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Issue 39 April 2010 £4.75
Twinning boostfor leadingUK festivalsBy Christina Eccles
THE UK’S leading independent festi-vals could benefit from artistexchanges, increased levels of PRcoverage and possible new invest-ment thanks to a project launched bythe Association of IndependentFestivals.
AIF – whose members includeCamp Bestival, Creamfields and FieldDay – has created a twinning pro-gramme, giving its events the chanceto partner with their internationalcounterparts.
Those taking part will help to pro-mote their twin locally, be encour-aged to take part in artist exchangesand talent discussions and includelinks on their website to their twin’ssite and in their PR campaigns.
Ben Turner – director of Bestivaland AIF co founder – told The MainEvent that organisers were encour-aged to approach festivals with simi-lar characteristics to their own eventand Bestival immediately thought ofMelt in Germany – which is alreadyproving to be a successful partner-ship.
And Ben said successful twinningcould lead to long term partnershipsand many benefits for both the UKfestivals and their international‘twins’. He said: “The idea came from
Summer Sundae organiser RobChallice and everyone got inspiredby it very quickly.
“AIF stands for the more creativeand culturally rich festivals and thisis very much about us mirroringwhat we are with events around theworld. There are a lot of interestingways the events can work together. Iwould like to see branded stages ateach other’s events and talent book-ings are also an important part. It isdown to each festival to drive it ashard as they want.”
After a successful partnership lastyear with VisitBritain, which allowedEuropean visitors to enjoy its mem-ber festivals at a reduced price, AIF isalso hoping to renew the deal thisyear. And Ben added the twinningcampaign is another way of forginglinks with other countries and mar-keting UK festivals to an internation-al audience.
He added: “Our ethos is very muchabout co-operation and sharingexperiences. This is a very positiveway of working by increasing theUK’s links with the rest of the worldthrough festivals.”
Other festivals partnered includethe Big Session Festival with TønderFestival, Denmark and the GladeFestival, with Symbiosis Gathering inCalifornia.
Investorpulls outof festivalTHE Magic Loungeabout fes-tival has been cancelled afterthe event’s main investorpulled out.
The festival was due to takeplace this summer atBroughton Hall in NorthYorkshire but organisers wereforced to pull the plug afterfailing to secure other fund-ing. A statement from eventpromoter Simon Adamson onthe festival’s website said:“Our main investor has pulledout on us which leaves uswith a funding gap. Despiterecent efforts to find othersources it became clear thatwe would run out of time.
“We feel it would be unfairto our customers not beupfront about this and wewant to give you plenty oftime to make alternativearrangements to entertainyourselves over the summer.”
The statement went on tosay the festival will be back in2011 and all ticketholders willbe given a full refund and beentitled to a 25 per cent dis-count on tickets for nextyear’s event.
A festival on the Isle of Man has secured a weekend of high profile headliners to perform atthe event. Lemar, The Saturdays, JLS and CalvinHarris are among the acts lined up to play the Isleof Man Bay Festival after organisers saw a gap inthe market for a music festival on the island.To find out how plans are going for the festival seePage 6
The Main Event is the official magazine of the National Outdoor Events
Association
01 6/4/10 14:56 Page 1
02 NOEA 6/4/10 14:57 Page 1
THREE fire-breathing dragons werelet loose on the streets of Dewsburyas part of a free outdoor theatreshow organised by Kirklees Council.
An estimated 4,500 people flockedto the town centre for Spirit, whichincluded a street procession from themechanical dragons, a lightshow andmini firework display.
Earlier in the day people got intothe spirit of the event by searchingfor lost baby dragons stranded in thetown centre.
Hundreds of mini dragons werehidden along the procession routeand each lucky person that found
one received a reward from theDragons’ Lair.
3
EDITORIALGroup EditorAndrew HarrodTel: 01226 [email protected]
Reporters:
Christina Eccles ([email protected])
Mary Ferguson ([email protected])
Louise Cordell ([email protected])
Dominic Musgrave ([email protected])
ADVERTISINGGroup Sales Manager:Paul AllottTel: 01226 734484Fax: 01226 734478Mob: 07500 905717Email: [email protected]
Sales Executive:Mandy MellorTel: 01226 734702Email: [email protected]
Sales and Marketing Director:Tony Barry Email: [email protected]
CIRCULATIONKelly TarffTel: 01226 734695email: [email protected]
PRODUCTIONStudio Manager:Stewart Holt ([email protected])Tel: 01226 734414Group Deputy Editor:Judith Halkerston ([email protected])Tel: 01226 734458Graphic designer:Kyle Wilkinson ([email protected])Tel: 01226 734711
CONTACTS
www.themaineventmagazine.co.uk
Geoff reveals the secrets of
T’s successPage 4
Country estate hits the right
note withKatherine
Page 6
Caring for Your Audience Pages 17-21Training and recruitment Page 25
Classified Page 27
NOEA Page 24
Local authority spotlight Pages 10-11
Thousands watch historic
landmark light up Page 8
Festival gives something backby supporting local talentBy Christina Eccles
A YORKSHIRE festival is givingsomething back to the communityby supporting local talent and mak-ing it easier for people from thesurrounding area to enjoy theevent.
The Lime Tree Festival – whichtakes place at Lime Tree Farm inGrewelthorpe, North Yorkshire – hasbeen running for the last threeyears.
And according to organiser SeanBirdsall, one of the things whichmakes the festival stand out fromits competitors, is its commitmentto putting on up and coming localacts.
Bands can perform on one ofthree stages and Sean said one ofhis favourite parts of organising theevent is sourcing new talent andgiving them the chance to appear atthe festival.
He said: “Musically we are still try-ing to promote as many local bandsas possible and it is really good tosee their progression.”
The festival also goes out of itsway to make things as easy as pos-sible for local people to attend thefestival and this year is going evenfurther by offering one day ticketsfor each day of the festival and £15
return coach travel from Leeds.Sean added: “We have never done
day tickets from day one before butit became apparent that althoughwe support the Leeds music scene,our sales weren’t coming fromLeeds.
“But we have had another year ofnetworking and of being around sohopefully more people will knowabout us.”
The festival also prides itself on its
non music offering, which includesa health and healing area.
The site is also a nature conserva-tion area, where organisers are hoping to get David Bellamy onboard to do nature walks with chil-dren. As part of their commitmentto protect the site, organisers willalso be encouraging festivalgoers totake home their rubbish and willhave a team of stewards on site toensure it stays clean and tidy.
The Lime Tree festival
A SUCCESSFUL partnership approachto organising one of London’s largestfree events has been recognised with atop award.
Capita Symonds’ leisure and safetyteam and Lambeth Borough Councilwork together to deliver the LambethCountry Show held in Brockwell Park.And their successful working partner-ship was rewarded with the best prac-tice gong at the National OutdoorEvent Association’s Tribute Awards.The award was presented to CapitaSymonds’ executive director ChrisGreen and Lambeth Borough Council’sevent manager Emma Dagnes.� To find out more about the workbeing done by the events team atLambeth, see our local authority spot-light feature next issue.
Top award Dragons breath fire intoDewsbury theatre show
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2 4
THE festival started in 1994 andhas grown into a weekend of enter-tainment which attracts 85,000fans.
A strong partnership withTennents – a brand which has beenwith the festival from the start –has helped to contribute to its suc-cess and after securing acts includ-ing Eminem, Muse, Kasabian andJay Z, organisers are hoping thatthis will be another successful yearfor T in the Park.
But organising the festival has notalways been plain sailing andorganisers have managed to over-come many challenges over theyears.
Geoff explained: “T in the Parkstarted in 1994 and we wentagainst the grain by doing an out-door event in Scotland. We lostquite a bit of money but got greatmedia coverage and our audiencereally loved the event.
“In the first year, the challengewas the creation of the event, thehuge risk involved and financialplanning.
“Our second challenge was mov-ing the event from Strathclyde Parkto Kinross. We had gone from hav-ing a sold out 35,000 capacity event
and moved to a rural location.“But we thought the event and
the brand was strong enough tomove and the move made it aScottish festival rather than aGlasgow one.
“The third challenge was re-invig-orating the brand. In 2003, we wereselling out the event but we knewthe media had become complacentabout it.
“It was our 10th year so we hadthe opportunity to create a newsub brand and the 10th anniver-sary brand re-ignited the media.
“That really was a tipping pointfor the festival. We saw a 28 percent increase in media coverageand had 40 per cent of sales out-side Scotland.”
Geoff also revealed the secrets ofthe event’s success and how it hasmanaged to keep afloat in a crowd-ed marketplace.
