I spent this weekend at my first ever WordCamp event. It just so happened that this one was local to me, being held in Portsmouth at the Portland Building, which is part of the sprawling Portsmouth University campus.
This was the fourth WordCamp and overall I would say was a huge success. I’m not going to write reams of notes here as most will be found on the official WordCamp UK Wiki.
WordCamp UK - The Delegates
The event was very well organised by Tony Scott with regular email updates prior to and during the event. The organisers had been hit by a few last minute drop-outs but kept the event running smoothly and generally on-time.
The speakers were generally excellent and there was a lot of talented people present, both speaking and in the audience. Designers, developers, theme creators, plugin creators, security experts, SEOs and more. Kimb Jones gave a couple of excellent talks on plugins and themes which made the event worthwhile by itself. If you’re a WordPress enthusiast or just use for your own blog or website, this really is a great resource to tap into.
Kimb Jones - Plugins Presentation
WordCamp UK was supported by many sponsors ranging from Microsoft (ubelly.com) down to small ‘microsponsors’ all of who helped to keep the ticket costs low. StinkyInk deserve a special mention with their support and the free gifts they were giving out. A bribe always works! 
At the end of the event, Tony sought feedback from the delegates about how to improve the conference and I’m sure next year’s will be even better. It’s really great to know that WordPress has such an active support community in the UK. No more that feeling of isolation when something goes wrong with an install or upgrade.
Well done to the organisers and speakers. Hopefully, I’ll see you next year.
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