October 2026
Picking the right partner
Can the security company you appointed deliver what was promised? Page 28
BOOMTOWN
MANCHESTER VILLAGE PRIDE
SAFETY
CARFEST
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CONTENTS
12 SAFE AND SPECTACULAR
24 GETTING BACK ON TRACK
36 BOLD NEW ERA
30 GET READY TO CONNECT
74 FROM HULL WITH LOVE
12 SAFE AND SPECTACULAR
36 BOLD NEW ERA
18 IT TAKES A VILLAGE
56 BIN THERE – DO THAT
24 GETTING BACK ON TRACK
60 DON’T MISS A BEAT
30 GET READY TO CONNECT
71 DON’T DRIVE TIRED
33 TIME TO SHINE
74 FROM HULL WITH LOVE
The 60th anniversary edition of Notting Hill Carnival benefitted from new event measures, all designed to make carnival safer Manchester Village Pride’s Rob Malcomson and EZ Event Resilience’s Emily Beardow and Zofia Plonczak on the new-look Pride event This year, CarFest moved to Silverstone, but how did the move go? Silverstone Circuits’ Tanya Cash talks lessons learned Event Buyers Live: Everything you need to know from content sessions, how to register, and more… UKEL CEO Bev Ward on the new Inclusive Sport and Culture Festival, the live event blending elite Para-sport and disability-led Arts
Boomtown 2026 featured major site changes. Lana Elworthy, head of production, walks StandOut through the “radical redesign” Exceptional waste management takes forward thinking and collaboration. Event professionals explain the steps they are taking Event safety experts discuss the challenges of the summer, lessons learned, and the latest review into public safety at events The last hour of an event starts in the first planning meeting. VA 361 Productions’ Daniel Pycock explains all Humber Street Sesh’s Mark Page on grassroots music, community, and the future
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EDITOR’S LETTER
OCTOBER 2026 you know that I am a bit of a health and safety geek? Honestly, I absolutely love D idchatting with health and safety professionals. They bring so many interesting opinions to
the party, and they are also the voices of reason when the crazy ideas get thrown into the pot. It’s one of the reasons why I always love writing the October issue of StandOut. Dedicated features on staging where organisers push the boundaries of creativity and tech production to take event experiences up a notch and then there’s event safety. The steel-toe capped boots on the ground that are there to ensure those mad ideas do happen. But safely. I’ll be honest, this issue has a bit of a theme. I didn’t plan it that way, but it just so happens that safety has been on everyone’s mind this month. From Notting Hill Carnival, which benefitted from new event safety measures to the new-look Manchester Village Pride that adopted a safety-first approach. Then we have Events Resilience Group’s Dave Sammons questioning how we know whether someone is qualified, experienced, or competent to do a job, followed by VA 361 Productions’ Daniel Pycock, who says that the last hour of an event starts in the first planning meeting. This issue really is packed with some great info, so a big thank you to everyone who has shared their stories with the team this month. Including Silverstone Circuits’ Tanya Cash who talks all things CarFest on page 24, Boomtown’s Lana Elworthy who gave me the lowdown on the festival’s “radical redesign” (page 36), and Humber Street Sesh’s Mark Page, one of the most passionate people you’ll ever meet when it comes to grassroots music and events (page 74). Make a brew, have a read, and let me know what you think. Or even better, get in touch and tell me what you’re up to. Over the next couple of months, you’ll find me at The Showman’s Show and at Event Buyers Live, so say hello and introduce yourself. Tell me what you’re working on, the challenges you’re facing, and your wins. I’m all ears. Happy reading, Caroline Cover image: © Manchett Security
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CONTRIBUTORS
This month’s
CONTRIBUTORS:
BEV WARD
Bev is an award-winning, purpose-driven senior leader with significant experience in sport across communications, marketing, commercial, major events, grant management, and community impact. A strategic thinker, operating at board and C-suite level across complex, multistakeholder projects, programmes, and major events. Bev most recently spent more than two years at UK Sport as major events lead, leading the new strategy Making Live Sport Matter and leading the host city selection process (including raising £110 million from local authorities for the UK bid for the 2035 FIFA Women’s World Cup. Bev is now CEO of UKEL overseeing the strategic direction of the business as it grows.
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MARK “MAK” PAGE
Mark is a lifelong grassroots music champion whose independent work has helped shape Hull’s live music landscape for more than two decades. In 2002, Mark founded The Sesh, a free weekly live music night at Hull’s Polar Bear Music Club before launching Humber Street Sesh in 2012, transforming the former fruitmarket warehouses of Humber Street into a major showcase for new music. The inaugural festival attracted 10,000 people and grew rapidly in the years that followed, eventually reaching a capacity of 32,000. Following the pandemic, the redevelopment of Humber Street reduced the space available to the festival, bringing its capacity down to 15,000. Since returning in 2022, Humber Street Sesh has evolved into a more boutique, community-led event while continuing to welcome exciting emerging artists from Hull and across the UK.
ROB MALCOMSON
Rob is a senior civil servant serving within the Office of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. With extensive experience in programme delivery, crisis management, communications, finance, and public sector governance, Rob is also the chair of the board of trustees for akt, the national LGBTQ+ youth homelessness charity. He stepped up as chair of the board of directors and event gold commander for Manchester Village Pride CIC to help rescue and deliver the 2026 festival alongside a team of co-directors.
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INDUSTRY UPDATES APPOINTMENTS OF THE MONTH
PIC OF THE MONTH
VOK DAMS worldwide has appointed Stuart Weston as director London and UK. Max Scott is head of festival and venue operations at Rise Festival.
Ted Hodgkinson will join Hay Festival Global in November as creative director. Natalie Joyner is head of major events at Fuse. Suzy Griffiths is now head of UK events at Mari. Barney Gutteridge is junior operations manager at Broadwick. Molly Simpson is senior event experience operations manager at Formula E.
Image: © David Parry
The Event Photography Awards crowned David Parry “Overall Winner” of this year’s awards. Parry’s joyous shot Train to Glastonbury captured Sam Ryder performing an impromptu gig onboard a service travelling from Paddington to Glastonbury, ahead of his Saturday set at the music festival in 2025. The surprise performance was part of the “I came by train” campaign supported by Trainline, which encouraged sustainable travel to the event.
LINKEDIN POST OF THE MONTH
NEWS IN BRIEF The Care Quality Commission has issued its response to Treatment of disease, disorder, or injury (TDDI) at events and festivals.
Neptunus has appointed Tony Perfect as health and safety manager for the UK. Amy Bates is senior events manager at Macmillan Cancer Support. Jordan Simpson is co-founder and director of Motion People.
London’s Union Chapel has appointed Leon Cole as head of commercial and programming. Jason Mumby has joined The Evolve Group as group commercial director. Aramco Stadium has appointed Claire Harkness as venue director.
Dodge Woodall, festival owner, Bournemouth 7s Festival I just had 72 people apply for the marketing manager role at Bournemouth 7s Festival and 22 people used AI. Those 22 were put straight in the bin I’m afraid, as it was all written in corporate crap chat. The ones that pricked up my ears were the people who wrote from the heart, showed a load of character and hunger for this opportunity, whilst really pushing what they can bring to the table. I sent them a reply with my mobile number and asked them to send me a WhatsApp to arrange a call. As soon as I receive their message, I call them straight away so they’re off guard and shocked. This is where the magic happens, as we have a really honest chat. If I like them and it feels like a good fit, I’ll invite them in for an interview the following day. The ones that move everything to get to the interview go up in my estimations straight away. In my opinion, speed wins and makes the whole employing process so much easier for everyone involved.
His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services has published a report into how effectively the police contribute to safety advisory groups for high-profile public events. The Government has acknowledged the contribution that conferences and business events make to the UK economy. Business events will be included within the national events strategy, currently being developed with industry input by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport for launch in spring 2027. The Green Events and Innovations Conference will move toThe O2 for its 19th edition on February 23, 2027. A Greener Future will host GEI19 across indigo at The O2 and the O2 Blueroom. Oops. In the September edition, we wrongly referred to NVENTS as N Events Technology. We apologise for the misspelling of the name and any confusion caused.
Simplesssss.
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EVENT TENDERS AND CONTRACT WINS
A PUBLIC EVENT IN WINDSOR
Image: © King’s Church International/Unsplash
Pitch up Looking for new business? Discover news of event tenders and the latest contract wins
View tenders
BBC Children in Need has appointed Threshold Sports to deliver the charity’s iconic portfolio of fundraising challenges for the next three years.
Sunderland City Council has appointed The Festivals Group to provide event management services for its New Year’s Eve celebrations. This contract is worth £174,000.
