Mailing list archive
Message 12: 14 May 2013
Dear colleagues
As discussed in the previous message, here is the latest Congress update. Some of you will have received most of this message earlier today (apologies for the repetition), but please note the additional item 11, aimed at anyone who has recently published a volume.
1. Accommodation bookings close on Tuesday 21 May
2. Visa applications: please apply now!
3. Excursions
4. Congress Dinner
5. Accompanying people
6. Please use the correct contact address!
7. Congress programme updates
8. Withdrawing from the programme
9. The iCHSTM 2013 blog is now live!
10. A little-known fact about British trains
11. Promoting your book at the Congress
1. ACCOMMODATION BOOKINGS CLOSE ON TUESDAY 21 MAY
The deadline for booking accommodation via the Congress is in one week's time. The Congress organisers have made block reservations in hotels across central Manchester, at special reduced rates, and have also secured rooms in several University of Manchester halls of residence (dorms). Full details are available at
http://www.ichstm2013.com/hotels/
To take advantage of these special rates, if you have not yet registered, you should do so, including your room reservations, by Tuesday 21 May. The registration form is at
http://www.ichstm2013.com/registration/
If you have already registered, and want to add accommodation to your booking, please email the University of Manchester conference office at mcc.reg@manchester.ac.uk with full details of your accommodation requirements.
Please note: for hotel reservations, a non-returnable deposit equivalent to one night’s stay will be charged at the time of booking, and you should pay the remaining balance to the hotel on departure. For halls of residence, full payment will be taken at the time of booking.
2. VISA APPLICATIONS: PLEASE APPLY NOW!
If you need a visa to enter the UK, the timeframe for applications is now open: if you haven't already begun the application process, you should do so immediately to minimise the risk of non-completion. (The UK Border Agency is committing to processing 90% of applications within 3 weeks, but may in some cases take up to 12 weeks). Further guidance is available here:
http://www.ichstm2013.com/travel/visas.html
http://www.ichstm2013.com/documentation/
3. EXCURSIONS
The Congress provides delegates with the perfect opportunity to explore places of interest in the local area. There are still places available on excursions to the following sites:
- Jodrell Bank Observatory, home of the iconic Lovell Telescope: Thursday morning or Friday morning
- Quarry Bank Mill and Styal Estate, a superbly preserved cotton mill with workers' housing and gardens: Thursday afternoon
- Chatsworth, a grand stately home and ornamental gardens in Derbyshire, home to the papers of Henry Cavendish: Thursday, full day.
For further information on these excursions, see
http://www.ichstm2013.com/visits/
As above, you can book any of these excursions when you register online (http://www.ichstm2013.com/registration/), or if you have already registered and want to add an excursion to your booking, please email the University of Manchester conference office at mcc.reg@manchester.ac.uk with your request.
4. CONGRESS DINNER
The official Congress Dinner will be held at Manchester United Football Club on Saturday 27 July. The event will begin with a reception in the Manchester United Museum from 19.00. Split over three floors, the museum provides an in-depth and interactive guide to the history of the club, including United's greatest players, the drama of the 1998-99 Treble season, and the tragedy of the Munich air disaster. A three-course dinner will then be served in the stadium’s Manchester Suite from 20.00. Transport to and from Old Trafford is included.
There is also the opportunity to sign up for a tour of the stadium before the dinner. Old Trafford is the largest football club stadium in Britain, with a capacity in excess of 76 000. The tour takes visitors behind the scenes to view areas including the Sir Alex Ferguson Stand, the players’ dressing room and the players’ tunnel.
If you have already registered and want to add the conference dinner to your booking, please email the University of Manchester conference office at mcc.reg@manchester.ac.uk with your request.
5. ACCOMPANYING PEOPLE
If you are travelling with a partner or family member who is not taking part in the Congress, it is now possible to reserve places for them to accompany you at the Congress Dinner, stadium tour, or the abovementioned excursions. Please email the University of Manchester conference office at mcc.reg@manchester.ac.uk with the details of your request, including the full names of all people to be included.
