Health and Safety Responsibilities

Both Event Organisers and Landowners have a duty to ensure as far as reasonably practicable the Health and Safety of all persons on site. As the event organiser you have an obligation to ensure that you have a competent person who is responsible for Health and Safety at your event.

Taking a look at this as a member of the public visiting an event, you would expect that the organisers of the event have taken some time to think about and to take responsibility for your Health and Safety and wellbeing whilst attending.

You expect that someone has checked that the marquee and the stage has been correctly erected, that the sound equipment and electrical supply have all been installed by a qualified and experienced team of people. You expect that if someone has a medical issue that there is access to a competent First Aid or Event Medical professional. If you eat food at the event, you expect that the stall provider is cooking in a clean and hygienic environment to prevent you and everyone else getting ill.

You would want to know and expect that in an emergency, plans have been developed, staff have been trained in what to do and how to help you get to a place of safety. Most importantly you'd expect to be able to go home at the end of the event without having ever had to think about any of these things because the event organisers had taken on board their responsibilities.

At Preston City Council we will ensure that all events held on the council's land meet and/or exceed the legally expected levels of event health and safety and check that organisers are taking on their responsibilities to look after the public.

Event Safety Advisory Group

In addition to this guide, Preston City Council works with the Event Safety Advisory Group, which is made up of Local Emergency Services and key Council departments.

The Event Safety Advisory Group is set up to ensure that all events in the city meet the appropriate Health and Safety Guidelines by offering advice and guidance to any organisation, both local and national, that is planning to hold a public event in the City of Preston.

What do you need to do?

We want to help you to make your event as successful and as safe as possible. Through the planning of your event you will be creating an Event Safety Management Plan (ESMP).  A document demonstrating what plans are in place, who is doing what and when things are going to happen.

This guide is here to offer you a practical look at your event planning and what you need to do to achieve a successful and safe event. We will also offer help and guidance for you through the city's Event Safety Advisory Group who will assess any potential risks associated with your event and support you during your planning process.

Firstly you will need to notify the Events Team of your event using the event proposal form.

The next step is to consider the following points:

• Contact details of event organiser (the main person responsible for the event)
• Title of event
• Proposed date(s) and time(s)
• Proposed venue
• Estimated attendance
• Target audience
• Brief outline of the event
• Roles and responsibilities of your team
• Stewarding and security provision (if applicable)
• First Aid provision
• Fire safety equipment (if applicable)
• Event layout
• Risk Assessment (including the Risk Assessments for your suppliers)
• Evacuation procedure
• If your event is open to the general public
• If your event is intending to take place on the highway
• Car parking arrangements
• If you intend to have food/alcohol outlets
• Details of event infrastructure / temporary structures (stages/ marquees)
• Power source

Note: this list is not exhaustive and a competent professional should be engaged to ensure a comprehensive ESMP is developed.

Notification Period

To enable us to give you proper advice and allow us elective time to consider your proposal, you will need to give the following period of notice:

• Small events (Estimated attendance under 500 people) 2 months' notice
• Medium events (Estimated attendance over 500 though less than 1000 e.g. fun runs, road races, galas, fun days, parades) 3 months' notice
• Large events (Estimated attendance over 1000 people e.g. open-air concert, music festivals, firework displays and bonfires) Minimum of 4 months

Alternative Ideas

Are you thinking this is all a bit much for the type of event you are thinking about?

You were not expecting to deal with this level of health and safety or you were not expecting to create an event management plan? There are a number of events and/or locations that minimise the need for you to take on board all the responsibility and make it easier for you to achieve your aims and objectives.

Holding your event in a venue

Holding your event in a venue will immediately reduce the need for you to be responsible for all the Health and Safety aspects of the event. You would not need to set up the entire infrastructure (marquees, stages etc).

The venue will likely already have in place staffing, door security, the right number of toilets, and the appropriate licence for the event and will be able to support you in delivering the event. It is also likely that the venue will have in place a number of methods for advertising your event.

If you want to minimise your responsibility and concentrate on the content of the event then a venue will be the best option for you. This should always be checked with the venue.