The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead is conducting a market engagement exercise. It wants to appoint an experienced event management supplier for the delivery of a diverse programme of high-profile ceremonial, civic, and nationally significant events over an anticipated eight-year period. The official tender is expected to be published around October 16. Email procurement@rbwm.gov.uk
East Staffordshire Borough Council requires hostile vehicle mitigation equipment for temporary events. The deadline is 12pm on October 5. Email kaitlan.rice@eaststaffsbc.gov.uk
The City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council is inviting expressions of interest from experienced festival promoters and organisers to develop and deliver a new major music festival at Myrtle Park, Bradford under concession contract arrangements. The deadline is 5pm on October 16. Interested in this five-year opportunity? Email julie.holmes@bradford.gov.uk
Durham County Council is looking to appoint a supplier to provide curator services for the Bishop Auckland and Seaham Food Festivals 2027. The deadline is 10am on October 23. Email corporate.procurement@durham.gov.uk
Durham County Council is seeking an “experienced and innovative” delivery partner to develop and deliver a new flagship cultural event for County Durham. The deadline is 12pm on October 8. Email corporate.procurement@durham.gov.uk
Hull City Council has appointed All Occasions Marquees and Events to provide event infrastructure, marquees, and equipment service solutions.
Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, through Invest Liverpool City Region, requires exhibition design and build partners to design and manage Liverpool City Region’s exhibition stands at MIPIM and UKREiiF for 2027 - 2029. This tender is divided into lots and is worth £720,000. The deadline is 11am on October 13. Email tender@liverpoolcityregion-ca.gov.uk
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NOTTING HILL CARNIVAL
NOTTING HILL CARNIVAL
Images: © Loredana Sangiuliano/DJSully/Shutterstock.com
Safe and spectacular The 60th anniversary edition of Notting Hill Carnival benefitted from new event measures, all designed to make carnival safer and a huge success 12 n pylonone.com
Sponsored by Pylon One
NOTTING HILL CARNIVAL Hill Carnival returned to the N otting streets of North Kensington for its 60th
anniversary celebrations at the end of August. While millions know the community-led event for its music, colourful costumes, and vibrant atmosphere, not everyone gets to appreciate the year-round planning and partnership approach that helps make Europe’s largest street festival possible. Planning for carnival 2026 began almost as soon as last year’s event ended, with Kensington and Chelsea Council working alongside Notting Hill Carnival Limited (NHCL) and key stakeholders to support a safe and successful festival that first took to the streets in 1966.
ADDITIONAL FUNDING
In March, the Mayor of London announced an additional £4.66 million in funding to support carnival organisers in delivering enhanced security measures for this year’s event. The celebration of Caribbean history and culture has grown into one of the world’s largest street festivals, generating nearly £400 million for the economy. However, concerns around overcrowding in 2024 prompted an independent review. A range of safety measures were subsequently introduced in 2025, with further changes implemented for 2026.
EXTRA MEASURES
More than 120 Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea (RBKC) Council officers assisted the NHCL organising team over carnival weekend. They were supported by a plethora of event suppliers contracted to help the organisers and keep the party going. For example, EP Team deployed robust hostile vehicle mitigation (HVM) in the shape
of 350 modules of Pitagone, the biggest UK deployment to date. Crowded Space Drones flew drones over the parade route for the first time, supporting a newly-established crowd management team, and Showstop Procedure training was delivered to key personnel and the Metropolitan Police ahead of the event to ensure roles and responsibilities were embedded within incident response. The latest measures were designed to improve safety, strengthen communication, and support the effective delivery of the multiday event, which draws large crowds and visitors to the capital.
TEAMWORK
Pylon One, McKenzie Arnold Group, Patriot Services, Vespasian Security, Provide Security, The Last Mile, We Group, Controlled Events, Halo Group, The Technical Department, Gallowglass Health and Safety, Dynamic Crowd Measurement, and Ogma Safety were just some of the industry professionals contracted to provide event equipment and services. Including enhanced CCTV coverage and comms, expanded HVM across the carnival footprint, and revised traffic management plans, including the closure of Notting Hill Gate. Specialist advisers reviewed and supported counter-terrorism mitigation and event safety measures, reiterating what every event professional knows: No event is successfully delivered in isolation.
CHALLENGING EVENT
The use of live facial recognition technology by Metropolitan Police was expanded for 2026, leading to 214 alerts, 121 arrests, and 86 registered sex offenders being stopped and spoken to. Seven registered sex
CARNIVAL VIBES Sponsored by Pylon One
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NOTTING HILL CARNIVAL
LIVE FACIAL RECOGNITION TECHNOLOGY IN USE offenders were found to be breaching their conditions or notification requirements and were arrested. Claire Smart, Metropolitan Police’s Commander Major Operations and Public Order, and gold commander for Notting Hill Carnival, said that a “collaborative partnership approach” to the delivery of the event resulted in a safer carnival and a marked difference in the prevalence of serious violence. Smart said: “The progress by Notting Hill Carnival Ltd in stepping into so many of the event management and crowd safety roles previously performed by the police cannot be understated. They have delivered a challenging event well and in doing so have allowed us to focus our resources on our core role of tackling crime.”
GIVE MORE CERTAINTY
Now that carnival is over, The London Assembly has agreed a motion that Notting Hill Carnival should remain in the community where it was founded, should not be relocated to a central London venue, and believes proposals to provide sustainable,
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multi-year funding for the carnival, should be brought forward. Assembly Member Hina Bokhari, who proposed the motion, explained that Notting Hill Carnival belongs in Notting Hill and said it’s time that the event was treated as a treasured national institution. With long-term funding to support its future. James Small-Edwards, also an Assembly Member, seconded the motion. He said: “For 60 years, Notting Hill Carnival has been a defining part of London’s cultural life and a source of pride for the communities that created it. It belongs in Notting Hill, and we should be giving organisers the certainty they need to plan for its future there. “An up-to-date assessment of the carnival’s economic, cultural, and social value, alongside sustainable multi-year funding, would help allow organisers plan properly for the years ahead.”
WHEELS IN MOTION
According to the motion, uncertainty over funding creates unnecessary challenges for the organising team, making long-term planning
and investment more difficult.Therefore, the Assembly believes that additional funds would allow organisers to invest earlier in stewarding, infrastructure, crowd management, and participant welfare. It would also give the Metropolitan Police far greater certainty to plan policing operations over the longer term, rather than “working against the backdrop of annual funding negotiations”. Now, the Assembly is calling on the Mayor to work with NHCL, local authorities, residents, and community groups to ensure the long-term future of Notting Hill Carnival in Notting Hill. The Assembly also wishes the Mayor to commission an updated independent assessment of the carnival’s economic, cultural, and social contribution to London, and bring forward proposals to provide sustainable, multi-year funding for the event, including exploring whether a proportion of any future overnight visitor levy could be dedicated to the culture celebration. The motion was agreed with 11 votes for and eight votes against. • Notting Hill Carnival 2027 will take place from August 28-30.
Sponsored by Pylon One
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PROMOTIONAL FEATURE
Mission accomplished Two million people. Zero margin for error. How Pylon One helped Notting Hill Carnival establish a strong CCTV, radio, and network solution in just seven weeks
Notting Hill Carnival changed W hen direction in the production of this
year’s event, Pylon One built the CCTV, radio, and network backbone behind it – from contract to live, in under seven weeks! Every August Bank Holiday, around two million people pour into 2.5 square miles of west London for the biggest street festival in Europe. In 2026, Notting Hill Carnival’s 60th year, the event went through its most significant operational shift in decades: the Metropolitan Police stepped back from running crowd operations, handing control to the organisers themselves.
TIGHT TIMEFRAME – NO PROBLEM
The contract was awarded on June 17. First site visits happened on July 6. Kit was on the ground on August 4. Barely a month from seeing the sites to switching them on.
LINE OF SIGHT
In a dense, built-up urban landscape, direct line of sight was the only viable design. Pylon One engineered a rooftop backbone around four high-level sites, dropping down to 15 lower rooftops – some carrying cameras, others relaying links to lamppost-mounted cameras on the parade route. One of the tower blocks served as the primary high site, home to the core microwave backbone and site-wide radio infrastructure; a fully redundant radio repeater base system, giving carnival a
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genuine, tested failover if the main site was ever lost.
CONNECTIVITY
Connectivity was Pylon One’s own. Two diversely-routed one gigabit circuits from separate suppliers fed a fully redundant ten gigabit microwave ring. Power got the same treatment: a fully certificated distribution system in the control room delivered by power specialist, The Technical Department. A standby generator in the loading bay and UPS protection were evident on every critical rooftop hub.
CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT
The previous year’s standalone solarpowered, 5G-connected camera towers lost signal the moment the large crowds arrived. Pylon One replaced them with hard-wired, lamppost-mounted cameras, working with three London boroughs to get dedicated power fitted to every post that needed it. The build had its curveballs. A planned church rooftop fell through late in the day; the design was reworked around an alternative site. With camera locations confirmed day by day, the team were often surveying a site the same morning and installing equipment just a few hours later.
TOP-LINE NUMBERS
• More than 90 CCTV cameras across the
route and pinch points – up from around 20 • Sixty-eight point-to-point microwave links across 19 rooftop sites • Circa 500 handheld radios across 16 sitewide channels • Two fully redundant repeater base sites Peak crew of 24 on build – 12 for live support • Camera coverage more than quadrupled – an increase reported by the BBC.