He added: “It is important for usto speak to both ends of our audi-ence. There are new kids comingthrough every year but we alsowant to retain people who havebeen coming since the start whohave grown up with the event.
“Our audience is our strongestUSP and bands want to play the
event because of the experiencethey have had.
“Sponsors are also an integralpart of the event – Tennents havebeen with us from the start. Havingthe right kind of partnerships canhelp to develop the event and keepit going forward.
“Also innovation and being seento be pushing the envelope. We arethe largest carbon neutral festivalin the world and I like to think welead the way with our Healthy TArea. All festivals are competitionbut having that is good andhealthy. We compete for artists andaudiences and competition iseverywhere – we are up against theWorld Cup this year.
“There are a multitude of festi-vals. Lots have fallen by the way-side but quality will always keepthings going.
“As long as our festivals are differ-ent from each other, there is achance that people will come tomore than one.
“T in the Park has gone beyondanyone’s wildest dreams. But it hasbeen a gradual process – we havenever had a bridge that is too far tocross. The festival could get bigger,the demand is there. But it is
important not to go too big.Always have demand exceedingsupply. We like to keep improvingand adding to the quality ratherthan making it bigger.”
As promoter of T in the Park, Geoff Ellis has first hand experience of building up a festival brand. In a specialfeature, he reveals the ups and downs of working on Scotland’s flagship music festival.
Geoff Ellis
Secrets of T’s success
Sir Paul McCartney has been confirmed as a headliner for this year’s Isle of Wight Festival.The festival takes place in June at Seaclose Park and other performers include Jay-Z, TheStrokes and Blondie.
Elvis parachutists get freeentry to Glade festivalPARACHUTISTS dressed as Elvis willbe able to enjoy the Glade Festival forfree thanks to a quirky marketingcampaign by organisers.
The offer came about after festivaldirector Nick Ladd was asked by afriend if he sky dived into the festivalin aid of charity, could he attend forfree.
After agreeing to his request, Nickdecided it would only be fair to openthe offer out to other festivalgoers –as long as they agreed to the otherterms of being dressed as Elvis, wearing a sound system strapped to their back and hit the ground
dancing.
Nick said: “A mate of mine who isinto sky diving asked me, 'If me andsome friends did a charity sky diveinto Glade would we get in for free?'”
“I thought it was only fair that wethrew this open to all comers andadded in some stipulations.
“It’s worth mentioning that the 50fthigh flame that comes out the top ofthe Arcadia Stage is probably worthavoiding.”
There will be a designated landingarea for parachutists of which detailswill be released soon.
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05 6/4/10 15:00 Page 1
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By Christina Eccles
A REVAMPED festival is punchingabove its weight after securing head-liners including Lemar, JLS andSpandau Ballet.
The Isle of Man Bay Festival was ini-tially created after organisers saw agap in the market for a festival on theisland, which is best known for its TTracing events.
They organised an event in 2007 –with a line up including RonanKeating and McFly – to tie in with the100th anniversary of TT racing.
And although the event wasn’t aswell received as they would haveliked, organisers saw the potential ofhosting another festival and decidedto go ahead with their plans thissummer.
Production manager Ian Bone said:“The event went ahead but it wasn’tas successful as we had hoped. Therewas too much of a distraction withthe TT racing and the concert. But wedecided there was enough of aninterest to have a festival again thisyear.”
For this year, organisers have cho-sen a site in Douglas, the island’s cap-
ital and are staging a three day event– with acts picked to appeal to allages.
Each of the four concerts will takeplace in a specially erected structurewith a capacity of 10,000 people – amixture of seated and standing.
Friday night is aimed at pop fanswith performances from JLS andLemar, Saturday is headlined bySpandau Ballet, Sunday afternoonfeatures a family friendly line up of XFactor and Britain’s Got Talentfavourites and Sunday evening cele-brates the best of the 1980s.
Festivalgoers can buy tickets forindividual gigs or a package whichallows them to see all the concertsand camp for the duration of the fes-tival. It is hoped the event willbecome an annual festival and Ianand the team are already thinkingabout future years.
Ian added: “Our feeling was, withthe profile of the audience we decid-ed to give them the undercover expe-rience. Maybe in future we will go toa more conventional festival model.We are keeping it quite small scale atthe moment but the site is bigenough to expand.”
From left to right: Jamie Irving (promoter) Ian Bone (production manager) Richard Agar(production manager) and Jonathan Irving (promoter).
Revampedfestival landsheadline acts
A 180-acre country estate will play host to three nights of live music this summerafter organisers secured a series of open air concerts. Katherine Jenkins (pictured),The Magic of Motown and The Bootleg Beatles are among the artists coming toWakehurst Place in West Sussex in June – the first time it has opened its gates foran event of this kind.� To find out how organisers are gearing up for the first Wakehurst Place festival,see the May issue of The Main Event
Creamfields secures three-yearlicence for festival siteCREAMFIELDS has been granted athree-year licence for its festival sitein Daresbury – the first ever dancefestival to receive an extended yearlicence.
Following last year’s sell out show –which attracted a record breaking60,000 people – the team behind thefestival have increased investmentinto site infrastructure for 2010,which will see bigger and better are-nas and increased space and capacity
in the campsites.Event manager Loudsound’s Jim
King said: “This decision to grant thefestival a three-year licence is a veryimportant decision in that it clearlyshows the confidence that theauthorities have in Creamfields andits management team. The festivalhas now established itself at its newlocation in Cheshire as one of thelargest, most popular and well oper-ated electronic festivals in the world.”
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7
THE Larmer Tree Festival has beensuccessful for the last 20 yearsbecause of its diverse program-ming, spectacular location andloyal audience, according to itsorganiser.
The festival – which takes placeat the Larmer Tree Gardens inWiltshire – is celebrating its 20thbirthday this year and organiserJames Shepard revealed to TheMain Event the secrets of its suc-cess.
He said that in a crowded marketplace, the festival has managed toflourish because it has deliberatelysteered clear of sponsorship deals– instead focusing on delivering anevent which allows festivalgoersescapism from everyday life.
He said: “For us it has never beenlike a business. It has always beensomething we wanted to do andthat comes across in the festival.
“We have shunned sponsorshipso everything that happens is whatwe want to happen and we are nottold what to do by anybody. Withsponsors there are a set of stringsattached.
“We see the gardens as an
unusual place – away from the restof the world. If we have the site allcovered in brand names it wouldbe just like real life.”
Tickets for this year’s event wenton sale in December and althoughthey have not yet sold out, Jamessaid he was pleased with how theyare selling.
He added that there will be a fewsurprises in store this summer tocommemorate the festival’s birth-day and some of the most popularartists who have played there overthe years have also been invitedback to perform.
And although James is predictinga turbulent year for the eventsindustry, he is confident that theLarmer Tree Festival will do well.
He added: “It is going to be toughfor a lot of festivals. The good oneswill survive but there may be a fewcasualties.
“A lot of festivals try to get biggerand bigger but we have a capacityof 5,000, which is a perfect size.
“We have a very loyal audienceand a lot of people are involved inthe festival and look forward to itevery year.”
James Shepard Picture: Brian Jones
Why James hasalways shunnedsponsorship
The Courtyard at Ripley Castle is to be transformed into a winter wonderland thisDecember as part of a new festival. An impressive temporary structure – complete withstage and seating for up to 1,600 people – will be built in the castle grounds for the WhiteRose Winter Festival. The festival has secured sponsorship from Welcome to Yorkshire.� The Main Event will be visiting Ripley Castle in next month’s issue to speak to organis-ers Emma Ramply and Shan Wildblood about how plans are going for the festival.
07 6/4/10 15:18 Page 1
2 8
THE organisers of a Derbyshire musicfestival have revealed how theybounced back from a freak weatherincident which injured two people atlast year’s event.
The Bearded Theory Festival wasleft with a £15,000 bill after winds ofmore than 50mph ripped through thefestival – causing the roof of the stageto blow off and injuring two peopleon site.
But organisers were praised for thefestival’s swift action and compre-hensive health and safety planningand organiser Rich Bryan told TheMain Event this is one area of theevent they have focused on evenmore for this year.
He said: “More planning has goneinto the event site this year after theincident. But what happened lastyear proved that our emergency planworked because we could actuallysee it working.
“We had already got a high empha-sis on health and safety but this gaveus even more of an insight into pro-ceedings. We learned a lot.”
As with last year, the festival hasemployed a health and safety con-sultant and has studied issues suchas soil composition and wind expo-sure to help with decisions such aswhere to place marquees.
More undercover venues will alsobe used so in the event of bad weath-er, some of the music acts will be ableto be moved around into marqueesand undercover.
