Venue at a glance
The Tomlinson Centre is a multi-room conference, training, and events venue in Hackney, housed within a converted school building with high ceilings, large windows, and adaptable layouts. Managed by Hackney Venues, the centre combines affordable published pricing with in-house catering, hybrid-ready AV infrastructure, and specialist spaces including an IT training suite and a one-way mirror observation room.
The venue is particularly well suited to conferences, workshops, training programmes, hybrid events, research sessions, and creative industry bookings that need flexibility without central London pricing.
Why choose this venue
Okoruwa Hall includes three Birddog PTZ cameras and an engineer's live editing desk, giving organisers built-in infrastructure for hybrid conferences, livestreams, and recorded content without needing to build production from scratch.
Several suites divide into smaller rooms or operate as larger connected spaces, making the venue practical for events needing breakout rooms, catering zones, workshops, or parallel sessions.
The venue publishes room hire pricing openly by room, session, and layout, which helps organisers budget accurately before making an enquiry. Few London venues provide this level of pricing visibility.
Haggerston Overground station is approximately five minutes away on foot, with direct Windrush line links into Whitechapel, Highbury & Islington, and wider London transport connections.
The venue includes a dedicated IT training suite (Vygotsky 2) and a Control Room with a one-way observation mirror, making it suitable for research, user testing, training delivery, and specialist workshop formats.
Planning details
Best for
- Conferences up to 160 delegates
- Hybrid and livestreamed events
- Corporate training
- Workshops and away days
- UX testing and research sessions
- Public sector and charity events (venue hire discounts available for registered charities)
- Fashion and creative industry events
- Meetings requiring breakout flexibility
Less suited to
- Exclusive-use weddings or private celebrations
- Events requiring on-site accommodation
- Car-dependent delegate groups
- Large-scale gala events above 160 seated delegates
- Outdoor events requiring terrace or garden space
Catering
- Model All catering is provided in-house by the venue team. Styles include tea and coffee stations, breakfast catering, working lunches, café lunches, afternoon tea, drinks receptions, and sweet treats and refreshments. Indicative pricing from third-party listings (confirm with venue): tea and coffee from ~£2.85pp, working lunch from ~£8.00pp, café lunch ~£13.75pp, afternoon tea from ~£15.00pp.
- External External caterers are not permitted.
- Bars The venue holds an alcohol licence (a Tagvenue listing cites a licence until 23:00) and a late licence is available on request. In-house bar and prosecco service is available through the catering team. Confirm full bar provision and licensing for your event directly with the venue.
- Dietary Menus label common dietary categories, and alternatives such as gluten-free, vegan, and dairy-free are available on request for selected packages. Confirm specifics with the catering team.
Accessibility
- Features Wheelchair accessible rooms
- All rooms have disabled access (per venue)
- Natural daylight in all rooms
- Lift access across floors (confirm with venue)
- Step-free internal access (confirm with venue)
- Accessible toilet facilities (confirm with venue)
- Caveat No on-site parking is available. Guests with access requirements arriving by car should discuss nearby parking options with the venue before booking. Floor-by-floor detail such as lift access and accessible toilets should be confirmed with the venue.
Sustainability
- Details Managed by Hackney Venues and the London Borough of Hackney. Specific sustainability policies and accreditations were not published at the time of review. Confirm with venue.
Pricing notes
- Okoruwa Hall
- Full day £1,175 + VAT
- Half day £750 + VAT
- Evening £882 + VAT
- Layout change fee £150 + VAT
- Evening mandatory security £156 + VAT
- Note Evening hire requires mandatory security.
- Vygotsky Suite
- Vygotsky 1 or 2 (full day, each) £640 + VAT
- Whole suite (full day) £1,080 + VAT
- Maslow Suite
- Maslow 1 or 2 (full day, each) £560 + VAT
- Whole suite (full day) £980 + VAT
- Bloom Suite
- Bloom 1 (full day) £610 + VAT
- Bloom 2 (full day) £450 + VAT
- Whole suite (full day) £940 + VAT
- Bandura Suite
- Bandura 1 (full day) £470 + VAT
- Bandura 2 (full day) £635 + VAT
- Whole suite (full day) £980 + VAT
- Piaget Suite
- Piaget 1 or 2 (full day, each) £640 + VAT
- Whole suite (full day) £1,080 + VAT
- Control Room
- Full day £310 + VAT
- Half day £220 + VAT
- Evening £352 + VAT
- Evening mandatory security £156 + VAT
- Note Standalone bookings unavailable after 16:30.