YOU CAN COUNT ON US
From temporary networks inside London’s grandest hotels to full CCTV, radio, and network infrastructure across a city-scale festival, Pylon One does one thing: missioncritical event connectivity, delivered. Carnival’s event control room ran the entire weekend without the Wi-Fi dropouts and camera outages that had dogged the previous year. Now, Pylon One and the carnival’s organising team are already reviewing the undoubted success and looking forward to meaningful discussions about 2027. “This was the safest, best-monitored carnival we’ve delivered,” said Matthew Phillip, CEO of Notting Hill Carnival. “Pylon One took what could have been an impossible seven-week turnaround and made it look straightforward.” Planning an event where connectivity can’t fail? Talk to Pylon One. For more information, visit www.pylonone.com
MANCHESTER VILLAGE PRIDE MANCHESTER VILLAGE PRIDE
Images: Carl Sukonik/The Vain Photos
It takes a Village Manchester Village Pride’s Rob Malcomson and EZ Event Resilience’s Emily Beardow and Zofia Plonczak on why transparency and public safety have transformed the North of England’s new-look Pride event Bank Holiday weekend, O ntheAugust streets of Manchester were filled
with colour when Manchester Village Pride welcomed everyone to celebrate all corners of the LGBTQ+ community. For more than 40 years, Manchester’s streets have hosted an annual Pride event but this year’s event was different. It benefitted from a new focus, a new organising team, and new determination. It was the reset it needed following a tumultuous few months that required relationships to be repaired and funds to be raised.
RESOURCES AND RELATIONSHIPS
In October 2025, Manchester Pride Events Ltd was put into voluntary liquidation after the organising team determined the festival was no longer “financially viable”. But when the very real prospect of Manchester not having a Pride event became apparent, the response was “immediate, grassroots mobilisation”. In February, Manchester Village Pride CIC was formed to deliver an inclusive, safe, and celebratory event. A four-day celebration to be run by unpaid local volunteers who took
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on the challenge and “simply couldn’t let the event fail”. Rob Malcomson, chair and co-director of Manchester Village Pride (MVP), takes up the story: “We were keen to avoid the commercial gloss and exclusivity of recent years and return the event to its authentic roots, a protest, a sanctuary, and a genuine celebration of LGBTQ+ lives. “We deliberately anchored the event back in the Gay Village, as Canal Street and the surrounding area are the historic, beating heart of queer Manchester. “A major part of what we wanted to achieve was bringing real substance back to our stages. Rather than just hosting a party, we wanted the programming to reflect our community’s needs and history, which meant incorporating meaningful speeches and placing local charity groups at the centre of the programme alongside local and national LGBTQ+ artists and creatives from all corners of our community.” Malcomson continues: “We also focused heavily on building and repairing relationships with stakeholders and ensured
that the event’s momentum and resources were channelled directly into raising funds for Manchester’s frontline LGBTQ+ charities. “Incorporating a new CIC and starting with £0 in the bank and zero social media followers in one way did us a favour. It forced a necessary reset and made us have to think about the event and its purpose from the ground up. We turned any lingering negativity around by completely rebuilding the foundations to deliver the most accessible Pride event in Manchester in history. For example, we significantly reduced ticket prices across the board and introduced dedicated low-income options to dismantle the financial barriers that had locked some of our own communities out in recent years.”
TRANSPARENCY
MVP received loans of £120,000 from Village venues, demonstrating tangible commitment to providing the working capital needed to deliver the event. But more importantly, MVP CIC published its Articles of Association on the MVP website, demonstrating its commitment to fairness and transparency.
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MANCHESTER VILLAGE PRIDE “Transparency is everything when you are rebuilding trust,” Malcomson comments. “It took months of quietly repairing and rebuilding fractured relationships with key stakeholders, local businesses, and residents across the city. We also implemented the first-ever equity agreement for any Pride event, securing a baseline of fairness, representation, and respect for performers. “We were open about what it costs and where the money goes to deliver the event. By being entirely transparent, we were able to fulfil our core promise of giving back, ensuring that the event’s success actively funds vital year-round work for Manchester’s frontline LGBTQ+ charities. The public have responded incredibly positively to it.” Yet repairing relationships with key stakeholders and gaining trust were not the only challenges that MVP faced. The biggest challenge was the tight timeline; less than six months from signing the contract to building the site.
NON-NEGOTIABLE
The overarching goal was to bring MVP back to the community, including the businesses that operate in the Village 52 weeks a year. From the outset, the organisation listened to feedback from previous years and incorporated it into the planning. With one huge non-negotiable – every aspect of site design and programming centred around one common goal: public safety, it was non-negotiable. EZ Event Resilience – led by Emily Beardow and Zofia Plonczak – was contracted to deliver the event with a “central cog” – a safety-first approach. They held workshops on safety, crowd management, and command and control to ensure a common understanding of how the event would be operated safely. Plonczak explains: “Both Emily and I are well experienced with managing production teams and working with promoters, as well as being used to tight turnarounds – but there was a lot at stake with bringing Pride back to the community. Building new relationships always takes time. “Crowd management was a huge priority. Due to the type of space, an urban city location, we had to work with the street widths and spaces available. We have also been told that in the past certain areas could often feel too crowded and pinch points occurred on several of the streets and junctions. Our strategy was based on a number of solutions.” Plonczak continues: “The MVP CIC board was very proactive to ensure that the programming was scheduled consistently and appropriate for the available spaces, consulting with us where necessary. We also took a proactive approach in our work with local businesses to design out potential obstructions to flow whilst enabling them to operate their external bars and stages. “Our systems focused on reducing heavy crowd interventions. We looked at some of the previous entry points and introduced changes to these, designed a roundabout system hosted by an absolutely fabulous drag team
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MANCHESTER VILLAGE PRIDE
and our crowd management security provider Practical Event Solutions, and prepared a menu of easily, temporarily deployable standard operating procedures for reducing densities as and when necessary.”
TARGETS
According to Malcomson, EZ Event Resilience placed crowd management, security, medical, harm reduction, and welfare at the centre of all decision making. Specific targets included reducing the number of people transported to hospital, which was achieved by ensuring on-site capabilities could support a multitude of needs alongside Hardcore Medical and Ambulance Service (HMAS), the Village Angels, and W.E.L Safe, providing a walk-in centre for those who needed it. Beardow explains: “There were a lot of challenges, it’s a really complex event, just
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by design – so we spent a lot of time just understanding the interactions and impacts of everything, working out how to simplify everything we could, trying to get to know all of the venues and stakeholders. The site itself is really tricky. Every inch of space is used, so it’s not like a greenfield site where you have a bone yard and a site office. We had to be quite creative with everything. “Then there was the Manchester rain,” she exclaims. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen so much rain. Oh, and hail. Hottest summer on record and we had a hailstorm and an electrical storm directly overhead. “But we built a lot of resilience in with our fantastic event control and zone management team so there were lots of people able to overcome these challenges.”
ONE BIG TEAM
EZ Event Resilience’s team comprised Helena Nails, operations manager, Loz Poulton, production manager, Izzy Connell, site manager, and Ceri Wade, site ops manager. The MVP board completed “the A-team” with Jake Whitfield as access manager and Sarah Sharpe as volunteer manager who also put endless hours into making the event accessible to all. Malcomson continues: “We needed a team that fundamentally understood the complexities of a city-centre footprint and shared our vision. Working with them was brilliant; the client-supplier relationship felt like one big team. They [EZ Event Resilience] integrated seamlessly with our board.” Now, as the dust settles on the new Manchester Village Pride event, thoughts have already turned to 2027. Beardow confirms
that EZ is fleshing out a model that might operate something similar to the National Incident Management System. “We think this will really help with planning and logistics whilst ensuring everyone from MVP and EZ are working to a common operational structure across multiple spans of work,” she says. Malcomson concludes: “We want to build on this year’s foundation to make the event even stronger and more resilient for the future.” • Manchester Village Pride returns from August 27-30, 2027.
SUPPLIERS LIST Radios and comms – Audiolink and Let’s Tech Security and crowd management – Capricorn Security, Pawesome Search, Practical Event Solutions Plant – CW Plant Hire Temporary structures – Event in a Tent and Mahood Marquees Staging – Evolution Stage Hire Toilets and waste – JB Toilet Hire, A1, Biffa and Toilets on the Go Water – Water Direct Safety – Safetygeeks Portable buildings – Wernick Events Power – Innovation Accreditation – Eventree Fencing – SteelShield Bars – BarWorx Site crew – NINE X NINE Crew – DNG Crew Lighting – Wolf Lighting Sound – Tube Audio
CARFEST
Getting back on track This year, CarFest moved to Silverstone, but how did the move go? Silverstone Circuits’ Tanya Cash talks lessons learned and what’s next
CARFEST a much-loved festival from M oving a much-loved location is always a
risk. But in August 2025, it’s a decision that Chris Evans decided to make. He opted to relocate CarFest from Laverstoke Park Farm, Hampshire, to Silverstone and signed a threeyear licence agreement with the circuit to deliver the family-friendly fundraising event. Twelve months on and StandOut is standing in a field. In full waterproof gear. Following a summer of intense heat, the heavens have opened and event crew are spreading woodchip across small pockets of CarFest’s new site.
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It’s just one of several tests that the organising team is up against. But the weather is not new territory, so whilst crew are busy remedying some muddy patches, the wider team is dealing with other “interesting experiences”.
GETTING AROUND
“The site looks phenomenal,” says Tanya Cash, head of public events at Silverstone Circuits. Cash is talking with StandOut in event control where she is monitoring the event footprint alongside Neil Levene and Lisa Addison (nee Knipe). Together, they are heading up operational delivery.