Organisers have also invested moreheavily into this year’s line up –securing artists such as The KingBlues and The Wonder Stuff – andRich added that what sets them apartfrom rival festivals is the amount ofinput which festivalgoers have overwho plays.
He added: “We don’t choose any-body ourselves. Instead we ask thepeople who attend, who they want tosee. It has worked this year betterthan ever before and keeps interest inthe festival all year round.”
Future plans for the festival includepossibly moving sites next year toallow for room to grow.
Freak weatherincident failsto daunt Rich
A SPECTACULAR outdoor event lit upthe length of historic landmarkHadrian’s Wall, watched by an esti-mated 25,000 people.
The lights ran along the 84-mileHadrian’s Wall Path National Trail –recreating those that once shonefrom the imposing Roman turretswhich were regularly stationed alongthe length of the wall.
The line of light brought Hadrian’sWall to life, as well as generatingabout £1m of spending by touristsover the weekend
The project – led by Hadrian’s WallHeritage – formed part of the world-class programme of festivals and
events developed by the culture10team based at NewcastleGatesheadInitiative and the Lakes Alive pro-gramme in Cumbria.
Chief executive of Hadrian’s WallHeritage Linda Tuttiett said: “We’vebeen delighted by the enthusiasmthat Illuminating Hadrian’s Wall hasgenerated. After all the months ofhard work it was tremendously mov-ing to see the line of light make itsway along the wall and to see thereactions of the illuminators and thepeople who came to watch the eventfrom all across the UK and overseas,as well as the surrounding communi-ties.
A spectacular outdoor event lit up Hadrian’s Wall
Thousands watch as historiclandmark lights up ...
08 6/4/10 15:02 Page 1
9
AS an experienced outdoor eventorganiser, Susan has dealt with theups and downs of working on amajor event.
And in her new role, she hopes tobe able to share what she haslearned with NOEA’s members.
She said: “I have been there forthe good times and for the strugglesand have an understanding of whatcontractors need from organisersand also what organisers need fromthem. I hope to be able to bringthat experience to the role.”
Susan also explained what shethinks are the biggest issues cur-rently facing the outdoor eventsindustry and how NOEA can play apart in helping to resolve them.
She added: “One of the biggestissues at the moment is theOlympics and how it is going toaffect events and suppliers. Thereisn’t a huge amount of communica-tion coming down to organisersabout how we can get involved andwhat other events are being
planned.”
According to Susan, involvingyoung people in events is also keyto ensure that they get a goodgrounding for a future career in theindustry.
She explained: “There are also alot of interesting issues around howwe can get more courses on eventsand get the next generation comingthrough. How can we link uporganisers and contractors withnew talent and make NOEA the firstport of call for members who canoffer work experience?”
As general secretary, Susan will beworking with the association’s pres-ident Richard Limb and the councilwho between them have vast expe-rience of the outdoor events world– something she would like to tapinto to help other members withtheir queries and to create a strongvoice for NOEA.
“There is a huge amount of workto be done but we have got verystrong membership and are always
looking for volunteers. There ishuge experience in the associationand it is interesting to get peopletalking.”
Other future plans include build-
ing on the success of this year’sconvention and tribute awards, fur-ther development of NOEAScotland and more regional confer-ences.
After working on the Bristol Balloon Fiesta for 16 years, Susan Tanner has first hand experience of organisingan outdoor event – something she feels will stand her in good stead as NOEA’S new general secretary. Susanspoke to The Main Event about where she feels the association is heading and why getting students andyoung people involved will be key ...
Susan unveils her NOEA ambitions
Susan Tanner worked on the Bristol Balloon Fiesta for 16 years
09 6/4/10 15:03 Page 1
2 10 LOCAL AUTHORITY SPOTLIGHT
A VISIT to Brent Council resulted intwo key messages, which the teamreally believe their events reflect.
The first is community – the Brentcommunity is extremely diverse andevents are used as both a celebrationof these differences and also to edu-cate and bring together different cul-tural groups with their neighbours.
The second is legacy – events donot finish once the show is over.Instead they act as a platform forwork which can be ongoing and havelasting benefit for people who live inthe borough.
Festivals manager Stephen Gilbyexplained: “A lot of our events areculturally specific – such as Eid, StPatrick’s Day and Diwali – so they
need to be authentic. But at the sametime, we are very conscious that theyare also open and accessible toeveryone in the community. All ofour communities want to share withthe rest of the Brent community.Brent is a very cohesive communitywhere people live side by side.”
Being so diverse is a key strength,and events such as the RespectFestival give the team the chance toshowcase that.
Stephen added: “This year at theevent, the focus is on food as it is dif-ficult to get a food offering at eventswhich reflects the diversity of theborough. We are holding some train-ing workshops to give people theskills to operate on a food stall at
events, which is a really exciting proj-ect. Food is a big draw for people atevents and this is an amazingresource for us to take advantage of.”
The team has also recently beeninvolved in the Holocaust MemorialDay commemorations, which gavethem the opportunity to produce anevent which left a lasting legacy forthe community.
The theme set by the HolocaustMemorial Trust was the legacy ofhope and a group of young peoplewere signed up to work on the proj-ect who started by interviewing localsurvivors.
From this they created a 15-minutefilm, which documented the keymessages they wanted to get across
to the community and was shown ata special screening at Brent TownHall.
It is now being used as an educa-tional resource in schools and afterreceiving extensive coverage, one ofthe young volunteers is hoping to getwork experience in the media as aresult of working on the project.
Arts and festivals officer MelissaInman added: “We wanted to createsomething with longevity which did-n’t just end at the end of the event.Creating economic opportunitiesthrough events is very important.There are real, tangible career pathsin events and people can gain realskills and experience by engaging inthe programmes we provide.”
Above: The Respect Festival showcases diversity in Brent. And, above right: Stephen and Melissa
With an award-winning Diwali and an Olympic venue on its doorstep, Brent Council is well placed to hostspectacular events. Christina Eccles paid a visit to discover how one of the country’s most diverse boroughs ischampioning events for all.
Two key messages: community and legacy
Why authority events can be overlookedMORE recognition should be givenby the industry to the events whichlocal authority event organisersdeliver, according to Stephen andMelissa.
They said that they would like tosee more engagement between
local authorities and organisers ofcommercial events as both sideshave something which they couldoffer the other.
Stephen added: “Local authorityevents can often be overlooked bybig commercial events. But we pro-
duce a huge amount of events andthere is a great opportunity formore sharing of knowledgebetween these two sides of theindustry.
“We have an immense amount ofskills and I would really like to see
that recognised and more accepted.
“The free public event sector isvery important and we are seeingthe benefits which these events arehaving and the opportunities whichthey create.”
10 6/4/10 15:03 Page 1
LOCAL AUTHORITY SPOTLIGHT 11
Strategy looksto consultinglocal peopleCOMMUNITY involvement is a keypart of the success of events and fes-tivals in Brent.
To ensure all parts of the communi-ty feel included, the council has cre-ated a strategy, which involves con-sulting local people on what eventsthey would like to see come to Brentand any areas where the councilcould improve.
Stephen added: “We have justfinalised a cultural strategy and arecreating a culture and festivals strate-gy. This will involve going out intothe community and asking them ifthis is what we should be doing andwhat they would like to see. We aretrying to get as much involvementfrom the community as possible.
“We are also working with theWembley town centre manager on
the Wembley AmbassadorsProgramme where we have peopleout on the streets and when visitorscome to the stadium, they welcomethem and let them know what thereis to do in Wembley and where therestaurants and shops are. We are try-ing to get more benefit for the localarea from people coming to the sta-dium.
“Wembley is a 2012 venue and thiswill play a big part in our plans for2012 to showcase to visitors whatBrent is all about.”
Melissa added: “We are really lead-ing in terms of a one council policy,which brings together different coun-cil departments. We also have adviso-ry forums which meet with the com-munity to ensure we are engagingwith them in the right way.”
The council’s biggest event is its awardwinning Diwali, which last year attracted60,000 people – making it the biggest inthe country.The 2009 event grew from 35,000 visitorsin 2008 to 60,000 and included a paradeand floats telling the story of Diwali to theaudience. The team also beat off stiff com-petition to scoop two awards for theevent at the International Visual Communi-cation Association (IVCA) Livecom awards.
Stephen added: “It was exciting to winbecause our competition wasn’t otherlocal authorities. This shows we can com-pete on an equal footing, which is greatfor all local authority events.“Diwali has been a really good qualityevent for many years and now it’s on a rolland gaining that momentum.“There are different community groupswhich get involved who are working hardto raise the level of the event.”
