A Brief History & Definition of Terms
1. The Forum
The Internet Forum was born in 2007 as a direct result of The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, an ill-worded and vague piece of European Union legislation that gave governments and fire services little practical guidance on how to implement it. Fire Services therefore decided to set the bar high resulting in the closure of many accommodation businesses. At the time independent accommodation providers were totally without representation and the newly-created Internet Forum now provided them with a connection through which they could communicate with one another. Since inception the topics discussed are numbered in hundreds and the number of message posts currently stands around 57,000.
The Forum uses IP Board technology hosted on this page: www.bedposts.org.uk/community/.
2. BedPosts
During Forum discussions members began to relate to one another and organise themselves to get more benefits. These are some of the milestones:
- the establishment of a brand name - BedPosts - a pun on the fact that members with bedposts also post messages
- move of the BedPosts Forum to its own dedicated website - www.BedPosts.org.uk
- forum members' advertising on www.BedPosts.uk
- first BedPosts conference in Oxford in January 2012 (now repeated eannually)
The name BedPosts refers collectively to the the Forums, the services related to the Forums and the two websites - bedposts.org.uk & bedposts.uk.
3. BedPosts Business Club
At the 2013 Stratford-upon-Avon conference participants voted for the establishment of the BedPosts Business Club. 12 participants thrust £50 cheques and IOUs into the hands of the visibly-shocked BedPosts Chair, Roy Magregor and Vice-Chair, Carol Starkey.
And so it came to pass that the BedPosts Business Club, pioneered by an active forum member Sylvia Neal, launched on 7th October 2013. It has an exciting agenda to further the business interests of its subscribers, initially to counter the growing dominance of online travel agents, reviews websites and price comparison websites.
The name BedPosts Business Club refers to a formally-constituted subscription-based organisation with executive committee providing advanced marketing services accessible via the links on the left. To upgrade click the Join link.
The founding members of BedPosts Business Club:
| Establishment | Website | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Greenacres | greenacres-lindale.co.uk | Lindale, Cumbria |
| Firs Cottage | web.onetel.com/~marrow/ | Llanrwst, Conwy |
| Bowers Hill Farm | bowershillfarm.com | Broadway, Worcestershire |
| Manor Farm | manorfarmbnb.demon.co.uk | Chipping Campden, Gloucestershire |
| Windrush | windrushhouse.com | Broadway, Worcestershire |
| Clopton Orchard Farm | cloptonorchardfarm.co.uk | Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire |
| Brymbo | brymbo.com | Chipping Campden, Gloucestershire |
| Bran Mill Cottage | branmillcottage.co.uk | Moreton-in-Marsh, Gloucestershire |
| Bull Lodge | bulllodge.co.uk | York, North Yorkshire |
| 9 Green Lane | 9greenlane.co.uk | Buxton, Derbyshire |
| Swiss Cottage | swisscottagemarlow.co.uk | Marlow, Buckinghamshire |
| Ridgeway Lodge | bedbreakfast-ridgewaylodge.co.uk | Princes Risborough, Buckinghamshire |