“When you look at how the venue’s being used, it’s so different to how our race meeting events operate or the Grand Prix,” Cash continues. “We have all sorts of core content within the international circuit, within the infield, and KidsFest over the other side of the track, which is one of the challenges that we’ve had.” CarFest is more than cars. It’s comprised of seven festivals, including StarFest, RetroFest, KidsFest, FoodFest, and SpaFest. Which when combined with on-track action and music provide ticketholders with variety and balance. However, navigating the vast circuit is not easy.
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CARFEST
“We’ve made a lot of learnings already,” she admits. “We’ve adapted a lot of the plans, tweaked some things to make sure we can get that customer flow better, and now we’re trying to make sure we’ve nailed the comms so everybody understands how to get where they want to go.”
EXPECTATIONS
GRUMBLES
Back in December, when StandOut took a tour of the site and interviewed the event team following the announcement that CarFest would move, Levene was conscious not to use too much of the circuit and spread the audience too thinly. Now, Cash acknowledges that the organising team has had a few grumbles in the first 24 hours since opening gates and is navigating a series of tweaks. Wayfinding is one issue. Crossing points, traffic, walking distances between the campsite and arena are others.
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KidsFest is on one side of the international track and all other “festivals” are on the other side. To walk from one side to the other, you must wait for any on track action to finish and cross at dedicated crossing points. This is where there have been some rumblings amongst the audience who are used to wandering around a Hampshire field and not navigating what’s essentially a worldclass racetrack. “I think that’s one of the biggest bits we’ve got on the go at the moment,” Cash admits. “Everybody who’s been to CarFest before knew the layout, they’d really got into that groove, and knew exactly how it was going to operate. They’ve come to Silverstone and it’s different.” That’s the interesting bit. Silverstone as the new custodian of the event is having to manage the expectations of die-hard CarFest fans – who loved the old greenfield location – as well as new customers who have decided to buy a ticket because they have been to the Grand Prix or another track event. “We’re moving a lot of people about,” Cash continues. “People who are used to rocking up at Silverstone for the F1 and using the venue one way. Now, it’s all change. “We’ve discovered some pinch points and so we’ve focused on alleviating them,” she adds. “So, for example, we’ve done some pedestrian only areas for the first hour of peak opening to get people through and we’ve removed some of the demonstration laps from the practice sessions this morning. This allowed crossing points to be open for longer to try and get people working on the event in – via a faster route – but also to make sure that the fans, the guests that were coming along, were able to then get over [to the infield] quicker.”
TWEAKS
Cash recognises that despite all the planning in the world, there are a few things that have required the event operations team to change on the fly. “I think what we’ve ended up having to do isn’t unexpected,” Cash says. “I don’t expect to come into an event with a completely different format and layout and sit there thinking confidently we’ve got this. You’re always going to have to be dynamic because you don’t fully know the behaviours of some of the customers till they arrive on the day. “We’ve been sat, prized, and poised, ready with all the right resources to jump on it and try and remedy things. But some things you have to take away, reflect on, look back at the footage that you’ve got, and go, ‘How do we tweak that to make it better for everybody?’ “There’s quite a few bits that came out of yesterday [Friday], and we feel a lot more confident now that we’ve already made some changes. And we’re not done. We’re looking at the egress crossings for later.”
SNAG LIST
Levene, Addison, and Cash are assisted on site by Fergus Farragher, Georgi Wood, Sophie Matcham, Katie York, and Annabel Cremnitz. They are “on it”, fixing challenges as and when they arise, making notes of everything that can be built on for 2027. When CarFest returns to the track. “How many points are on the snag list for next year?” StandOut asks Cash. “I have a lot, but I think that it’s all opportunity,” she states. “We’re events people, so we will sit and beat ourselves up about it for a little bit. But if you look at everything that’s out there and the way the team have managed to bring that CarFest vibe and actually add more content in certain areas, there’s so much more opportunity.”
JOURNEY
The build is just one area that the team will need to look at moving forward. Previously, CarFest had a much longer build period and “the luxury of time”. However, Silverstone hosts many events which has resulted in a
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CARFEST
condensed build. It’s something that will need consideration in the debrief, especially as the two organisations look to blend their own roster of contractors. “Silverstone is not a fully greenfield site,” Cash explains. “We’ve got a lot of infrastructure already here and it was always going to be the biggest challenge. There are different suppliers who have more of a festival experience working alongside suppliers that live and breathe Silverstone all year round. We’re just trying to see how we mesh together. “It was always going to be a journey – in year one, year two, and year three – so we’re
working out what’s the best way to navigate moving forward.”
OPPORTUNITIES
“I don’t suppose it’s too soon to be thinking of next year?” StandOut probes further. Even though, Cash has already discussed challenges around signage and wayfinding that need addressing. “Like I say, there are lots of opportunities,” she states. “I’m already on 2027. I’m already in 2028 because I look after all the other events we have on site. “When you’re doing an event, the best time for you to actually be thinking about next year
is actually when you’re looking and going, ‘OK, well, we can’t fix this for now, but we can next year’. “We’ll be looking closely at our post-event feedback and we’ll look at the negatives and the positives,” she concludes. “You have to develop a thick skin sometimes, because you go, ‘OK, they didn’t like that, but we’ll assess it’. “I know we’ll sit down afterwards and go through everything. It is hard seeing that people might not have had the best time in some areas because I know for some, this is possibly their summer holiday, which is gutting. It’s raining, they’ve spent their money on coming to an event so if you think you haven’t quite ticked their boxes… It’s going to be a long journey but I do feel really optimistic about what we can do for next year.” • CarFest will take place from August 27-29, 2027.
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PROMOTIONAL FEATURE
MANCHETT SECURITY IN ACTION
Picking the right partner Sam Noble, managing director of Manchett Security, on how to select an event security and stewarding partner for your event – the questions to ask and the things to look out for
are plenty of things that can make T here or break an event, and the security and
stewarding operation is certainly one of them. On paper, selecting a supplier can look relatively straightforward. Send out the requirements, receive a few prices, compare them and appoint. There is a lot more that should go into that decision. The first mistake can be making the decision purely around the hourly rate. Budgets are important and every event has one, but there must be an understanding of what sits behind that rate. Recruitment, training, management, uniform, equipment, transport, and staff welfare all cost money. If one supplier is considerably cheaper than everybody else, there is nothing wrong with asking why. More importantly, can that supplier deliver? A company having hundreds of people registered on its books does not necessarily mean it can put 100 suitable, trained, and reliable people on an event at 06:00 on a Saturday morning. There is a big difference between supplying names on a staffing sheet and consistently putting the right people in the right positions. Relevant experience should also play a major part in the decision.
EXPERIENCE
Event security is its own environment. Managing a live music venue, festival, sporting event, or large outdoor event brings completely different challenges to static security. Crowd dynamics, ingress and egress, searching, accreditation, response teams, frontof-stage operations, and customer interaction all require experience and management.
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The management team is equally important. When everything is running smoothly, most suppliers can look good. The real test normally comes when something changes. A gate suddenly becomes busy. Attendance is higher than expected. An artist movement changes. A member of staff does not arrive, or an incident develops that requires an immediate response. That is when an experienced management structure becomes worth its weight in gold. Compliance should almost go without saying, but it still needs checking. Appropriate SIA licensing for licensable roles, right-to-work checks, insurance, training records, and health and safety arrangements should form part of the basic due diligence before appointment. Organisers should also understand where the workforce is coming from. Subcontracting exists across the security industry and, when properly managed, can work. The important part is transparency. An organiser appointing Company A should understand if Company B, C, and D are supplying a large percentage of the workforce. Who has checked those staff? Who has trained them? Who is responsible for their standards on the day?
FIND A PARTNER
Security and stewarding teams should also understand that they are part of the overall event experience. For many customers, the first person they speak to could be the security officer conducting their search or the steward checking their ticket. Professionalism,
SAM NOBLE communication, and attitude matter. Security can be firm when required without forgetting that people have paid money to attend and enjoy an event. Finally, organisers should look for a partner rather than simply another supplier. The right company should want to understand the event before turning up. Site visits, planning meetings, deployment plans and honest conversations about what will and will not work should all happen before the gates open and that has to be covered within that hourly rate provided to the event organiser. Ultimately, the cheapest quote will always attract attention. But at 06:00 on event day, with gates due to open, hundreds of staff to deploy and thousands of customers on their way, price quickly becomes secondary to one question: Can the company appointed deliver what it promised? Visit www.manchett-security.com or call 01375 470022.
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EVENT BUYERS LIVE
Get ready to connect
Event Buyers Live: Everything you need to know from content sessions, how to register, and more…
a lot of excitement for Event T here’s Buyers Live (EBL),” explained Janine
Walmsley, event director. She is demolishing a bag of Maltesers, whilst she looks over an evolving event schedule bursting with meeting slots, NetWalks, content sessions, and networking breaks. Clearly, it’s the lighter way to get through event planning!