Boroughs share knowledgeBRENT Council has also been heav-ily involved in setting up a newLondon borough events forum tohelp local authorities to shareknowledge and ideas.
The forum is designed to be anevent toolkit, which every localauthority can use to standardisetheir application process, and alsoacts as a benchmark for best prac-tice.
Stephen added: “We are creating
an IT system for applicants whichwill be there for all of London intime for 2012 and beyond. This willmake applying for an event mucheasier and streamline the processfor both the borough and the appli-cant. We don’t want to stop after theOlympics have finished. 2012 is afantastic opportunity for us to useas a springboard to improve the cul-tural life of the borough andLondon as a whole.”
Brent Council’s flagship events include:� Diwali� St Patrick’s Day� Holocaust Memorial Day
commemorations� Eid � Respect Festival� Brent Dance Month
A record-breaking 6,000 people took to the streets of Brent to celebrate St Patrick’s Day.Revellers were treated to a glittering parade led by the Mayor of Brent, Coun JimO’Sullivan complete with pipers, floats, dancers and circus performers. All 32 countieswere represented by festivalgoers carrying flags, with the mayor flying the flag for hisbirthplace, Cork.
11 6/4/10 15:26 Page 1
2 12 BARS AND CATERING
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A BOUTIQUE festival is leading theway when it comes to catering byserving up only locally sourced foodto festivalgoers.
Lounge on the Farm takes place atMerton Farm in Kent and as part ofthe organisers’ commitment to givingsomething back to the local area, allfood sold at the event must havebeen sourced from within the area.
Food on offer includes traditionalfestival food such as a hog roast tomore unusual options such as HajiBaji’s curry stop and The FarmhousePie and Mash.
And some of the food on offer caneven claim to have zero food miles, asthe lamb and beef burgers served upcome from animals raised on thefarm itself.
Promoter Vic Hazell said: “Onefocus for us with the festival was togive something back to the local
economy.“All of our food has to come from
within Kent. It is of vital importancewe work with local farmers and sup-pliers.
“It gives a personal touch with thefood and makes everything unique.Even our burgers come from cattlereared on the farm.
“It is a unique selling point for usbut is also incremental to the festivaland what it represents.”
Vic also offered advice for organis-ers who are thinking about offeringmore food choices to festivalgoers.
She added: “Think about what hap-pens to the money that is spent onsite and who benefits from it. If no-one local benefits from it then youare not doing anything for the area.
“By using local produce, you areencouraging the local area and get-ting them involved.”
Boutique festival opts for locallysourced food
12 6/4/10 15:05 Page 1
BARS AND CATERING 13
A SYSTEM where festivalgoers do notneed to bring cash on site at eventscould soon become a reality, thanksto Peppermint Events.
The company is preparing foranother busy season which includesworking on its regular portfolio ofevents – such as Bestival and SecretGarden Party – as well as new onessuch as Rockness.
But this year, Peppermint is hopingto bring bars with a difference –where festivalgoers can leave theirmoney at home and pay for drinksusing a pre-paid card or wristband.
It is hoped this will reduce theamount of money on site – deterringcampsite thieves – and also cut downqueuing times at the bars.
Director Adam Hempenstallexplained: “We are currently in talkswith a couple of suppliers and willhopefully be trialling a cashless sys-tem at one or two of our events.
“This technology will allow festival-goers to have a wristband or card,which would be pre-charged, andwhen they make a purchase, they putit on a reader and it deducts theprice. During the festival they can topup the card by text or auto top up.
“But the challenge is that a lot ofthe current systems run off wireless.Not every event has wireless systemsand at big sites it can be difficult to
have internet activity across thewhole site. The challenge is to try andmake it work offline.”
Adam also said that one of thebiggest trends at festivals this yearwill be themed bars, as festivalgoerslook for a greater choice at events.
He added: “We have pre-emptedthat people expect a lot more at festi-vals. Gone are the days when peoplepay for their tickets and just see theheadliners. They also want decenttoilets, good food and nice drinks.The themed bars are a natural pro-gression.
“Tastings with organisers are alsoimportant – especially for the bou-tique led shows. At these shows,everyone expects a high standard ofservice for everything. If people comeaway feeling they have got value formoney, organisers will get loyalty.
“We have worked with many festi-vals from the start and we try to getunder the skin of the event and workclosely with organisers to producedrinks which fit the event.
“We also have data from previousfestivals as we can gather hour byhour information through our tills.
“This means we understand wherethe peaks and troughs will be andcan put on extra staff to keep queu-ing times to a minimum.”
Cashless bars and themed cocktail areas will be just two of the trends seen at this summer’s festivals, according toone expert. The Main Event found out more ...
Cashless bars and themed cocktails
13 6/4/10 15:06 Page 1
2 14 SOUND, LIGHTING AND POWER
BRM lookingforward toevent seasonNOTTINGHAM-based BRM Productions do notappear to have been badly affected by the recentfinancial climate, according to MD MartynSmith.
He said: “We did lose a couple of long termcontracts as the downturn happened, howeverthese contracts involved substantial travelling.
“I can only assume the client turned towards alocal company to help reduce their costs. Thisworked well for both parties as we increased ourworkload locally.
“Contracts have become very price sensitivewith the client requiring full details of what isactually on offer.
“Environmentally, it is not easy to go green asequipment hire companies provide generatorseither full of Red Diesel or completely empty,this can leave us with a fuel movement/storageproblem.
“However, we are looking forward to the 2010event season and are happy that we alreadyhave a pretty full schedule, however we do havethe capability to handle more.”
BRM has recently taken over a further industri-al unit to aid with the current expansion of thebusiness, along with the purchase of more gen-erators.
So here’s looking forward the summer with thesun, rain, mud and the smell of diesel!
RUBBER Box Co are a specialistmanufacturer of power distribu-tion equipment to the film, tele-vision, events and entertainmentindustry.
Over the last 18 years, RubberBox has become a market leaderand a well-respected name with-in the industry, supplying tosome of the largest venues andevents, not only in the UK, but inover 30 countries throughout theworld.
Whether it’s portable power ora fixed installation, we have theexpertise and experience to pro-duce the highest quality equip-ment at the right price in a shortspace of time.
From a standard 16A singlephase extension cable to a 400Athree phase multi outlet 19”flight cased distro, we can pro-vide a solution to power anyevent, large or small.
All of our boxes ensure troublefree power distribution in allweather conditions and complyto all UK and European regula-tions.
So whether you’re a DJ at asmall event or organising the World Cup, Rubber Box can
be your one-stop-shop forpower.
Specialist suppliesto over 30 countries
14 6/4/10 15:06 Page 1
SOUND, LIGHTING AND POWER 15
SPARKS Power has supplied power solu-tions to the event industry and to the emer-gency services for the last 12 years.
Whilst everyone is trying to reduce theirevents overall cost, fuel prices are still ris-ing. Action to prevent the impact of thisinvolves early planning with organisers, sitevisits to plan when, where, and how muchpower is needed during an event.
The amount of power required in thebuild up and during the event can varyquiet dramatically – and the generatortechnology provided by Sparks Power canmirror this demand.
One customer that benefited from thissystem was for the PGA European Tour2009.
The tour has enhanced its reputation asan environmentally friendly organisationby dramatically reducing fuel consumptionand carbon emissions at the recentEuropean Open.
The event, held at the London Golf Clubin Kent, used latest generator technology,provided by Sparks Power, which sensedthe changes in demand for electricity andreacted by starting and stopping generatorsas they were needed.
Fuel consumption decreased by a massive38 percent and more than 20,000 grams ofcarbon from the previous year.
For more information contact 01580 755594 orvisit www.sparkspower.co.uk
Providing powersolutions forthe last 12 years
BLACKBURN-based lighting rental company HSL supplied all lighting equipment and crew toProduction North for popular boyband JLS’ UK tour.
The set consisted of four sets of steps connected by araised walkway at the back.
Upstage of this was a 30ft wide by 10ft deep videoscreen which showed specially created contentthroughout the show – ensuring that lighting and
video complemented one another was an importantaspect of the visual design.
HSL's project manager Mike Oates said: "It's good tobe back on the road with the Production North teamand working alongside production manager KarenRingland on this.
“The design is straightforward and uncomplicated,well thought out and works perfectly for the band andthe style of presentation.”
Firm back on the road with JLS
15 6/4/10 15:07 Page 1
2 16 SOUND, LIGHTING AND POWER
SUSTAINABLE power sources will bea high priority for organisers of theForestry Commission’s outdoor con-cert series this summer.
As all the sites used for the gigs aresensitive forest locations, it is essen-tial no damage is caused to the envi-ronment.
