements, the food and drink team would be happy to communicate directly with that delegate prior to the event, please liaise with your Event Manager to arrange this communication.

Food allergy

A food allergen; is a food or ingredient which can cause an allergic reaction in a predisposed person.
An allergic reaction is a “response within the body, to a substance (in this case a particular type of food), which is not necessarily harmful in itself, but results in an immune response and a reaction that causes symptoms and disease in a predisposed person, which in turn can cause inconvenience, or a great deal of misery”.

Anaphylaxis is a severe allergic reaction, that being the extreme end of the allergic spectrum. The whole body is affected, very often within minutes of exposure to a food allergen, but sometimes it may take hours.

The following foods and products thereof are recognised as commonly producing severe allergic reactions within the EU:

• tree-nuts
• peanut (legume)
• sesame seeds
• cereal containing gluten (for example: wheat, barley, rye and oats)
• egg (all types)
• fish (all species)
• crustaceans (for example: crab, lobster, prawn and crayfish)
• molluscs
• celery & celeriac
• milk
• soya
• mustard
• lupin
• sulphites & sulphur dioxide

Coeliac disease

Coeliac disease is a lifelong autoimmune disease caused by gluten found in wheat, barley and rye. Some predisposed persons may also be sensitive to oats. NB: Coeliac disease is not an allergy or intolerance to gluten; however the immune system mistakes part/parts of the body as foreign and attacks it.

Food intolerance

Food intolerance does not involve the immune system. Reactions may be triggered by an inability to digest a particular food. Symptoms are not usually immediate, however can be unpleasant and debilitating in some cases, and can affect long-term health, but are not normally life-threatening. There are many foods that people can be intolerant to, but the most common food intolerances are to:

• milk & lactose
• gluten & wheat
• preservatives
• naturally occurring compounds such as caffeine

Life-style / Religion

Through personal choice or for religious reasons people may choose to follow a specific diet for example:

• kosher *
• halal
• vegetarian & vegan
• pescatarian

*Please note that such meals are ordered from a specialist external supplier, with a minimum order period and therefore a notice period of ten working days is required for all such orders.

Controlled intake diet

Some people may need to follow a strict diet in order to control a medical condition, such diets may include:

• diabetic
• low fat/cholesterol
• low potassium
• low/high fibre
• FODMAP diet

If delegates have preferences for different foods that are not covered by these groups of dietary requirements then this is something the individual delegate will need to manage themselves during the event.

Managing allergens and dietary requirements

All details of allergens and dietary requirements that are communicated to your event manager are shared with all areas of the operational team, in addition any delegate who has additional requests during their stay, would also be communicated amongst the team to ensure consistency of delivery. The information below details how each element of food and drink service manages the provision of allergens and dietary requirements, feel free to share this information with the delegate in advance of the event.

At all points in our food delivery, the team will have access to the complete allergen information for all products which is compiled between the kitchen and front of house teams. In a number of locations, where a member of the team may not be present (eg coffee lounges and self service buffets) the information will be available for delegates to view as required.

All restaurants - Self-Service: (Scarman, Radcliffe, The Slate or Rootes)
The Restaurant management team will discuss all menu items with the kitchen team and ensure that all pre-advised allergen and dietary requirements are covered. The information gained from the kitchen team is used as the basis for a pre-service briefing ensuring all information is communicated. Most menu items will cover the majority of allergen and dietary requirements, however a singular meal may be prepared to cover more specific allergen and dietary requirements. Individually prepared meals will be kept back to ensure no one else consumes them. It is advisable for delegates to speak to the staff on duty regarding any allergens or dietary requirements at each meal service.

As a standard we have the following available for specific services:

• Breakfast includes a range of gluten free cereal, gluten free bread, soya milk, soya yoghurts and gluten free breakfast bars.
• Gluten and dairy free desserts are available along with the standard desserts during lunch and dinner service times.
• There is soya milk available on all coffee stations.

NB: please be aware that once the aseptic packaging of ‘gluten-free’ products has been breached the organisation can no longer fully guarantee that they remain so - owing to the fact that wheat, barley, rye and oat products are present within the premises.

Morning and Afternoon Refreshment Points:

As a standard we will always have available:
Gluten free, wheat free, dairy free and vegan biscuit alternatives, these are available and labelled as such, please ask any member of the team

• Fresh fruit
• Soya milk
• Decaffeinated and herbal teas
• Decaffeinated coffee

Private Dinners:

If any allergens and dietary requirements have been communicated in advance, then the appropriate food will have been prepared ready for the dinner. A pre-service briefing is completed with the team before the dinner commences, where the menu is explained, and all dietary requirements are highlighted. Allergens and dietary requirements are checked by the team at the start of a formal dinner, and if delegates inform the member of staff of their requirement at this time, then the staff will serve the appropriate meal for each course to them.

Lunchtime / Evening Buffets

Any delegates with specific allergen or dietary requirements will have appropriate options made available to them and your menu choice does not need to take their individual requirements into account. Meals will be prepared separately and labelled with the delegate’s name. These will be separated from the main buffet table and where possible served from a separate table. There will be signage indicating where delegates can collect their meal from if they have a pre-advised allergen or dietary requirement. It is advisable for the delegates to speak to a member of staff at the buffets regarding any allergens or dietary requirements if they are unsure as to what they can eat or if a separate meal has been prepared for them.

BBQs

Any allergen and dietary requirements will be cooked on a separate BBQ (where possible). The team on duty will ensure effective communication of the specific BBQ to avoid confusion.

Lounge and room service menus

Any delegate or guest dining from our lounge menu either in the conference centres, or in their bedrooms, can discuss allergen or dietary information with the catering team at point of order. Options are available on the menu that appropriately cover the main nationally recognised 14 allergen or dietary requirements, if suitable items are not available the catering team will look to offer alternatives.

Click to download the Allergen Statement here.Link opens in a new window