“Registration for the event opened on September 1 and what’s absolutely clear, is how eager event professionals are to network, find equipment and services for next year’s events, and just offload after a busy summer,” she continued. EBL, supported by headline sponsor C6 Works, is a hosted buyer event created
for live event professionals looking to source suppliers, share knowledge, and make new connections. Taking place at Cheshire’s luxury Carden Park estate from November 9–11, this threeday industry event is designed for eventprofs wanting a more personalised, supported event experience. It’s a great opportunity to meet new people, discover suppliers, and share ideas with others working across the live events industry – all while enjoying the beautiful surroundings of Carden Park. And, with hosted buyer registration closing on October 31, there’s no time to hang around. If you’re a hosted buyer wanting a complimentary place, now’s the time to register.
(L TO R) ANNE MARIE CHEBIB (she/her), HANNAH O’RIORDAN (she/her), JACK WILLIAMS (he/him), MARCEL ALTENBURG (he/him) NIGEL GOUGH (he/him), RICK LATHAM (he/him) 30 n c6works.com
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EVENT BUYERS LIVE discussed this year. With focused sessions on community engagement, site and operations management, inclusivity, queue optimisation, and divergent thinking also set for the event.
CONTENT
CONNECTION
“EBL is not an exhibition,” Walmsley iterated. “We welcome only 100 of the live event industry’s most influential event organisers and 50 event suppliers and venues for prearranged face-to-face meetings. Everyone is pre-qualified. “But not only is the event the place to do business, focus, and plan for 2027 and beyond, it’s also where you can exchange ideas and learn.” EBL attracts some of the most revered event organisations who want to connect with other event professionals on a meaningful level. Especially during EBL’s interactive roundtable sessions. Adverse weather, clean power, and AI in events are just some of the topics to be
STEFAN EDWARDS (he/him), SAMIE BOYD (she/her) Sponsored by c6works
Each roundtable is led by a respected events professional, an expert facilitator, with firsthand experience of their field. Roundtable content sessions include: • Adverse weather with Nigel Gough, operations director of The Great Run Company • Community engagement with Parklife and Live from Wythenshawe Park’s community impact manager Hannah O’Riordan • Clean power and energy use with Stefan Edwards, senior events manager at Bristol City Council; currently engaged in the West of England Clean Power Pilot • Inclusivity with Samie Boyd, accessibility manager at Cuffe and Taylor • AI in events with Jack Williams, CEO of RunThrough, who is adopting AI throughout the mass participation business • Site and operations management with 305 Live’s Rick Latham • Queue optimisation with Manchester Met University’s Marcel Altenburg, programme leader of crowd science • Divergent thinking with Matt Cope, who will use his tricks and skills to help you think like a magician. “When asked if I would facilitate a roundtable at EBL this year on site and operations management, I jumped at the opportunity,” said Latham, director of 305 Live. “It’s great to get other people’s experiences from different areas of the industry. Every day is a day at school, and it’s always good to see things from other perspectives.” The roundtable sessions adopt a relaxed format, encouraging those taking part to open up about their own event experiences. Like Latham, O’Riordan is excited to be taking part. She said: “I’m really passionate about the community impact work I do across festivals and live music events, but it’s not often I get the chance to meet others working in this area. I’m really excited to host the roundtable, share ideas, and hear how others are approaching community impact across the industry.”
COMMUNICATION
Roundtables allow event professionals to do one of the most powerful things – talk. Caroline Clift, EBL’s content manager, explained further: “When people are busy, delivering live events for months on end, the last thing they get to do is share their challenges, so EBL’s roundtable sessions do just that. They provide an opportunity for event professionals to share experiences and learn from each other. Whilst not being judged.” EBL’s respected roundtable sessions form just one element of the event’s content programme. The Home Office (HO), the Security Industry Authority (SIA) and the United Kingdom
Crowd Management Association (UKCMA) will deliver an informative workshop on Martyn’s Law at EBL26. Catherine Simpson, deputy director of guidance and review for Martyn’s Law at the SIA, will be joined by Anne Marie Chebib, chair of UKCMA, and a respected professional from the HO, who must remain anonymous. Simpson said: “The SIA wanted to be part of this workshop because engaging directly with event professionals, and hearing their questions and concerns first-hand, is central to how we will operate as a regulator. “Martyn’s Law is about improving public safety,” she continued. “The SIA is committed to helping support the events industry with their Martyn’s Law requirements. “At EBL, we will be explaining our remit in relation to Martyn’s Law, and how we are supporting the event sector understand what they need to do to comply. This includes the tools and resources we’re providing and how we’re making the notification process as straightforward as possible.” This workshop aims to bust the myths, ease any nerves, and answer the most common questions that event professionals have about the new legislation. Speaking of the informative session, Chebib said: “It is vital that we have open and practical conversations about what the legislation means in practice, sharing knowledge and experience to help ensure the industry is prepared to meet its responsibilities. “I’m delighted to be joining my fellow panellists at Event Buyers Live and look forward to an informed and constructive discussion about the next steps.”
CURATED
According to Walmsley, the industry’s reaction to the Martyn’s Law workshop, roundtable sessions, and networking opportunities is a huge endorsement for the hard work that goes into the annual event. She said: “We really do listen to the industry we serve and we really do put ourselves in the shoes of your guests. “At the end of the day, everyone gives up precious time to come along, so EBL must be incredibly productive, which is why so much emphasis is put on finding out what equipment they need, which suppliers they want to meet, and what they want to discover in our education programme. This isn’t just our event. It’s an event crafted by the people who are in it. “No one on our guest list is a number,” Walmsley concluded. “The entire team takes the time to personally talk to everyone and when people say goodbye and they leave with a smile on their face, happy with the experience we have created for them, that’s just awesome.” • If you would like to source suppliers for 2027 and beyond, register now. Visit www.eventbuyerslive.com – it’s FREE for hosted buyers to attend.
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INCLUSIVE SPORT AND CULTURE FESTIVAL
Time to shine
LIVERPOOL PIER HEAD Image: © Visit Liverpool
UKEL CEO Bev Ward on the new Inclusive Sport and Culture Festival, the live event blending elite Para-sport and disability-led arts has a rich and diverse history L iverpool of hosting large-scale public festivals
and celebratory events, so when the eyes of the sporting world look towards the city next May, the organising team of a new inclusive festival will be in safe hands. Seasoned event professionals from UK Events Limited (UKEL) with support from UK Sport and Liverpool City Council will deliver the inaugural Inclusive Sport and Culture Festival (ISCF), a seven-day event that aims to successfully blend together Para-sport and a disabled-led arts and culture programme. Bev Ward, CEO of UKEL, is heading up the team responsible for delivering a week-long line-up of international sporting competition in the M&S Bank Arena, Exhibition Centre Liverpool, and the Pier Head. Plus, with creative direction from Bev Ayre, a cultural programme led by Deaf, disabled, and neurodivergent artists will provide even more reason for visitors to descend upon Liverpool’s historic waterfront. “How’s it going?” StandOut asks Ward, who was appointed CEO just six months ago. “We’re gathering pace,” she says. “We’ve got our event board in place, we have an operational partner in MLS working with us, and we are working with the four national governing bodies, inviting other nations and athletes to come and compete.”
NATURAL PARTNER
According to Ward, 12 cities and towns were “in the ring” when UK Sport was looking at the event concept and format. All were really strong contenders but Liverpool’s major events experience pipped others. “The city has a big range of events happening over the next two years,” explains Ward. “UKEL is working with them on the Wheelchair Basketball European Championships and Tour de France next year, and then you’ve got Euro 2028. They’ve
also just won another Gymnastics World Championships. It’s not a surprise that they’re winning a lot of events because they’ve got great venues, great people, and the city really gets behind the events.” The UK Sport-owned concept will showcase four international sport competitions; Boccia, Para Athletics, Wheelchair Rugby, and Paracanoe will be delivered in partnership with Boccia UK, UK Athletics, Great Britain Wheelchair Rugby, and Paddle UK. Despite having 22 Paralympic sports to choose from, Ward and her team had to narrow them down to between three and six with affordability and operational delivery – and the international competition calendar – playing a role in the decision-making process. Plus, the organising team also considered other sports that had recently taken place in the city, such as judo and blind football.
OPEN TO IDEAS
BEV WARD (she/her)
“We’re really hopeful that the event is a success,” Ward continues. “It’s on UK Sport’s target list to host it in 2031 as well. “People still do hark back to London 2012 and the Paralympics; it’s been hard to get any cut through on a large-scale on Paralympic events that have happened since. “Could we host a small multi-sport Paralympic event that will get lots of people
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INCLUSIVE SPORT AND CULTURE FESTIVAL place from May 2-8. Already, suppliers are on board. MLS is confirmed as event delivery partner. A volunteer management partner is in place and the team is quickly expanding as the weeks’ tick by. Luckily for Ward and the team, UKEL is busy running a range of events so joint procurement is an option for some goods and services. “We’re busy, but it’s exciting,” Ward comments. “It’s great to be able to look at where we can create efficiencies, increase quality, or improve relationships by looking at things across multiple events. “But also, looking at procurement, how you start the process from the outset governs the outcome of the process. But not only that, the relationship as well. We’re very mindful of having good relationships with the people we don’t appoint, because we might work with them in the future.”