The main concerns when using
generators are emissions and fuelleakages but to combat this, the concerts will be using Pearce Hire’sdouble skinned fuel tanks,which help protect against leakage,as well as only using generators andplant equipment that meet the cur-rent European low emission stan-dards.
Sustainable powersources ‘high priority’for organisers
AUDIO over IP or digital audionetworking has transformedthe way audio installation andrental companies handle largenumbers of audio channelsboth in installations and onlive shows.
The advantages of using alightweight Cat-5 cable totransmit large numbers (64+)of audio channels areimmense.
Apart from saving on truck-ing and labour costs, it allowscompatible equipment to allshare the same audio sourcesand pre-amps.
For instance with an Allen &Heath iLive installation in amulti-purpose venue at a col-lege campus, the front ofhouse desk in the theatrewould provide a digital split of thestage channels, plus mix outputsusing either Ethersound orAudinate Dante audio over thelocal network.
This would then optionally feed amonitor desk on stage, the ampli-fiers driving the venue speakers,plus perhaps foyer speakers, a linkvia the campus network to the col-lege radio station and a full multi-channel record feed to a recording
facility in another building on site.This sort of flexibility could not
have been achieved without hugelyexpensive copper multi-core solu-tions and big patch panels usinganalogue technology.
Hopefully the emerging IEEEAudio/Video Bridging (AVB) stan-dards will mean eventually theaudio industry will allow equip-ment from all manufacturers tointeroperate without barriers.
Using lightweight cablean ‘immense advantage’
16 6/4/10 15:07 Page 1
CARING FOR YOUR AUDIENCE ADVERTISER ANNOUNCEMENT 17
COOPERS Marquees and supplypartners Acorn Event Solutions havecompleted a stunning temporarystructure to house 2,000 delegatesover two days.
The supply partners created a win-ning formula to provide a splendidworking environment in MillenniumSquare, Leeds.
On behalf of Coopers Marquees,Acorn Event Solutions provided anelevated system base of over 1,400square metres rising up to fourmetres high to bring the base to level.Coopers then built a 25m wide mar-quee structure over the base, to a
length of 55m, to house the 2000 del-egates.
The structure build took place overthree days and was complete 24hours ahead of schedule. With a teamof over 40 erectors the build wasachieved smoothly and efficiently.With eight artic lorry loads of equip-ment, deliveries to and from sitewere planned and worked within atightly coordinated schedule.
With the recently developed Acornevent flooring system, cables, heatingand computer network cables wereeasily fed to strategic points withinthe floor area.
The beauty of the system is it iscompletely flexible and enables mar-quee floors/stages to be built to anylevel over any type of land – a fullyengineered solution. This was com-plemented by Acorn’s new glassbalustrade finishing to the entrancebalcony.
Coopers Marquees are now one ofthe leading UK marquee companieswith over 60,000 square metres oftentage in stock, covering in excessof one million people per annum,providing hospitality at many UKracecourses, county shows andnational sporting events.
Acorn Event Solutions own thelargest stock of Layher event scaffold-ing in the country, supplying anderecting not only marquee bases butice rink bases, stages, ramps andstaircases in addition to providingpower distribution, specialist lightingand generators.
In addition, together Coopers andAcorn supply bespoke structures formany private parties requiring ele-vated or split level structures.
The team once again proved thatalthough Northern based can suc-ceed on a national scale.
Team succeeds on a national scale
17 6/4/10 15:56 Page 1
2 18 CARING FOR YOUR AUDIENCE ADVERTISER ANNOUNCEMENT
WHILE the orange shirts of APSecurity’s staff are familiar to thoseenjoying live events throughout muchof the UK, what the public generallydoesn’t realise that caring for an audi-ence is about so much more than thestaff facing them on the day.
Two of the keys to AP’s success inthe crowd safety industry are long-term planning and building andmaintaining relationships.
Many months of prior planning, liai-son and site visits are meticulouslycarried out for every event the com-pany is involved with.
AP knows that the only way to reallycare for an audience is to have themost intimate knowledge of theevent, the venue, the age and type ofaudience, the many organisationsinvolved and of how people tend toreact in any given situation.
The surrounding area, a wide range
of local issues and even weather con-ditions also have a significant effect.
Coupled with this, the companybuilds high quality, long-term rela-tionships with event organisers, localauthorities, police and other emer-gency services to ensure its staff areaware of every possible scenario thatmight arise.
Of course, thanks to the inherentunpredictability of both the publicand the British climate, the mostmeticulously laid plans sometimesneed to be rapidly revised.
AP’s ability to react fast and appro-priately to any situation ensures thatits clients can get on with the job ofcreating great entertainment withouthaving to worry about the audience -and that the public can enjoy them-selves knowing that they’re in verysafe hands.
Planning and buildingrelationships the key
AUDIENCE safety will be top ofthe agenda at some of the NorthEast’s premier events this summerafter organisers recruited extrastewards to help out on site.
Touchline Event Managementhas recruited 115 extra stewards tohelp out at the Tall Ships races inHartlepool and the Great NorthRun in Newcastle.
TEM – part of the IPC SecurityGroup – are recruiting up to 80safety stewards and 35 securitystewards for these and other
events across the North of Englandfrom Yorkshire to Tyneside.
TEM’s general manager JohnMcLean said: “It’s great news weare recruiting. It reflects the suc-cess we are enjoying in attractingand servicing very prestigious andhigh profile clients and majorevents. I hope it also reflects thatthe North East economy is pickingup and people are going to go outto these big events as we areexpecting them to be very wellattended.”
Olympic gold medallists Chris Hoy and Rebecca Adlington and Paralympian EleanorSimmonds start the 2008 Great North Run with then Prime Minister Tony Blair.
Extra stewards recruited
18 6/4/10 15:58 Page 1
19CARING FOR YOUR AUDIENCE ADVERTISER ANNOUNCEMENT
RESPONSE SecuritySolutions are acrowd managementand event securityprovider who offera wide range ofservices to provideclients with a totalcrowd managementand safety solution.
A large network ofpersonnel allowsthe company toprovide servicesacross the UK, evenat late notice.
Response SecuritySolutions offer ahost of professionally trained andlicensed teams to make your eventa success, including but not limit-ed to: pit safety teams, incidentresponse teams, close protectionofficers, event safety stewards,door supervisors and car parkingteams as well as experienced TVand film security location andaudience.
As a potential client of ours youcan expect to be allocated a clientliaison manager who work withyou and your team from the plan-ning stage through to the end ofthe event, ensuring all your needsare identified and met.
The services of ResponseSecurity Solutions have recentlybeen contracted by a number ofcompanies to provide crowd man-agement including: Tesco UK,Asda, The Perfume Shop, CostaCoffee, Skechers Europe, and TV’sMost Haunted Live to name but afew from the company’s evergrowing prestigious client list.
Whether you require a totalcrowd management solution orindividual services for your festi-val, concert, signing session, per-sonal appearance or sportingevent we have the personnel tosuit your needs.
Firm offers a rangeof security services
Potential clients are allocated a client liaison manager
FESTIVAL Republic has partneredwith a boutique babysitting serviceto provide a mini festival experiencefor children attending its events.
Boutique Babysitting will be pro-viding bespoke childcare at Latitudeand The Big Chill, which will includecreating a dedicated kids club area –complete with soft rubber flooring,blankets, bean bags and pillows.
Parents will be given the chance todrop off their little ones at a choice oftwo four hour sessions, with the laterone taking place after the festival’sown children’s area has closed up forthe night.
Co-founder Lisa Merrick-Lawlesssaid: “We are delighted to announce
our partnership with FestivalRepublic and residence at Latitudeand The Big Chill, where we hope toadd a little extra something to theexperience of these fantastic family-friendly festivals.
“Like every parent that’s ever takentheir child to a festival, we knowexactly what it is like: you love hav-ing your kids there but even the mostdedicated parent needs a breaksometimes.
“With Boutique Babysitting wewanted to offer parents that preciousrespite from looking after their chil-dren 24/7, whilst giving childrensome amazing festival memories oftheir very own kids club.”
Festival experience for kids
19 6/4/10 17:04 Page 1
2 20 CARING FOR YOUR AUDIENCE
WE may be legally bound to lookafter the health and safety of all onour sites but we’re morally boundto care for them and see that theyare looked after with all the con-cern we’d want our own familymembers to receive when attend-ing an event.
Children and older persons atevent sites need particular care.We’re already aware of the methodsfor looking after lost or found chil-dren, but what about activities andfacilities? At a family event, is thereenough for kids to do? What aboutthose difficult youths? When chil-dren or youths aren’t engagedthey’re likely to create their ownfun, which could mean exploringparts of the event site that can beoff limits and even dangerous.
