Comprehensive Guide to Planning Safe and Secure Events

Hosting an event is an exciting undertaking, but it’s also one that comes with significant responsibility. In order to ensure the safety and well-being of all attendees, it’s essential to take a proactive approach to event safety. In this article, we’ll take a closer look at what this entails, including the steps you can take to plan for event safety, evaluate venue safety, manage crowds, prepare for emergencies, communicate effectively, and address event-specific safety concerns.

One of the key factors in ensuring event safety is effective planning. Below we’ll look at the steps involved in planning for event safety, including identifying potential hazards, creating a risk management plan, designing a safety plan, and selecting trained staff and security personnel.

Start with Assessing Risks of the planned Even

• Identify Potential Hazards:

• Before you can begin to plan for event safety, it’s important to identify the potential hazards that may be present at your event. Hazards can include physical risks such as slippery floors or tripping hazards, as well as security risks such as theft or violence.

• To identify potential hazards, start by conducting a thorough site inspection. Walk through the event space and look for any potential hazards. Consider factors such as lighting, traffic flow, and access to emergency exits.

• It’s also important to consider the specific nature of your event. For example, if you’re hosting a concert, you’ll need to consider factors such as crowd management and sound levels. If you’re hosting a food festival, you’ll need to consider food safety and hygiene.

• Design a Safety Plan:

• You’ll need to design a safety plan that outlines the measures you’ll take to ensure event safety. This plan should be tailored to the specific nature of your event and should address factors such as crowd management, emergency procedures, and communication.

• Your safety plan should include the following elements:

• Crowd management plan:
  

  • Effective crowd control starts with careful planning. Before your event, you should conduct a thorough risk assessment to identify potential crowd-related hazards. You need to take into account factors such as crowd size, venue capacity, and the nature of the event.

• Emergency procedures:
  

  • Plans for responding to emergencies such as fires, medical emergencies, or severe weather.

• Communication plan:
  

  • Strategies for communicating with attendees, staff, and emergency services.

• Required Resources:
  

  • A list of necessary equipment and supplies, such as first aid kits, fire extinguishers, and emergency lighting.

Internal Stakeholders – Pillars of Positive Service

• Security Personnel:

• It’s important to select trained staff and security personnel to help ensure event safety. Depending on the size and nature of your event, you may need to hire additional staff or security personnel to help manage crowds and ensure safety.

• They need to know the strategies, evacuation procedures, and communication methods that come from overseeing such a large volume of people.

• When selecting staff and security personnel, look for individuals with experience in event safety and security. Make sure they’re properly trained and qualified for the job.

• Security should form a visible presence. This isn’t just to deter any unruly behavior around them, but also to reassure attendees that they are safe. Security can also help attendees answer questions about the event – anything from asking for bathroom locations to following their directions in the case of a security breach or evacuation.

• Medical Team

• If you’re hosting a larger event, in addition to a security team, you will also need an emergency medical crew. They will be there for the first response and for liaising with additional paramedics when they arrive on the scene if needed.

• Volunteers

• Facilities management

External Stakeholders

You should liaise with external bodies or organizations who could be involved in crowd management at an event. Stakeholders you may need to liaise with:

• Owner

• The owner of the venue where you are proposing to hold your event

• Local residents or their representatives

• Particularly if you are organizing an event such as a carnival parade that goes through their residential area

• Local law enforcement.

• Even if you’re hiring security staff specifically for your event, think about whether your event would benefit from a police presence or having them on standby. Determine how you will be communicating with them on the day. Make sure all event staff, including the security team, are aware of this as well so that you can all follow the same procedure. A more cohesive approach will mean a faster response to any security concerns.

• Event management company

• It will take most of the mentioned safety concerns off your plate. They can be your go-to partner for event production, COVID compliance, event technology support, communication with vendors, and other security aspects of event management.

• Emergency Services

• Fire department, Hospitals

The detail and complexity of any discussions or planning groups should be proportionate to the risks involved. You and the emergency services should be clear about who will do what if there is an emergency.

Crowd Control

One of the most important aspects of event safety is effective crowd management. Let us look at the steps involved in planning for crowd control, setting up barriers and signage, and managing entrance and exit points.

• Planning for Crowd Control:

• Based on your risk assessment, you should develop a crowd management plan that outlines the steps you’ll take to manage crowds and ensure event safety. This plan should include strategies for managing entrance and exit points, controlling the flow of people, and responding to emergencies.

• Setting up Barriers and Signage:

• Once you’ve developed a crowd management plan, it’s time to set up barriers and signage to help manage crowds. Barriers can be used to guide people and control the flow of foot traffic. They can also be used to create separate areas for different activities or to keep crowds away from hazardous areas.