PARACANOE watching, lots of people excited, engaged, and give some performance benefits ahead of a Paralympics? The year before LA 2028.” The event concept was a commitment made in UK Sport’s major events strategy Making Live Sport Matter to showcase elite sport competition, drive performance benefits, and deliver lasting social impact. Currently, ISCF looks like a sporting event but that’s because the Cultural Advisory Group – featuring Kate Fox, leading accessibility consultant, Andrew Lansley, creative director of UnMute and access consultant, and Rachel Jele, Stagetext’s head of advocacy and engagement – has only just been formed. Right now, nobody knows exactly what the arts and culture programme will look like.
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BRILLIANT PERFORMANCE Ward continues: “There’ll be an open call for different arts disciplines to pitch in for funding to be part of the event. “Whether that’s sculpture or a piece of music that’s commissioned and performed by an orchestra, we don’t quite know yet. But we’re really open to what that will be. This is another reason why Liverpool City Council was a great choice for the venue because they are brilliant at combining arts and sport together. Being the City of Culture back in in 2008 has really led them to being a great place for the Arts.”
RELATIONSHIPS
ISCF – funded by a £2.3 million contribution from the National Lottery and a £1 million grant from Arts Council England – will take
Ward is loving her new role. She is a huge advocate of sport and expert in her field, yet having worked across comms, marketing, commercial development, major events, public funding, compliance, and risk, it’s not often you get to work on a brand new concept; giving it shape and personality. Despite seven months to go until the event, and lots of planning meetings to get through, Ward already knows what she is looking forward to the most. “I’ve been working on the concept for two years now [including during her previous role at UK Sport] and so I’m excited to see how it comes off. I’m really excited to see how people view it; how they come along and see really exciting elite sport and arts content together in one place. I don’t want them to see disability, just the brilliant performance,” Ward concludes.
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BOOMTOWN
Bold new era
Boomtown 2026 featured major site changes. Lana Elworthy, head of production, walks StandOut through the process and lessons learned…
BOOMTOWN
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BOOMTOWN
THE LION’S DEN to remember who I was before Spectrum 360 as another main stage. Grand I ’mthetrying event,” laughs Lana Elworthy, head Central moved out of Downtown back up
of production at Boomtown. She has returned to work after a well-earned holiday and is now reflecting on the mammoth site transformation at this year’s festival. A “radical redesign” of the entire site that has been a two-year project in the making. “We had a rough idea of what we wanted to bring back and where we felt our main stages and Districts should sit,” Elworthy explains. “I remember last year on-site; we were confusing and bemusing so many people because we were marking out some of the 2026 show whilst we were still de-rigging 2025. “Because we’d been developing an early version of the map before the festival, when you’ve already got your flags, the right people there, and your line marker, it just felt like the perfect opportunity to look at what we wanted to create,” she says. Elworthy is talking all things site design and the much-anticipated “new chapter” that greeted 77,000 fans at the 17th edition of Boomtown in Matterley Estate, South Downs National Park. The organising team completely reimagined the festival around six Districts and brought together 12 main stages, more than 50 hidden venues, and thousands of performers with the help of respected event suppliers, including AF Live, Arena Video, Aardvark FX, and Wolf Lighting. “Everything moved,” Elworthy continues. “The biggest change was bringing back The Lion’s Den, a 40,000 capacity stage that sits in that natural amphitheatre. We also expanded Area 404 and we introduced
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to Hilltop, which is where the Oldtown centre used to be, pre-COVID. Copperwood Heights went from Downtown back up the hill, and Hydro moved from the Metropolis District to become Hydro XL.”
BREATHING ROOM
At the heart of the redesign was a renewed commitment to Boomtown’s musical breadth and diversity. Everything from electronic music, live bands, hip hop, punk, ska, reggae, drum and bass, and jungle married alongside immersive theatre, live science, sustainability projects, and collective participation. But whilst this huge new assault on the senses was a long time in the planning, so was the desire to create more breathing space. Elworthy adds: “After COVID, when all of our main production entertainment spaces were concentrated into what we call Downtown, having everything close together was incredibly convenient and incredibly inconvenient in almost equal measure. “Boomtown Districts are intentionally very immersive and sometimes can be quite intense. What we really wanted was more room for the audience to breathe between those spaces, more dwell space, and more places to stop, sit, discover something unexpected, and then move into the next high-energy environment. “We didn’t redesign the site because the old layout wasn’t working. It was more that we knew that the show was ready to grow again, and that gave us an opportunity to rethink
how the whole city flowed. Rather than just adding more into our existing footprint.” For Elworthy, the goal was to ensure that festivalgoers did not lose the feeling that they were moving through a city. Therefore, transition spaces between Districts and stages still needed to feel considered. It was important that no one felt like they were simply walking from A to B. “It was about options,” Elworthy comments. “Somewhere to take five minutes, meet your friends, work out where you are, and not feel like you have to constantly be moving, which I think our previous site layout was lacking a little bit. We thought about dwell spaces, shaded areas, quieter pockets, and opportunities for people to stop and orientate themselves, and have a little reset. “We still wanted Boomtown to feel full and exciting, but with a bit more breathing room.”
HOW DOES IT FEEL?
Elworthy learned lots about the site design whilst de-rigging last year’s show. And even though a 2D version of a site plan does carry a lot of detail, a map does not capture how a space feels. “We have 3D models of the site and our stages as well, but you do have to stand in the position where front of house is, and look at where a main stage is, and get a feeling for how it’s going to look and how it’s going to feel for the audience,” Elworthy explains. “What we can’t capture in our models is what the landscape looks like behind the structure. If you’re talking about something 28 metres high, what can you see? Can
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BOOMTOWN map at once. So, although Tim and Matt hold that map, and they distribute the PDF that everyone else sees; with Project Sharing, it meant that I could be on the map, and so could someone from creative lighting with their own layer. We all knew what bits not to move but we could tweak things or label it, or export something out to GPS if we were changing something. “It took quite a lot of trust from Tim and Matt to allow us into the map and there were definitely a few times when we had slightly shaky Internet on site, it crashed, and we had a few moments of panic where we thought we’d maybe lost the map. But overall, totally invaluable and I can’t believe that we haven’t been working in that way for years.”
BLUEPRINT
RADICAL REDESIGN you see the tree line behind that? Is there an opportunity to capture a view? It’s so incredibly important. “I think we went back four or five times over the course of the year with a GPS and marked out a few of the main stages again. At one point, we even marked out the whole of Area 404 and walked through it just to understand what angle would the audience be walking at if there’s a gradient? And which way, even with all of the smaller street venues, the stage is facing, and where are the audience coming at it from? I think when your site is as undulating as ours is, you really have to consider those things because nothing is guaranteed.”
SITEMAPS AND TRUST
Elworthy worked with Matt Whitehead and Tim Herdal on the site plans. They were the “map keepers” – the people responsible for holding and distributing the map.
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“So, how many versions of the site map were there?” StandOut asks. “Our final version was version 6.6, so about 66 versions,” Elworthy says, smiling. “But before we even got to version one, there were about 20 versions that we all had a dab at. “The site team did manage to maintain one coherent master with everyone – theatre production, site, ops, the directors – feeding into it, and they really held that process together so well. “Matt and Tim absolutely smashed it,” Elworthy continues. “And here’s a geeky thing, and I can’t believe that we haven’t done this until this year, but we worked in Vectorworks Project Sharing. “When we’re doing a lot of our production design, it’s either through Vectorworks 3D or SketchUp but the map was within Vectorworks. “For the first time, we used Project Sharing, which meant we could all be working on the
Now that Boomtown 2026 is over, Elworthy and the organising team are already thinking about 2027. Together, they will take on lessons learned from 2026 and build on them to create an even safer and more successful event. “I think for year one of the redesign, we were all actually really happy with how things went,” Elworthy says. “Boomtown has a huge, huge number of moving parts, and there were things that we built and then we took down and then we built again. But it was definitely testament to us all working so closely together that made it work so well. “I think the audience had a great time, which matters because you can become kind of sanitised to it when you’re talking about it constantly. You get on site, and there’s a field, and then a few weeks later, there’s stuff everywhere, and you kind of forget that it’s actually quite an incredible thing that we build. “Obviously, there’s a snag list and things that we want to improve. Some of them are just so unglamorous like boneyard space, and sight lines, and spotting the back of a structure that you really didn’t want to see. It breaks the magic, but it’s things we can sort.” Elworthy continues: “I think we want to keep working on the rest and dwell spaces and create more shady areas. But overall, our list of ‘desperately need to change’ is really short.” As StandOut writes, Elworthy and the wider organising team are about to head into a series of debriefs and get a “full picture” of how things went. “Process wise, we’ve got the next year now to refine it, fix some of those things that didn’t work, tidy up all of the processes and documentation because that inevitably got totally battered while everything was changing,” Elworthy concludes. “I think that’s why I have come back from holiday and now things feel quite nice and calm and exciting because we’re not starting again. “We’ve got the blueprint, and now we just get to make it better and build on the developments for future years.” • Boomtown will take place from August 11-15, 2027.