What are toilet facilities like forthe young ones? Do parents have asheltered place where they canchange nappies? Having spare“emergency” nappies on site could
make a big difference to a parentcaught short.
If there are many young children,consider having “toddlers only” toi-lets – ones that parents feel happyto let their kids use. Can the kidsreach the hand washing facility orthe hand gel? Do your caterers havechild friendly foods that are healthyand not highly spiced? What abouthearing protection for little ones atmusic events? Have information onyour web site or literature aboutprotecting young ears.
Unfortunately not all parents areup to the job of parenting. What doyou do if a parent claiming a lostchild is very drunk, incapable oraggressive and abusive? How doyou care for the child then?
Then there’s the 13 going on 30brigade. Other than ensuringthey’re not served alcohol, what areyou doing for them? This is a verydifficult time in their young livesand emotions run high. Consider
having experienced youth workersavailable especially for weekendcampsite events. Having someoneto talk to helps. Mobile phones arevery important to youth, not justfor calling friends but to a link withparents. Have a place wherephones can be charged to avoid the“I couldn’t call you, because myphone battery ran down” excuse.
On the other end of the age scale,older people need a certainamount of care at events at well.Sitting down and resting is impor-tant. If it’s an open event site, manymay wish to bring folding chairs ormobility scooters.
Consider a place where the canset their chairs with a good view ofthe entertainment but out of theway of major footfall. They mayneed to charge their electric scoot-ers.
Take a tip from public transportand have priority seating signs inany areas of seating you have.
� Linda Krawecke is owner of Tiger Tea– a company specialising in health andsafety and welfare at events.
Although health and safety is a vital part of event organising, looking after the welfare of your audience –whatever their age – is just as important, according to Linda Krawecke.
Caring is just as importantas health and safety
Linda Krawecke
Providing securityfor a diverse market SPECIALIZED Security is one of theleading and well established securityand crowd management companies,currently providing a series of highquality man-power based securitysolutions and services for a diversemarket throughout the UnitedKingdom.
Specialized’s management teamhave well over 20 years experienceworking within the security industryin a number of different market sec-tors.
The management team have a com-mitment to customer focus and aimto provide a close working relation-ship with customers to generate amutual partnership and a trust for the
benefit of both organisations.Specialized’s reputation as a quality
security service provider relies on thequality and professionalism of thepeople we recruit and employ.
We pride ourselves in providing aprogressive working environment forour employees providing nationallyrecognised training tailored to theclient’s needs.
Specialized currently have the SIAApproved Contractor Status and areworking towards ISO 9001:2008accreditation which demonstrates thecompany’s determination to continu-ally improve quality throughout, lead-ing to a high quality level of servicefor the customer.
20 6/4/10 16:01 Page 1
CARING FOR YOUR AUDIENCE 21
ENSURING everyone has a positiveexperience needs a range of solutionsto what are issues reflected in societyas a whole.
These include noisy neighbours,criminal activity and the unfortunatetask of having to exclude people fromthe area.
G4S Events has therefore founditself in a situation of having to develop what are sometimes unique,but often partnered, initiatives toensure that not only is anti socialbehaviour addressed, but pre-empt-ed.
We take a lead role at all of themusic festivals where we areemployed which has enabled us tomake progress such as ensuring thereare dedicated teams to provide com-munity patrols for campsites.
This initiative has G4S staff andpolice operating together in a man-ner that enables both teams to workmore closely with the camping cus-tomers, building up a rapport whichthen leads to greater cooperation anda safer campsite.
However just like in any street,sometimes the neighbours do not get
on and this may require the removalof one or more attendees.
To ensure this is conducted with ahigh degree of accountability, aprocess known as customer removalhas been developed to ensure thatnot only are the details of the personbeing removed properly recorded,but that they have also been giventhe appropriate level of support toensure friends and family are awareof their predicament.
The process includes the issuing ofa ticket, which details the staff mem-ber responsible for authorising theremoval and a set of standard condi-tions to clarify opinion from the per-son being removed.
Generating harmony in the camp-site requires a multi-facetedapproach and is partly a process ofeducating the audience, but in theend it is about ensuring the vastmajority of good campsite citizensare given a high level of service notcompromised by the attention givento the anti social minority.
� Mark is managing director of G4SEvents.
In recent years there hasbeen an increasing focuson ensuring thatcustomers who choose tocamp at festivals have amuch better experience, asG4S Events’ MarkHamilton explains ...
Generating harmonyin the campsite
Mark Hamilton
G4S works on T in the Park
21 6/4/10 16:02 Page 1
2 22 SOCIAL NETWORKING
THE use of digital to enhance andamplify a consumer focused experi-ential campaign is well documented.But just as experiential techniquescan be used in a corporate environ-ment to engage internal audiences,social media can also be used to cre-ate exposure and increase attendancepre-event, engender engagementwhilst on-site and then gather feed-back and reinforce the event’s impactlong after visitors return home.
Twitter is a good place to start – it isa very powerful tool in terms of preevent promotion and an incredibletool for engaging with audiences dur-ing an event. It appears that usingchannels such as Twitter in the cor-porate event environment actuallyliberates staff to speak out when theywould normally shy away from ask-ing questions or offering commen-tary.
I spoke at a conference last year andan audience member suggested thatit was dangerous to allow freedom of
speech in such a public way and suchpractices could open up a can ofworms, and heaven forbid – what ifthe commentary was negative?
Well, in my opinion you cannotmake change and improve if you donot know all of the facts and you donot know how your staff feel. If youhave the negatives you can turn theminto positives. Recently, a client ofours embraced a proposition wemade to resolve an internal commu-nications issue. We opened a Twitterchannel for internal communication,posed the question and thus openedthe debate. Answers could only be amaximum of 140 characters - ensur-ing that employees think about whatthey say and how they say it.
This mechanic also allowed directmessaging for an immediateresponse and commentary wasarchived. The business has a massivenetwork of out of office staff but theyare all on blackberry so access totwitter offers an easy communication
and content sharing option.So in my opinion, you cannot and
should not ignore the opportunity tosupport live experiences with digital
and interactive media.
� Ian Irving, pictured, is director ofcorporate at RPM.
Social media is becoming an increasingly popular way for events to interact with their audience. Ian Irving tells TheMain Event why organisers should make the most of this opportunity...
Twitter: a very powerful tool ...
WHEN introducing a social network-ing policy it is important to ensureemployees follow guidelines wheninteracting with each other online, ithas been claimed.
Showsec brought in its policy abouttwo years ago and the document iscirculated around the companyamong both permanent and casualmembers of staff.
The written policy ensures thatemployees know what is consideredappropriate behaviour on social net-working sites and what to be aware ofwhen mentioning the company nameonline.
And according to the company’shead of human resources DebbieAtherton, it has proved useful.
She said: “Social networking isbecoming more of a feature of lifeand there are a lot of forums outthere and things being said.
“But people don’t always draw a linebetween something connected withthe workplace and their own sociallife. We found occasionally someonesaid something inappropriate about
someone or the company and we feltwe had to do something to fall backon. The policy has been useful in thatwe can draw this to people’s atten-tion. If someone is found to be usingsocial networking inappropriately wewill take action. We have never endedsomeone’s employment but we haveused it to remind people about theirbehaviour.”
But Debbie added that used in theright way, social networking is a valu-able tool to help employees interactwith each other and for casual staffworking for Showsec to meet others.
She added: “There are so many pos-itives to it. Employees can join sitessuch as Facebook and Myspace andtalk to each other. And if people arenew, they can talk to people whohave been there before, from thepoint of view of a co-worker.”
The policy also includes advice foremployees on how to protect them-selves online including restrictingtheir personal information and whothey give it out to.
Employees must follow guidelineswhen interacting online Sporting event
leads the wayA COUNCIL run sporting event isleading the way with social net-working after using online tools topromote this year’s event.
The organisers of Run Balmoral –10K and 5K races over a course onthe Queen’s Balmoral Estate inAberdeenshire – have been goingonline to raise awareness of thisyear’s event.
And according to Andrew Millerfrom Aberdeenshire Council'ssports development team, this isproving to be successful.
He said: "Run Balmoral has beenrunning for 13 years and now hasits own Facebook page and Twitteraccount. This year we're doingmore to promote the event onlineand provide regular updates togenerate interest.
“It’s possible for individuals andgroups to apply for the race viathe website and we also send outan e-newsletter to remind peoplewho had previously taken part tosign-up again.
“Those who take part will also beable to download their certificatesdirectly from the website.”
Andrew also revealed his top tipsfor organisers of sporting events
who want to utilise social net-working.