Please note that the Congress doesn't have an official accompanying persons' programme. There is, however, plenty to see and do in and around Manchester, and we will be adding more information to our website in the coming weeks. See also the suggestions at the following sites:
http://www.visitmanchester.com/what-to-do/
http://www.timeout.com/manchester/features/405/10-great-things-to-do-in-manchester
http://www.studentmap.co.uk/manchester-guide/things-to-do/free-things-to-do-in-manchester (Free activities)
http://www.dayoutwiththekids.co.uk/things-to-do/Manchester (For those with children)
6. PLEASE USE THE CORRECT CONTACT ADDRESS!
Please help us to manage the very large volume of Congress correspondence as efficiently as possible by sending your queries to the correct address:
- mcc.reg@manchester.ac.uk for registration queries, changes to registrations, and requests for official documentation of invitation to support visa or funding applications
- enquiries@ichstm2013.com for programme scheduling and general queries.
Please DON'T forward queries to individual members of the Local Organising Committee. Several colleagues are dealing with very large volumes of correspondence on other parts of Congress administration, and we cannot guarantee that they will respond.
7. CONGRESS PROGRAMME UPDATES
The Congress programme was updated on 7 May, including a number of changes to session timings, and some problems with the clickable timetable have been fixed. The programme will be further updated over the next two weeks with details of special sessions and social events. Full details are at
http://www.ichstm2013.com/programme/guide/
and the timetable is at
http://www.ichstm2013.com/programme/timetable.html
8. WITHDRAWING FROM THE PROGRAMME
If your name appears on the Congress programme, but you find that you are unable to attend, we're sorry to lose you. Please tell us as soon as possible by writing to submissions@ichstm2013.com (NOT the registration address above). Responses may take several days, but all will be processed in due course.
In addition, if you are withdrawing from an organised symposium (code numbers beginning S, P and W on the programme), please contact the symposium organisers to advise them.
9. THE ICHSTM2013 BLOG IS NOW LIVE!
The Congress now has its own blog:
http://www.ichstm2013.com/blog/
The blog is updated twice weekly with short essays about the research presented at the Congress, and has so far featured postings by James F Stark, Rebekah Higgitt and Jacob Darwin Hamblin. It will also feature occasional links to videos, web pages and further information about Congress activities or things to see and do in Manchester.
The blog is managed by the Local Organising Committee's social media group. We hope that it will prove useful and interesting not only to those planning to be in Manchester, but to the many people who have found themselves unable to attend. We will also be developing other opportunities to engage with the Congress remotely, including Twitter (@ichstm2013, hashtag #ichstm), online videos and (funds permitting) live streaming.
10. A LITTLE-KNOWN FACT ABOUT BRITISH TRAINS
Finally: some advice for those whose visits to the UK will include inter-city train journeys, and who are looking to minimise travel costs. If you know exactly when and where you want to travel, it's possible to make very large savings by booking advance tickets now. For example, a return (round trip) ticket between London and Manchester outside peak commuter hours normally costs £77 if bought on the day of travel. Advance tickets for various trains during the week of 21 July, however, are currently available at a range of prices, sometimes as low as £12.50 each way. Advance tickets are non-transferrable and non-refundable, but can be very useful if your travel plans are fixed. For more details, see here:
http://www.ichstm2013.com/travel/rail-in-uk.html
11. PROMOTING YOUR BOOK AT THE CONGRESS
If you have published a volume recently, please ask your publisher to display it at the Congress: with over 1500 registered participants already, the meeting offers a tremendous promotional opportunity. Most of the leading publishers in the field have already committed to placing stands or displays at the Congress, so get in touch to make sure that your book will be included. If your publisher can't be there, please remind them that for only 40 GBP, a copy of your book can be displayed on the unstaffed exhibition table in University Place, the main Congress venue. Please advise your publisher to email publishers@ichstm2013.com for full information and a booking form.
Thanks again for all your contributions to the Congress.
Best regards
iCHSTM 2013 Local Organising Committee