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STAGING ROYAL EDINBURGH MILITARY TATTOO
Images: © REMT/J Crispin/Jordan Munns
Raising the roof Creative staging solutions are being used to enhance event and festival experiences, and with a range of new products on the market, the options for organisers are about to get bigger… year’s Reading and Leeds Festival T his unveiled the biggest staging and
arena overhaul in its history. Five new spaces – The Gallery, The Warehouse, The Ballroom, The Canopy, and The Yard (Reading only) – reshaped the festival experience for thousands of customers who wanted a weekend to remember. Serious Stages provided the stage for The Grid (main stage), The Gallery, The Ballroom, The Canopy, and The Warehouse, Reading and Leeds’ first ever custom built, experiential dance stage. Yet, Festival Republic was not the only organiser to unveil new stages and staging concepts this summer. Parklife replaced its Hanger Stage with Panorama, Download replaced its main stage with Star Live’s Titan system, Magazine Open-Air featured a “roofless dancefloor”, and Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo asked for a new stage. But one that no one would notice.
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CREATIVE CONVERSATIONS
Parklife’s new Panorama stage was a bespoke open-format structure designed to create a more immersive relationship between the DJ and audience. Built using Star Live’s VerTech and Ultra component range, Panorama was approximately 80 metres wide and incorporated multi-tiered general admission dance platforms around the central DJ position. One of the biggest engineering considerations was the scale of the production. The structure supported an 83.5m x 8m curved video screen weighing more than 30 tonnes, alongside audio, lighting, and a suspended Kinesys-controlled roof above the DJ area. Importantly, this was achieved without columns obstructing audience sightlines. Magazine Open-Air was different again. Star Live created the stage for the new outdoor electronic and dance music series at Magazine London. Based around the idea
of a “roofless dancefloor”, the intention was for the skyline, river, cityscape, and changing daylight to become part of the scenic environment rather than being screened out by a conventional stage.
SMALL CHANGE = BIG DIFFERENCE
Staging can have a huge impact on an event or festival experience, which is why conversations with organisers, designers, and production teams need to start early. Tom Warden, marketing and health and safety manager at IPS, agrees. In reality, he says, a stage can affect almost every part of an outdoor event – audience sightlines, LED screens, lighting positions, PA, rigging, power, access, vehicle movements, ground conditions, and build schedules. He explains: “We don’t see our role as simply supplying the stage that appears on a brief. We want to understand what the organiser is trying to achieve and then look
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STAGING at whether there is a better, safer, or more efficient way of delivering it. “Ground conditions, access, audience sightlines, wind loading, equipment loads, rigging requirements, and build schedules can all influence the most appropriate solution. Often a small change made at the design stage can make a significant difference once you get on site.”
A DIFFERENT BRIEF
Steve “Jumbo” Richards, director of NoNonsense Group, can relate. He argues that organisers are pushing boundaries in new directions, and any savvy and respected supplier will work hard to accommodate changes and adapt where necessary. “We are always looking at new designs and solutions to share with our client, both new and existing, as we seek to deliver the best possible solutions whist working within budget and to suit the site conditions,” he explains. NoNonsense Group delivered a new project this summer. A “totally different” brief to the one that the staging provider is used to and a project that was two years in the making. Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo (REMT) wanted a brand new stage. But one that guests wouldn’t notice. “The orchestra play a key role in the Tattoo, but they are usually hidden in the moat,” Richards continues. “The desire was to create a stage for REMT that was visible but not really noticeable, just enough to let the audience know they are there but without interfering with the incredible projection and light show that is synonymous with the event.” NoNonsense Group designed and delivered a hydraulic stage that sat in
Edinburgh Castle’s south moat. Most importantly, it was not visible above the moat wall during the day when it is in its lowered position, meaning tourists could still get incredible photos of the castle. Richards adds: “There were many restrictions to take into consideration due to the historic venue, the weight loading, and uneven ground within the moat. The moat wall was not level either.” Hydraulic rams were used to raise the stage, constructed using existing Zeus roof components to create the deck with an adapted Apollo structure to house the requirement for a 39 piece orchestra. Once the structure was locked off in position, the drawbridge could be lowered over the moat wall and the stairs extracted to give access to the stage.
INNOVATION
According to Star Live, which marked its 50th anniversary this year, a stage has to provide the structural capacity required by production, but it also needs to work operationally, provide good access, protect audience sightlines, and increasingly form part of the creative identity of the event itself. Warden concurs. He says innovation isn’t necessarily about inventing a completely new product. It’s also about finding better ways to combine the products, technology, and expertise that a company already has to solve a client’s particular challenge – and continually look at how things can be done better. Therefore, having early conversations means a staging company can advise on what is achievable and develop the structure and production concept together.
For example, Parklife’s Panorama demonstrated that innovation isn’t necessarily about developing and creating one standard stage product. Star Live’s component-based systems enabled the company to engineer a structure around the particular creative, production, and audience requirements of the event.
NEW PRODUCTS
Panorama demonstrated another area of development for Star Live: the use of an allblack truss, which provided a contemporary architectural framework for lighting, video, and scenic treatments and became part of the visual identity of the stage itself. However, it’s not the only new product on the market. HTS Creative has expanded its staging capabilities with a new modular festival stage system available in 12m, 16m, or 18m configurations, and IPS – which has provided stages to Derby Live at Darley Park, Leeds Castle Proms, Alexandra Palace Summer Season, Green Man Festival, and Stockton International Riverside Festival – has developed a new 14-metre Tunnel roof. C6 has developed new side build brackets, which allows for a safer and faster build for some of its most popular stages, The Stage Bus has launched Stage Box Mini, and Network Stages is a new modular staging and decking system – designed to be compatible with existing staging equipment – now available for dry hire. Ella Gardiner, sales and marketing manager at The Stage Bus, explains more: “We were asked to provide a stage for Birmingham Festival of Light. There was just one small problem. The event was due to start one day after The Stage Box Mini
PANORAMA AT PARKLIFE 44 n www.ips.co.uk
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ALEXANDRA PALACE SUMMER SEASON was completed! With several crucial components delayed on ships due to the conflict in the Middle East, the build ran over, making it a nail-biting time for the team. Normally, we’d simply deploy an alternative stage if a project hits a snag like this, but the site came with severe weight restrictions, ruling out our usual options. “At just 2.5 tonnes, The Stage Box Mini was the only stage that could meet the site requirements. So, with fingers crossed and plenty of last-minute activity behind the scenes, our brand-new stage went straight from the workshop to its first major outing – talk about a baptism of fire! And thankfully, it delivered.”
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FLEXIBLE SOLUTIONS
This summer, C6 delivered a “visually fantastic” solution for Summer’s End Angus, Brechin Castle. This was the first year that C6 worked with the organiser as main stage supplier with a brief to supply two identical stages, with two PA towers and one large central video/PA tower between the stages. This project was delivered on top of other festival work, which included three stages at Belladrum, Kelpies Live at Helix Park, and Colchester Castle Summer Series, the first year it has deployed its Galactic Stage at the historic site. C6’s Barry Lawford, MD, says that 2026 has been the company’s busiest year to date with
existing customers increasing the number of shows and new events popping up. Similarly, Warden describes the last 12 months as being really positive, with continued growth across staging, structures, technical production, and equipment hire. Warden adds: “The biggest challenges remain those familiar to the wider events industry – availability of skilled people, managing increasingly demanding production schedules, especially around key calendar dates, and the pressures around transport, logistics, and costs. Our response has been to continue investing in our people, equipment, and facilities, so that we can give clients greater capacity and more importantly, greater choice.” Star Live agrees. But for that to happen, organisers, designers, and production teams need to collaborate. Staging providers need to know not only the dimensions of a stage, but what production teams want to put on it, hang from it, and build around it, how the stage will be used operationally, and what future flexibility is needed. As live events and festivals continue to evolve, early collaboration and good communication will be key to ensuring staging solutions are not only fit for today, but flexible enough to meet future demands and expectations.
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THE SHOWMAN’S SHOW
THE SHOWMAN’S SHOW
Show time
Heading to The Showman’s Show this October? Discover what’s new, including product launches, new exhibitors, and more… Showman’s Show returns to T he Newbury Showground on October
21 and 22 and there will be a plethora of outdoor event suppliers exhibiting everything from new stages and event parking apps to comms systems and inflatable structures. It’s demonstrative of the breadth of event businesses that will be present at the two-day show, which welcomes thousands of event professionals looking for event equipment and fresh ideas.
WHAT’S NEW?
Taking place at Newbury Showground, The Showman’s Show attracts a large cohort of event suppliers, both returning event businesses and new exhibitors for 2026. According to organiser Lance Show and Publications, this year’s event features more than 80 new exhibitors, the largest exhibition hall in the show’s 42-year history, and The Workspace, a dedicated area for meetings, hot-desking, and informal discussions. First time exhibitors include Event and Ground Flooring Solution, Event Operation Specialists, Event Flags, Himoinsa Power Solutions, Lighthouse Events, Natural Green Creative Spaces, Worldwide Structures, and Evolution Stage Hire. Plus, there are several exciting product launches to look for. For example, Easy Petrol Post Driver will launch Xtracto – Pin and Post Puller for controlled removal of marquee pins and scaffold poles, Norlight, a canvas structure specialist, will showcase NOR AirLux 7 and NOR Apex, and Tracsis will demonstrate its Park App to visitors. A system that enables
48 n www.eosevents.co.uk
EGREEN INTERNATIONAL people paying for parking at events to pay in advance and register their VRN. AddSecure is launching GroupTalk, a solution that enables instant push-to-talk communication on smartphones, rugged PTT devices, or a mix of both, giving event teams an alternative to traditional radios. Special Structures Lab will introduce a portable solar solution called TensiPower to the market, and Röder UK is excited to showcase its new Air Dome structures. But what’s interesting is the number of new stages and staging systems on display, from Network Stages, Henley Theatre Services, and The Stage Bus.