These include: � Choose a social networking site– Facebook, Bebo, YouTube andTwitter can be very helpful in gen-erating interest and keeping fol-lowers updated with the latestnews about your event.� Update website/social sites reg-ularly.� Posting regular messages onsites such as Facebook and Twitterwill keep followers up-to-datewith the latest news and helpspromote the event to a wideraudience.� Access to photographs andvideo clips from your event cangenerate interest from those whoattended.� Allowing instant access to finalresults from the event will alsoshow your online presence is wellmaintained.
He added: “The event itself ismore than a race, it's an occasionfor families and friends and wecan achieve a real sense of com-munity by using social networkingtools to reach a large number ofresidents."
Companies join forcesVENUE IT and Etherlive have joinedforces to offer a range of communica-tions services and consultancy to theevents industry.
The two companies – who betweenthem have worked on events includ-ing Red Bull X Fighters, theSouthampton Boat Show and theGreen Man Festival – will initiallymaintain both the Etherlive andVenue IT brands and will operate
from the Etherlive headquarters inWiltshire.
Managing director at Etherlive ChrisGreen said: “With our strong technol-ogy background and Venue IT’sevents history and experience, we’re agreat fit.
“Having worked successfully togeth-er for a year and a half on a numberof projects, the most logical step wasto join forces and work as one.”
22 6/4/10 15:11 Page 1
23
THE Management of Health andSafety at Work Regulations requiresemployers to ensure that all theirrepresentatives on site, both perma-nent and freelance staff, havereceived adequate and formal train-ing in all aspects of health and safetyprior to commencing work.
In the live events industry there aresome basic principles that requiretraining to ensure we adhere to theHealth and Safety Executive (HSE)guidance. These include workplacesafety, which covers occupationallaw, employer and employee respon-sibilities, risk assessment and a safeplace of work. Training in the correctand safe use of plant and machineryis another HSE requirement, as ishealth issues covering work equip-ment, electricity, noise, transport,hazardous substances, manual han-dling and stress. Finally, trainingshould also cover safe systems ofwork, emergency procedure, fire,accidents, pollution prevention andenvironmental issues.
In an ideal world, every employerwould have an in-house training pro-gramme that covers all of the above.Furthermore such a training pro-
gramme would be presented in sucha way that it would make the issuesrelevant to their particular sector andhence easily understandable.
I leave you to judge whether this ishappening throughout our sector.However, I find it encouraging that anew initiative specially designed forthe live events industry is gainingmomentum. I refer to the SafetyPassport Scheme.
This scheme comprises a one daycourse aimed at the general liveevents workforce – production staff,stage hands, lighting and sound crew,stage and set builders, technicians,stewards, drivers, riggers, laser andpyrotechnic technicians, video andproduction crew.
Of course, there is a limit to whatcan be learned in one day; but ifnothing else this scheme sets a basicstandard for health and safety in ourindustry.
The scheme has existed in othersectors for some years, and hashelped them achieve credibility and areputation for taking health and safe-ty seriously – something we shouldall be aiming for in our industry.
This simple concept helps establish
a safety culture by providing anationally recognised standard ofhealth and safety training and assess-ment that is cost-effective, easilyaccessible, and tests individualknowledge in the form of an exam.
In addition, by introducing anindustry wide safety scheme we can
raise awareness of our seriousapproach to health and safety.Without setting industry wide basicstandards, how are we to improve? Itis for this reason, if no other, I believethe Safety Passport is an importantdevelopment in the live events indus-try.
With some high-profile accidents resulting in prosecutions, and the Health and Safety Executive looking to reducethe incidence of accidents in the sector, health and safety is now where it should be – at the top of the agenda –in the live events industry. Here, in the first of a regular column, Heath Freeman, managing director of PinnacleCrew, looks at what people need to know on-site to ensure good health and safety practice.
Manual handling, such as illustrated here with crew lifting the Abbey Santander twoseater show car at the Formula 1 event in aid of Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’sCharity, is one of the health issues covered by the new Safety Passport scheme.
Health and safety at top of the agenda
23 6/4/10 15:11 Page 1
2 24 NOEA
19 – 20 April Wales Conference,Gwynedd21 – 22 September Event UK NEC20 – 21 October Showman’s Show, NewburyMid November Scottish Conference (venuetbc)26 November Regional Conference andAGM (venue tbc)
For more information contact: Susan TannerPO Box 4495, WellsBA5 9AS.(T) 01749 674 531(E) [email protected]
NOEAdiary dates
Susan Tanner is NOEA’S new general secretary. See feature on Page 9
THE Main Event held at the SECC inGlasgow is Scotland’s event dedicatedto corporate events, hospitality andentertainment and with its brightpink carpets and welcoming stewardsin kilts proved to be a very successfulshow for NOEA.
The new display with the new logowas ably put up by Tom Clements’(NOEA Scottish chairman) team fromSpecialized Security and we receivedmany comments about how strikingthe display was and how it caught theeye.
Jan Booth (NOEA vice president)from Sunbaba helped man the standand did not allow anyone to simplywalk past.
Even if they did not appear interest-ed, Jan soon found something to talk
about to the potential member.Consequently, we have quite a fewleads to follow up with a wide varietyof potential members.
Students from CaledonianUniversity, the next generation ofevent professionals, also attendedand were interested in the work ofNOEA.
There appeared to be a real needfor networking opportunities withoutdoor event professionals and sup-pliers to take place in Scotland andNOEA will take this forward with aconference which is likely to takeplace in November with dates to beconfirmed.
Steven Schofield from Dundee CityCouncil also helped on the stand pro-viding cover for loo breaks!
Main Event Glasgow March 11
New display earnspraise at Scottish event
NOEA Wales Conference – in associa-tion with Gwynedd Council and theWelsh Assembly Government – willbe held at The Vaynol Estate,Felinheli in Gwynedd.
The programme of events hasbeen expertly put together by HughEdwin Jones, the creative enterprisesofficer for Cyngor Gwynedd Council,who has been working extremelyhard to pull together an interestingand educational programme ofevents.
The conference starts on Mondayafternoon with an openingdiscussion about the role of the mainstatutory agencies involvement withevents, with representatives from thePolice, Fire and Ambulance services.
There will also be workshops onmarketing your event and creating afinancial plan.
On Tuesday the Head of the WelshAssembly Major Events Unit, ArthurEmyr will be speaking about howevents are important to the Welsheconomy.
Other topics during the day willcover the 2012 Olympics and anupdate on the Cultural Olympics andalso the Ryder Cup.
There will also be a discussionabout public sector supportfor events.
The programme is a very interest-ing one and non-members are alsowelcome to attend.
Not only is the conference a veryinformative one but also offers greatnetworking opportunities.
Fee for members of NOEA,Gwynedd and North Wales EventGroup is £25 plus vat and for nonmembers the fee is £35 plus vat.There will also be exhibition spaceavailable.
Full information can be found onthe web site with downloadablebooking forms if you follow this link:http://www.noea.org.uk/events.asp?menuId=5r or call Susan Tanner on01749 674 531.
Wales Conference April 19-20
Informative eventwith networkingopportunities
‘Other topicsduring the day willcover the 2012Olympics and anupdate on theCultural Olympicsand also theRyder Cup’
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TRAINING AND RECRUITMENT
THE international events industry isreportedly worth tens of billions ofdollars, whether that is for confer-ences, festivals, concerts, marketingor promotional events. Consequ-ently, UK companies are venturingmore and more from the shores of‘Blighty’.
Overseas work for UK-based com-panies tends to be awarded by otherUK-based companies, these can belarge-scale corporate companies,experiential brand marketing com-panies, PR firms, UK promoters andspecialist corporate event compa-nies to name a few.
As recession ‘ebbs and flows’ inthe United Kingdom the major proof working overseas is financial,together with increasing your com-pany’s market base; it’s a big wideworld out there after all.
With all pros unfortunately therehas to be cons and the internationalevent world does have some for UKbased companies. One of the firstthat should be considered at theearliest stage is the financial impli-cations that can come from mone-tary exchange; thanks to someamazing politicians in the UK thereis always a chance that over the life-time of an overseas project thepound will drop – this can leave in
some cases a large deficit in budg-ets. Another early issue to consideris a company’s normal insurance,public liability, product and profes-sional indemnity, which may notcover overseas work, especially inthe USA.
