Approved event supplier opportunity

Approved Event Opportunity for Historic Royal Palaces

About Historic Royal Palaces

Historic Royal Palaces (HRP) is a registered charity, responsible for the care, conservation and presentation of HM Tower of London (TOL), Hampton Court Palace (HCP), Kensington Palace State Apartments (KP), the Banqueting House at Whitehall (BH), Kew Palace (KEW) and Hillsborough Castle and Gardens (HCG) the official residence of HM The King in Northern Ireland and residence of the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.

We love and look after six of the most wonderful palaces in the world. The palaces are the setting for the stories that shape us all, and we’re bringing them to people in ways that mean more to them. We want everyone to find themselves in the spaces and stories we share.

HRP is an independent charity, receiving no government funding and derives its income principally from admissions, retail, licensing, commercial events, sponsorship and support from donors and members.

Alongside preserving these internationally recognised landmarks, HRP operates a diverse commercial business encompassing public visitor attractions, hospitality, retail, corporate events, private hire, exhibitions and cultural programming.

Opportunity overview

Historic Royal Palaces (HRP) is undertaking a review of its Approved Supplier List for venue hire across its London event venues. We are seeking expressions of interest from experienced event suppliers capable of delivering high-quality products and services that support both our commercial operations and the conservation standards expected within some of the UK's most iconic heritage venues.

The review will establish a pool of approved suppliers who can support event delivery at the following sites:

· HM Tower of London

· Hampton Court Palace

· Kensington Palace

· Banqueting House

Four separate lists will be in operation, with suppliers able to indicate during the review which site they are interested in applying for. Suppliers may apply for one or more palace locations, subject to meeting the relevant requirement.

What we are looking for

We are seeking to establish four individual lists of Approved Event Suppliers to support delivery of the commercial venue hire events business at four of our London sites.

Across the venue portfolio we offer over 20 unique indoor and outdoor event spaces and host over 400 events a year. These range from a wide range of events, from intimate dinners and receptions to large-scale conferences, weddings and multi-day events. The buildings and interiors of our venues are historically important, and many are quite fragile. To ensure their preservation for future generations it is important that they are treated with respect and care, and that events are run within strict conservation guidelines.

Suppliers will be required to cater for our full range of events, and the approved supplier list will cover the following categories:

· Catering

· Production

· Entertainment (Agencies only)

· Floristry

· Furniture/Styling

· Marquees and Temporary Structures

· Photography (HCP only)

· Pyrotechnic and Aerial Displays

The successful suppliers will be expected to work in partnership with our venue teams to build a deep knowledge of the palaces’ guidelines to deliver seamless, world-class service to our clients. Please note that inclusion on the approved supplier list does not guarantee any minimum number of bookings, volume of work or level of revenue.

Please note that prior experience working in heritage venues with similar conservation and operational guidelines is a mandatory requirement to be considered for this opportunity.  

Companies which have been formed in the UK within the last two years will not be eligible to progress to the next stage of the process.

Suppliers must demonstrate:

• Proven experience working within heritage environments.

• High standards of product quality, service delivery and customer care.

• Financial stability and operational resilience.

• Strong health & safety and compliance credentials.

• Sustainable and environmentally responsible business practices.

• Capacity to deliver across multiple London locations.

• Ability to work flexibly and collaboratively with HRP teams and event delivery partners.

Supplier relationship expectations:

• Maintain consistently high service levels.

• Support competitive and transparent pricing.

• Meet agreed SLAs and event delivery timelines.

• Operate in accordance with HRP's sustainability, ethical sourcing and supplier standards.

• Respect the unique operational requirements of historic and protected buildings.

• Pay a 10% commission to HRP on total client spend.

Next steps:

Interested suppliers will be invited to participate in the supplier review process and provide information relating to their organisation, relevant experience, operational capability, references, compliance documentation and proposed approach to supporting HRP's requirements.

The review process is expected to commence in December 2026 and will comprise a two-stage assessment process. Contracts will be awarded in September 2027 with a commencement date of 01 January 2028.

Please register your interest using this form by 27 November 2027.

Any further queries should be addressed to [email protected]

For further information on the events at each palace, please download our PDF below.