- Small Meeting Rooms
- Meeting Room 1 (full day) £310 + VAT
- Meeting Rooms 2 and 3 (full day, each) £175 + VAT
- Technical support
- Additional AV technician (from) £220 + VAT
- Note Request in advance for complex productions.
Space combinations
- Okoruwa Hall + breakout suites Conferences with parallel sessions
- Bandura Suite + catering area Training and workshop events
- Vygotsky Suite + meeting rooms IT-led training programmes
- Control Room + Piaget rooms UX testing and moderated research
Wedding notes
- Ceremonies The Tomlinson Centre is part of the Hackney Venues portfolio and accommodates weddings, receptions, civil partnerships, dinners, and private celebrations. Civil ceremony arrangements are managed through Hackney's registration service. Confirm directly with the venue and registrar which spaces are licensed for legal ceremonies.
- Notes The venue does not offer exclusive-use hire; multiple clients may use different rooms within the building on the same day.
Compare event spaces
Okoruwa Hall
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Pairs well with Maslow Suite
Maslow Suite
Flexible conference and workshop suites adjacent to catering facilities The Maslow Suite separates into two equal-sized spaces or combines into a larger event space suited to training programmes…
Pairs well with Okoruwa Hall
Bloom Suite
Characterful former assembly hall with apex ceilings The Bloom Suite retains original school architectural features, including a tall apex ceiling that gives the space a more character-led feel…
Bandura Suite
Flexible suite with panoramic Hackney views The Bandura Suite is light-filled with large windows and strong natural daylight, with panoramic views of Hackney and beyond. The space separates…
Piaget Suite
Mid-sized meeting and training rooms with flexible split configuration The Piaget Suite can be booked as one larger space or divided into two independent rooms (Piaget 1 and…
Pairs well with Control Room and Observation Suite
Control Room and Observation Suite
Specialist research and UX testing facility with one-way mirror The Control Room is a specialist observation facility designed for user testing, focus groups, interviews, and research activity. The…
Pairs well with Piaget Suite
Small Meeting Rooms
Practical breakout and confidential meeting rooms The smaller meeting rooms support interviews, coaching sessions, breakout discussions, and smaller training groups. They are suited to straightforward business use where…
Pairs well with Vygotsky Suite
Capacity matrix
| Space | Theatre | Boardroom | Cabaret | Classroom | Action |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Okoruwa Hall | 160 | 40 | 100 | 80 | Ask |
| Maslow Suite | 100 | 34 | 80 | 66 | Ask |
| Bloom Suite | 100 | 32 | 60 | 42 | Ask |
| Bandura Suite | 100 | 32 | 60 | 64 | Ask |
| Piaget Suite | 50 | 18 | 32 | 24 | Ask |
Facilities and services
Facilities & Amenities
Getting there
The Tomlinson Centre is located on Queensbridge Road in Hackney, close to Haggerston and Dalston in East London.
AddressEast London, London
PostcodeE8 3ND
AreaEast London, London
Nearest stationHaggerston Overground Station — ~5 min walk
Good forAwards and galas, Conferences, Meeting rooms, Training venues, Weddings
- Haggerston Overground Station ~5 min walk — direct Windrush line links to Whitechapel and Highbury & Islington
- Nearby bus routes include the 55, 149, 236, 242, 243, and N242
- No on-site parking
- Hackney's cycle network and nearby Santander Cycles docking stations make the venue practical for delegates arriving by bike
Frequently asked questions
Is it good for conferences?
Yes. The venue is particularly strong for conferences and training events up to 160 delegates in Okoruwa Hall, with breakout spaces, hybrid event capability, in-house catering, and flexible layouts across multiple floors.
Which room has the best views?
Okoruwa Hall and the Bandura Suite both feature panoramic views across Hackney and wider London from the upper floors.
Can it be hired exclusively?
No. The venue does not offer full exclusivity, and multiple clients may use different rooms within the building on the same day.
Is it accessible?
The venue states it is wheelchair friendly and that all rooms have disabled access. Floor-by-floor detail such as lift access and accessible toilets should be confirmed with the venue.
Does it include AV and WiFi?
Yes. Every room includes AV equipment, projector and screen, plasma screens, PA and microphones, flipchart and markers, a Chromebox with webcam, and free WiFi (superfast, up to 1Gbps) as standard.
How close is transport?
Haggerston Overground station is approximately a five-minute walk away. Multiple bus routes also stop nearby on Queensbridge Road and Kingsland Road.