Working with other culturesmeans adapting; ‘when in Rome, doas the Romans do!’ Yes or No? Theanswer has to be Yes, it is theircountry and their rules/legislation,but… and there is a big but…
The UK has a strong and profes-sional events industry, which is cov-ered by extensive legislation andgood practice guides; some ofwhich are so good they have beenadapted for use in other parts of theworld. The UK industry comparedto some areas of the planet is ‘oldfather time’ as it has been runningevents for many decades, and manyof the real industry professionalsare old … (sorry to all my colleaguesover 40 ... you know who you are!)Other parts of the world have ayoung events market due to finan-cial or political issues in thosecountries pasts and their personnelcannot be expected to have theexperience that UK professionalsmay have.
Experience has shown that the
main changes between certain partsof the world and the UK in theevents world can be structural safe-ty, as some areas outside of Europe,the US and Australasia do not havetested purpose built structures; themain roof elements tend to be purpose built, however the stagebase can be of various woodencomponents on a mix and matchbasis.
General health and safety ele-ments are vastly different betweencountries and local legislation infor-mation should always be sought atan early stage.
If legislation is lacking then itappears that the safest bet is to
utilise UK legislation as if you wereworking at home, this should keepthe standards high enough to avoidissues. Always remember that pun-ishments for infractions overseascan be far higher in foreign landsthan in the UK, it’s always best toreturn home with all body partsintact.
Generally though, foreign eventsare run extremely well and can be acompany’s saving when market-places are falling foul of the reces-sion in certain parts of the globe,and I advocate exploring this mar-ketplace at every opportunity. LikeSir Francis Drake – explore theworld!
As head of TAO Productions, Andy Cotton has worked on major projects both in the UK and abroad. In the first of a newcolumn, he shares his experiences with The Main Event – starting with a look at working on international events.
When in Rome, do as the Romans do but ...
Andy with local crew on a project in Hong Kong
A NEW degree has been launched bythe University of Derby Corporateand Showsec.
The foundation degree in AppliedProfessional Studies specialising inCrowd Management started inFebruary and already 24 junior andmid-operational management execu-tives have embarked on the flexibleprogramme, which combines aca-demic and theoretical knowledgewith work-based skills.
Workforce development fellow at
University of Derby Corporate ConorMoss said: “The commitment fromboth parties on this project has beenexemplary; the programme fits inwell with our extensive selection ofcourses based around the eventsindustry.
“The programme has been devel-oped to recognise the existing experi-ence and knowledge of the individuallearners/employees to enable themto achieve components of the courseat a speed that suits them.”
New degree launched at Derby
An Irish first for Sean withrigging supervisor certificateSEAN Pagel from Production ServicesIreland has become the first personin Ireland to attain PLASA's NationalRigging Certificate Level three – rig-ging supervisor level.
The certificate demonstrates thatindividuals have reached a profes-sional standard within their chosen
rigging discipline.
Sean said: "With health and safetyissues increasingly topping all riggingagendas, and our commitment tooffering clients the very best andhighest quality services, industrydriven and recognised qualificationslike this are vitally important.”
25 6/4/10 15:15 Page 1
2 26 365 - SUPPLIER DIRECTORY
Audio VisualArcstream AVUnit 22 Nonsuch Industrial EstateKiln LaneEpsomSurreyKT17 1DHT: 01372 742 682M: 07813 825 215F: 01372 737 279E: [email protected]
BarsEagle Event Bars27 Bridge StreetCarmarthenCarmarthenshireSA31 3JST: 01267 235031M: 07790 614401E: [email protected]
Backline & PA HireSensible Music Group90-96 Brewery RoadLondonN7 9NT T: 020 7700 9900 F: 020 7700 4802E: [email protected]
CommunicationsWall to Wall CommunicationsUnilink House21 Lewis RoadSutton, SurreySM1 4BRT:020 8770 1007F:020 8770 9700E:[email protected]
CrowdManagementA.P. Security (North) Ltd.33 Metro CentreDwight RoadWatfordHertsWD189SBT: 0870 412 2232E: [email protected] www.apsecurity.co.uk
Event Security Solutions LimitedB1-B6 The Alison Business Centre40 Alison CrescentSheffieldS2 1AST: 0114 283 5948E: info@eventsecuritysolutions.co.ukwww.eventsecuritysolutions.co.uk
G4S EventsSutton Park House15 Carshalton RoadSuttonSurreySM1 4LDT: 0800 085 9899E: [email protected]/uk-events
Specialized Security4 Fairways Business Park Deer ParkLivingston EH54 8AF T: 01506 442255E: [email protected]
EmergencyHeating & CoolingCarrier Rental SystemsWigan Road Leyland PrestonPR25 5XWT: 0800 026 4717E: [email protected]
Event BrandingPiggotts Branding43 London RoadStanford RiversOngarEssexCM5 9PJT: 01277 363262E: [email protected]
Event PowerBRM ProductionsUnit 12Canalside Industrial ParkKinoulton RoadCropwell BishopNottsNG12 3BET: 0115 989 9955M: 07860 285305F: 0115 989 9977E: [email protected]
Health & SafetyEvent Safety12 Vale AvenueBuryBL9 9LWM: 07812 159 339T: 0161 763 7020E: [email protected]
InsuranceServicesARC InternationalSt. Clare House30-33 MinoriesLondonEC3N 1PET: +44 (0) 207 977 7630F: +44 (0) 207 977 7631E: [email protected]
Event Insurance Services LimitedEvent House20A Headlands Business ParkRingwoodBH24 3PBT: 01425 470360E: [email protected]
Robertson Taylor33 Harbour Exchange SquareLondon E14 9GGT: 020 7510 1234E: [email protected]
MarqueesPiggotts Marquees43 London RoadStanford RiversOngarEssexCM5 9PJT: 01277 363262E: [email protected]
Marquee Stakesand AccessoriesAnsell Hand Tools72 Catley RoadDarnallSheffieldS9 5JFT: 0114 244 8098E: [email protected]
MedicalManagementSP Services (UK) LtdUnit D4, Hortonpark EstateHortonwood 7 Telford Shropshire TF1 7GXT: 01952 288 999F: 01952 606 112E: [email protected]
Venture Event Medical ManagementCopperfield House47 Leeds RoadGawthorpeOssett West Yorkshire WF5 9QWT: 07988 388461E: [email protected]
PortableKitchensPKL Group (UK) Ltd,Stella WayBishops CleeveCheltenhamGloucestershireGL52 7DQT: 01242 663000E: [email protected]
PromotionalStaffACG : Artimis Creative GroupHickory HousePrimsland CloseMonkspathSolihullB90 4YHT: 0121 703 3168M: 07977 252308E: [email protected]
Revolving StagesMovetech UK A division of BritishTurntable Co LtdEmblem StreetBoltonBL3 5BWT: 01204 537682E: [email protected]/rental
Screen HireXL Video2 Eastman WayHemel HempsteadHertsHP27DUT: 01442 849400E: [email protected]
StagingCentre Stage EventsUnit 108a Leyland Trading EstateIrthlingborough RoadWellingboroughT: 01234 783234E: [email protected]
Daytona Stage HireP.O. Box 43HuddersfieldHD8 9YUT: 01484 605555M: 07889 132580F: 01484 602806E: [email protected]
Steeldeck Rentals LtdUnit 58T.Marchant Estate42-72 Verney RoadLondonSE16 3DHT: 020 7833 2031E: [email protected]
The Outdoor Staging Company Ltd1 Langley DriveCastle Bromwich B35 7ADT: +44(0)7866 470 293E: [email protected]
TicketingPerformance Ticket Printers LtdThe SmithyBrownlow HeathCongletonCW12 4TJT: 01260 276164E: [email protected]. ticketprinters.co.uk
Trade AssociationsNOEASusan TannerPO Box 4495WELLS.BA5 9AST: 01749 674 531E: [email protected]
VenuesFabric LondonLevel 2 Greenhill House Cowcross Street London EC1M 6BT: 020 7549 4844E: [email protected]
Water suppliesWater Direct LtdB-26 Earls Colne Business ParkEarls ColneColchesterEssexCO6 2NST: 0845 345 1725F: 01787 223354E: [email protected]
To advertise here call 01226 734 456
26 6/4/10 15:16 Page 1
PORTABLE ROADWAY
MEDICAL
EVENT BRANDING
WASTE MANAGEMENT
HEATING & COOLING
TOILET HIRE
RECYCLING
FAIRGROUNDS
Unit D, Central Estate,Albert Road, Aldershot,Hampshire GU11 1SZ
Tel: 01252 313005
The EventMedicine Company
Email: [email protected]
VEHICLE HIRE
BARS RADIO HIRE
PORTABLE ROADWAY
POWER SUPPLY
BALLOONS
CLASSIFIED 27
CATERING
EVENT HIRE
LARGE SCREEN HIRE
STAGE HIRE
28 6/4/10 15:17 Page 1