• Signage is also an important tool for effective crowd management. Signs can be used to provide information about directions, event rules, and emergency procedures. They can also be used to help people find their way around the event space. When setting up barriers and signage, it’s important to consider factors such as visibility and accessibility. Make sure that signs are clearly visible and that barriers don’t obstruct views or impede movement.

• Consider using floor markings to help guide people and prevent congestion.

• Managing Entrance and Exit Points:

• Another important aspect of crowd management is managing entrance and exit points. Depending on the size and nature of your event, you may have multiple entry and exit points. It’s important to ensure that these points are clearly marked and that staff are stationed at each point to help manage crowds.

• To manage crowds at entrance and exit points, consider using tools such as crowd barriers, ticket scanning devices, and bag checks. You may also want to consider implementing timed entry to help control the flow of people.

• In addition to managing entrance and exit points, it’s also important to consider the flow of people within the event space. Make sure that walkways and aisles are wide enough to accommodate the expected crowds.

Emergency – Be Prepared for the Worst

No matter how well-planned your event is, emergencies can still happen. That’s why it’s crucial to have a comprehensive emergency response plan in place. In this chapter, we’ll explore the steps involved in developing an emergency response plan, training staff on emergency procedures, and communicating with emergency services.

• Developing an Emergency Response Plan:

• The first step in emergency preparedness is developing an emergency response plan. This plan should outline the steps you’ll take in the event of an emergency, including procedures for evacuating the venue, providing medical care to injured individuals, and communicating with emergency services.

• When developing your emergency response plan, consider factors such as the nature of your event, the size of the venue, and the expected number of attendees. Your plan should also take into account the types of emergencies that are most likely to occur, such as severe weather, medical emergencies, or security threats.

• It’s important to involve key stakeholders in the development of your emergency response plan, including event organizers, venue staff, and emergency services personnel. Make sure that everyone involved in the planning process understands their roles and responsibilities in the event of an emergency.

• Training Staff on Emergency Procedures:

• Once you’ve developed your emergency response plan, it’s important to train all staff members on emergency procedures.

• Training should include a review of the emergency response plan, as well as hands-on practice of emergency procedures such as evacuations, first aid, and communication with emergency services. Staff members should also be trained on how to identify potential hazards and how to respond appropriately to emergency situations.

• Communicating with Emergency Services:

• Effective communication with emergency services is essential in the event of an emergency. Make sure that all staff members know how to contact emergency services and understand the information that emergency services personnel will need to know, such as the location of the event and the nature of the emergency.

• Consider using two-way radios or other communication devices to ensure that staff members can quickly and easily communicate with each other and with emergency services. You may also want to consider designating a specific staff member to act as the point person for communication with emergency services.

• In addition to communicating with emergency services, it’s important to communicate with attendees in the event of an emergency. Make sure that all attendees know what to do in the event of an emergency, and provide clear instructions on how to evacuate the venue and where to go for assistance.

Hire Professional Vendors

When planning a safe event, it’s important to be as thorough as possible. Ask your vendors the hard questions and make sure their products and practices are safety-compliant too. Ensure you:

• obtain all relevant documentation like insurance certificates from your vendors.

• get only professionally certified, engineered products from your vendors.

• use staging vendors who already have high-wind action plans, evacuation plans, and fire safety plans.

• hire vendors who ask lots of questions. When potential contractors ask well-considered questions about covering your event and then provide a pre-approved plan to accomplish what you need, it helps to know you’re dealing with professionals.

• ensure all staff and contractors are trained for emergencies beyond medical emergencies, minor assaults, and lost children.

If contractors aren’t willing to comply, consider it a red flag. Either keep asking to get what you need, or look for more professional vendors.

Use Technology for Crowdshaping

New technology doesn’t just have a use for its entertainment value, but in planning a safe event too. In-app crowd trackers can help to pinpoint areas that are getting overcrowded, so you can take steps to disperse the crowd, or direct more security staff to that area. Logistics monitoring helps to ensure that attendees are being transported to and from your event safely. Use data to prompt the delivery of additional services and to make sure attendees aren’t waiting too long for their rides to arrive.
Another technology that has great potential for improving and managing safety at events is heat mapping to monitor foot traffic. This is useful for preventing overcrowding on escalators, for example. But it’s also a great way to open up new traffic routes – whether that be doors or changing the flow of escalators. For instance, noticing a sudden surge of a crowd towards the exit could be a sign of a security breach. You could quickly change the escalator flow to relieve bottlenecks and ensure attendees get to the exit safely and efficiently.

Bonus Info

• How many Security Personnel do I need?

• Having one guard per 25-50 people at your party or event is a general rule to meet your needs.

• How many square meters per guest do I need to allocate?
  

  • Standing – 6 square feet = 0.55 square meters

  • Sitting – 8 square feet = 0.74 square meters