Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre


The Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre is a conference centre facility on the Caribbean island of Barbados. Owned by the Government of Barbados, and managed by the government agency Barbados Conference Services Limited, the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre is just outside the capital city of Bridgetown, in St. Michael.

Facility

First opened in 1994, the building contains a total of over of meeting space and is made up of space which may be subdivided for smaller events of between 50-1200 persons. The building is also serviced by one of the most advanced telecommunication services on the island including direct fibre optic cable access, a microwave receiving and transmitting link, a hospitality lounge with teleconferencing, internet access, audio and visual recording and editing suites, a business centre, and a multi-purpose outdoor gazebo. The Conference Centre is equipped with the latest technology in Building security.
When first constructed the building was considered too large by members of the HM Loyal Opposition and construction on back portion of the facility halted just after a change in government. Many Calypsonians sung about the side of the facility as being "unfinished" or stating the facility had its "backside exposed". After a change in government in 2008, the semi-completed ~15-year-old auditorium was torn down to make way for office space and a carpark instead. This action was much to the condemnation of the former Prime Minister that spearheaded it, Sir Lloyd Erskine Sandiford.

Features

The Barbados government also boasts having a bilateral taxation agreement with the United States where conference events held in Barbados are eligible for the Caribbean Basin Initiative-Convention Tourism Tax Credit. Applicable events held in Barbados can be treated as tax write-offs similar to when such events are held within the continental United States.

Annual events

Due to its prime location near the ABC Highway the facility is roughly a fifteen-minute drive away from the Grantley Adams International Airport, and minutes away from the hotels on the south and west coasts. A number of public buses also serve the immediate area.

Naming

On 24 October 2008, the facility's original name of Sherbourne Conference Centre was changed to its present name in honour of Lloyd Erskine Sandiford, a former prime minister of Barbados.