The St Albans District Events Safety Advisory Group (SAG) enables key agencies to work together to look at safety issues for any public events taking place in the District. The idea is not to discourage events in any way but to provide event organisers with support and guidance to ensure that any events are carried out safely and successfully.
Should any member of the SAG have any questions about an event, the organiser might be asked to come along to meet the group so that any issues can be discussed and the organiser can ask for advice from the members - there is such a wide range of skills and experience available within the St Albans District Events Safety Advisory Group.
Who is on the group
The Safety Advisory Group consists of a number of agencies who work to maintain and enhance public safety.
The St Albans and District Event Safety Advisory Group is co-ordinated and chaired by the Culture and Community Development Department, District Council Offices, Civic Centre, St Peter's Street, St Albans, Herts AL1 3JE. Contact us on 01727 819568 or via e-mail events@stalbans.gov.uk.
How the Safety Advisory Group (SAG) works
We act as the first point of contact for anyone organising an event to which the public are invited.
We ask all event organiser to submit the following:
Once the event notification information is submitted, we will:
Circulated to SAG members for assessment and possible action
Members of SAG will provide advice and guidance on their specific areas of responsibility to the organiser and other agencies involved. This information will be feed back via the Culture and Community Development Team
If necessary individual members of SAG meet with the organiser to discuss specific areas of the event
The chair of SAG keeps written records for each event and ensures actions arising are clearly documented
In some circumstances some members of SAG will monitor events to ensure standards are maintained and regulation are adhered to
If you are planning an event we advise that you submit your documentation as early as possible to ensure each SAG member has time to respond.
Planning and Organising an event
If you are organising an event in the district, there are a number of responsibilities placed upon you as organiser. If you are holding an event you need to understand that you are legally responsible for the safety of anyone attending.
The following pointers should help you in your event planning.
- Create a planning timetable including key dates
- Identify a team of people to help plan, organise and run the event, who can take responsibility for public safety
- Be clear about what you can achieve on your budget
- Carry out a risk assessment to ensure public safety
- Consider whether your event will cause disruption to traffic.
- Consider whether your event will require a licence.
SAG has produced a number of download documents below, as a general guide setting out the key points to consider and is especially useful for smaller and larger events alike. For the smaller/community type events, please see "How to organise and hold a successful small event for hirers". For major/larger events over 500 people, please see "How to organise and hold a successful major event for hirers"
Hirers are encouraged to complete the application form below and email the form back to one of the contacts listed on the application.
To help you plan your event there are a number of publications available. You can also get advice from the Health and Safety Executive but you need to purchase the guides they produce. Two guides may be particularly relevant:
- Managing crowds safely - HSG154
- The event safety guide - HSG195
SOURCES OF USEFUL INFORMATION
The hirers should also look at the Health and Safety Executive's website for their publications www.hse.gov.uk and in particular the 5 Steps to Risk Assessment.
For advice on temporary structures, please see the Mutamarg "Safe Use and Operation of Marquees and Temporary Structures - Accreditation Scheme and Best Practice Guide" (www.mutamarq.org.uk) and IStructE book on "Temporary Demountable Structures (TDS) guidance on procurement, design and use" April 2007.
DOWNLOAD EVENT GUIDES FOR SMALL AND MAJOR EVENTS
USEFUL CONTACTS
For further information on booking council land and non licensable events contact Stuart Foster in Sport and Leisure Services on:
01727 819368 or e-mailleisure@stalbans.gov.uk
For further information on licensing issues contact the Licensing Section on:
01727 819454 or e-maillicensing@stalbans.gov.uk
For further information please contact the Events Safety Advisory Group on:
01727 819320 or e-mail events@stalbans.gov.uk
Date of last review: 20 January 2010