Conferences in Harrogate have, so far, been very special for me. The first time I went there, in 1992, I saw a message on the Wednesday for me on the noticeboard to contact the main desk. They told me to ring my parents. I had to go across the road to a payphone and feed coins into it – something that some people reading this will probably never have done. Obviously I was very worried, as my Dad had just had surgery. But the news was brilliant. My sister had given birth to her first child, the gorgeous Laura, two whole days before. And I had been too absorbed in Conference to realise. That Wednesday was in fact Black Wednesday too.

Seven years later, I was back in Harrogate with my own baby son. He was then just 3 months old and he came all over Conference with me.

This year, I should get in just in time to go to the Social Liberal Forum lunch at the Crowne Plaza. Last year’s event was fabulous and I met Bobby Dean and Victoria Collins for the first time. I was so impressed with them and I am thrilled that they are both now MPs. This year, they have local MP Tom Gordon, Pippa Heylings and Bobby is back for a repeat performance.

I have revamped my Guide to the Craziness of Conference for this year. Enjoy. And if you have any questions, ask away in the comments.

Federal Conference is probably the best fun that you will ever have in your life. You will thoroughly enjoy every exhausting moment. If you’re new, it can be a bit overwhelming until you get used to the sensory overload. I had a long break from going to them and when I returned, in 2011, I spent the first day wandering round in a state of wide-eyed amazement,  like a child in a toy shop. Spring Conference is smaller than Autumn, but a look at the agenda tells me that there are at least two things going on that I want to go to at all times.

So, with that in mind, I thought I’d throw together a fairly random list of tips and hints for getting the best out of the annual cornucopia of Liberal Democracy. If you have any other Conference survival tips, let me know.

1. Plan your days

The Conference day has a huge variety of things to do. As well as the debates in the hall,  there’s a comprehensive training programme.  There are spokespeople Q & As. There are competing fringe choices to be made.  You can guarantee that you will never be bored and that several things you want to see will be on at the same time.

Be aware as well that you can eat quite well for free by choosing the right fringe meetings – look for the refreshments symbol in the directory.

Believe me, it’s much easier if you sort out your diary in advance. The best laid plans will always be subject to a better offer or meeting someone you haven’t seen for years randomly in a corridor, but it’s best to at least try to get some order into the proceedings. The Conference App is a real help for this. You can download it from the Apple store you  (search for Lib Dem Conf) or if you have an Android phone, use this link from the Young Liberals website. It allows you to add events to your schedule and has all the papers loaded on to it.

Unsurprisingly for a bunch of constitutional nerds, much of the pre-Conference drama concerns a motion to bring the candidate selection system for Westminster candidates under the jurisdiction of the Joint States Candidates Committee. I think it’s federalism in action and a sensible move, Mark Valladares doesn’t think it will fix the problems and may make the system less accountable. Where Mark and I 100% agree is that we are incredibly grateful to the volunteers up and down the country who work as assessors or returning officers not, as Mark says, because these roles are fun, but because they need to be done.  We have had so many posts on this and you can read them all here.

Also up for debate in Harrogate are maybe less controversial but still important issues such as the havoc Donald Trump is wreaking on all of us, supporting children with SEND and science and technology. We have keynote speeches from Hull mayoral hopeful Mike Ross, (they can win there, and having spent 12 days in Hull last Summer, I know what a wonderful place it is so go if you can), Josh Babarinde, Helen Morgan and Ed who does his usual Q and A on Saturday afternoon as well.

2. Make time to do the Exhibition properly

Organisations pay the party a small fortune to have a stall in the exhibition. It’s therefore only polite for us all to take time to visit their stalls. But it’s not just about manners. They are actually really interesting. You have a mix of companies trying to sell you things, voluntary organisations wanting to tell you things and book stalls that are just far too tempting. It’s a good opportunity to sign up for some of the many Party groups – the Lib Dem Disability Association, or ALDC, or the Lib Dem Campaign for Racial Equality  or LGBT+ Lib Dems or Lib Dem Women, the party’s official organisation for women,  to name but a few. It’s your chance also to sign up for things like Liberator or the Journal of Liberal History.

If you’re going to do it properly, it’ll take you a while, probably a good couple of hours, but it’s really worth it. You learn loads, meet lovely people and pick up some good freebies.

I find that I’m not used to carrying cash these days. While some stalls will have card readers, it’s worth making sure you have some cash with you. I am often to be found on the LGBT+ Lib Dems stall getting over-excited because I get to play with our card reader. Do come and have a chat and I might even persuade you to buy a nice lanyard or bottle opener.

4. To Glee or not to Glee?

You either love or hate The Glee Club, the raucous end of Conference singathon. I’m firmly in the love it camp. Singing the traditional, funny or downright rude songs that make up the Liberator Song Book is a great way to end Conference on a high. The day after the event one day during the Coalition years, there was a very funny interview with Alistair Carmichael on the World at One where Martha Kearney played a recording of us singing “The 12 days of Coalition.” He talked his way out of it admirably. I thoroughly recommend that you give this madness a go. It is unique and nobody laughs at ourselves like we do. Come and join in the fun from 10pm on Saturday in the Crowne Plaza.

5. Don’t assume you’ll bump into your friends by accident

There have been conferences where some of my best friends were there and I never saw them. Conference is a big place. If you want to make sure you catch up with people, organise it in advance.

If you’re there on your own for the first time, we are a pretty friendly bunch, so don’t be shy. Speak to the person next to you in the coffee queue whether it’s a parliamentarian or another activist. I have met some long-standing friends that way.

6. LDV at Conference

We don’t have a fringe this time but Mark Valladares and I will be around. Come and say hello!  And do email us with any Conference stories on [email protected].

7. Fancy speaking?

The Agenda and Directory has details of everything that’s going on and the text of the motions.  Conference Extra has last minute changes, amendments and questions to Committees. You need to submit a speaker’s card which you can do here. Be sure to include a summary of what you are going to say, all your contact details and any reasons why you should be called. The latter can make the difference to a session chair if they are going through loads of cards and see one where the person has loads of relevant expertise or are going to make a crucial point in the debate.

8. Try and get out and see some of Harrogate

In Bournemouth one year, I skived off a policy session to go to the beach and eat ice cream with my friends. It was such a gorgeous, hot day and well worth it. I have not  seen much of Harrogate, despite spending numerous weekends there in the last decade or so.

If you possibly can, go to Betty’s, which has to be one of the world’s best tea rooms.

It’s so long since I have been there, that I have no idea where is good in Harrogate these days. I am going to Jinnah for one meal, which I expect to be good because  my friend Mick Taylor, a regular contributor and commenter here,  knows how to sniff out a good restaurant.

9. Join online?

If you can’t get to Harrogate, you can still watch the proceedings online here. Party members can pay £15 for an online pass so that they can vote on motions.

Have a fantastic conference and enjoy your stay in Harrogate.

* Caron Lindsay is Editor of Liberal Democrat Voice and blogs at Caron's Musings