YOU’VE GOT THE POWER
eGreen International is another new exhibitor for 2026. The business will display its TWOinONE range of recyclable cups at The Showman’s Show, which also sees the welcome return of Vision for Sustainable Events’ Sustainable Events Summit (SES).
SES Taking place on October 21, this year’s summit will focus on energy and the sector’s 30 Climate Actions for 2030. Plus, SES will celebrate the third edition of The Show Must Go On report. Chris Johnson, chair of Vision for Sustainable Events, said: “This will be our most informative edition of SES to date, engaging organisers and the supply chain in defining our sector’s actions in the context of the industry’s climate plan 2030. “We’re delighted to announce Ticket Tailor as a headline sponsor, with Röder UK and Cover Marque providing our venue for this year’s summit, along with our hosts, The Showman’s Show.” The tenth SES will delve into event energy, discuss the sustainability successes of the summer, and include the launch of a new Smart Power Guide for Events. •StandOut is exhibiting at The Showman’s Show. Say hello to the team. Find us in the Exhibition Hall on stand 40.
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The Showman’s Show
Stand numbers correct at time of print
21-22 October 2026 | Newbury Showground
CORERFID Exhibition Hall Stand 36
QDOS Avenue A Stand 145
MLD EVENT GROUP Avenue C Stand 238
CoreRFID supplies RFID tags, readers and integration services to help assetheavy hire and rental businesses know exactly where their kit is. We work with you from initial site assessment through to tag testing, software integration and training, covering everything from cables and flight cases to vehicles and industrial equipment. Alongside our RFID services, our CheckedOK software handles inspection and compliance management for LOLER, PAT/EET and other statutory requirements. T: 0845 071 0985 E: info@corerfid.com W: www.corerfid.com
Qdos Event Hire returns to The Showman’s Show highlighting an amazing ‘Summer of Sport. You can expect eye catching graphics and an impressive array of kit on display from its extensive fleet. Units previously unseen at the show include a Locker Room, Canteen, Drying Room and Cast Rooms. They will also be holding a Drinks Reception from 4.30pm on Wednesday 21st October. So, make sure you head to Avenue A, stand 145! T: 0845 862 0952 E: enquiries@qdoseventhire.co.uk W: www.qdoseventhire.co.uk
We look forward to meeting with our industry friends and making new connections at this year’s Showman’s Show, Find us on Avenue C, Stand 238 where we will be exhibiting some of our skills in temporary event building and carpentry finishes, pop in for a coffee and say hello, let’s see how our skills and commitment to our clients can help your structure or event achieve the very highest standards and presentation. T: 01903 372773 E: office@mldeventgroup.co.uk W: www.MLD.events
DAVIS TRACKHIRE Avenue A Stand 156
AUGUSTA EVENT SUPPORT Exhibition Hall Stand 34A
INSTANT MARQUEES Avenue D/G Stand 272B
Davis Trackhire is the UK’s Largest Independent Supplier of Aluminium Trackway. Offering a comprehensive UK-wide service from their depots in North Lanarkshire & East Midlands, Davis Trackhire boasts one of the most modern and versatile portable roadway systems on the market. Whether a backstage area for your festival or a ring road around your event site, we have the skills, products and experience to handle your requirements. W: davistrackhire.com
Over 25 years of experience supplying Temporary Fencing, Crowd / MET Barrier, Ground Protection and Front of Stage solutions. All events, large and small, local and national, and everything in between covered. Experienced crew available and a variety of haulage options are offered with self-unload where required. We also offer on-site and client-based training for Telehandlers / Forklifts. Come and see us on stand 34A to find out more! T: 01455 710550 E: info@aesteam.co.uk W: www.augustaeventsupport.co.uk
Experience You Can Count On - Since 2002, Instant Marquees Events Ltd has set the standard for premium, nationwide gazebo rentals. Our proven track record spans from the Queen’s Golden Jubilee to Car Fest 2026, establishing us as a trusted supplier for major events like the Olympics and the Rugby World Cup. From high-profile sporting events to bustling food festivals, we deliver the exceptional. Contact us to discuss your 2027 events. Visit us on stand 272B. T: 07917 274419 E: b@instantmarqueesevents.co.uk W: www.instantmarqueesevents.co.uk
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The Showman’s Show
Stand numbers correct at time of print
21-22 October 2026 | Newbury Showground
GAP GROUP LTD Avenue C Stand 241
INSTANT MARQUEES Avenue D/G Stand 272A
JCB Avenue B Stand 196
GAP Event Services is part of the UK’s largest independent hire company, with 55 years’ experience and nationwide coverage. We supply everything from fencing, barriers and ground protection to power, lighting, toilets and welfare, plus telehandlers, plant machinery and tools. Need more support? Our operations team can manage the installation and recovery of all our products, leaving you to focus on your event. Visit our stand to meet the team. T: 03330 094 153 W: www.gap-group.co.uk
25 Years of Event Support. Exhibiting at The Showman’s Show since 2003, Instant Marquees returns to Newbury with a new website, new logo & new leaders, while continuing its trusted legacy. Long standing team members Daniel Wilson and Jemima Soltys have taken ownership, bringing over 30 years’ combined experience. Discover British-made gazebos, flags, banners, barrier covers, deckchairs and bespoke event branding. Visit Instant Marquees on stand 272a to explore the latest Ultra HD range and discuss your next event. T: 01840 213063 E: shelter@instantmarquees.co.uk W: www.instantmarquees.co.uk
Visit JCB at the Showman’s Show 2026 and discover how we’re helping the events industry power a more sustainable future. From our innovative hydrogen-powered generator range to proven power solutions, our team will be on hand to discuss the latest technologies and support your operational needs. Stop by stand 196 to explore practical, low emission alternatives and see how JCB is powering a more sustainable across the sector. W: www.jcb.com
EVENTS CREW Lew Spencer Avenue Stand 142
EVENT TRAFFIC CONTROL Exhibition Hall Stand 70
SITE EVENT Avenue B Stand 202
Events Crew will be showcasing again this year at The Showman’s Show for 2026. Situated at stand 142 on the junction of Avenue A and Lew Spencer Avenue, you can’t miss it! We will be showcasing the very latest additions to the inventory, expect to see Towerlights, Ground Protection, Barriers, picnic benches, truss and gators The Events Crew team will be there to show you around, come and see us! T: 01963 364399 E: info@eventscrew.co.uk W: www.eventscrew.com
Event Traffic Control provides professional traffic management solutions designed to keep events moving safely, smoothly and efficiently. From event traffic planning and vehicle management to on-site traffic control, our experienced team helps organisers deliver seamless experiences for visitors, staff and suppliers. Discover how we can support your next event with tailored, reliable solutions. Come and visit us on Stand 70 to meet the team, discuss your requirements and find out more. T: 08000 246 800 E: info@eventtc.com W: www.eventtc.com
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Site Event is delighted to showcase its latest range of welfare and accommodation solutions at The Showman’s Show 2026, including Site Sleep Sleeper Cabins, Shower Pods, Eco Loos, Vacuum Pods, Accessible Toilets, Luxury Toilet Trailers, Handwash Sinks & Hand Sanitisers. With features such as eco-friendly materials, efficient water and waste management, energyconscious systems, and smart spacesaving designs, our products deliver comfort, practicality, and sustainability. Visit our website to explore more. Come and see us on Stand 202 Ave B. T: 01256 384134 E: event@site-equip.co.uk W: www.site-event.co.uk
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The Showman’s Show 21-22 October 2026 | Newbury Showground
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Network Stages Ltd supplies Network Deck, an innovative modular staging and decking system for dry hire and sales. Designed to integrate with existing staging equipment, its streamlined aluminium system enables faster builds with smaller crews, while its compact format reduces transport and storage costs. Suitable for festivals, live events, film and TV production, Network Deck delivers a practical, flexible and efficient staging solution. T: 07955 205 072 E: loumarshall@networkstages.co.uk W: www.networkstages.co.uk
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At CW Event Hire, we bring decades of experience to events nationwide. Our fleet includes telehandlers, access equipment, forklifts, generators and site essentials. Supported by our nationwide depot network and knowledgeable teams, we help organisers from build-up to breakdown with practical advice and fast, reliable equipment delivery. Meet us on stand 214 at The Showman’s Show, 21st -22nd October 2026, Newbury Showground. T: 0800 458 5701 E: eventhire@cwplant.co.uk W: cwplant.co.uk
CoverMarque are hosting the Temporary Structure Suppliers’ Pavilion. As specialist insurance brokers to the temporary structures industry, we provide a personalised service & work closely with our clients to help ensure they receive the bespoke insurance they need. Alongside CoverMarque, the pavilion brings together a range of industry suppliers, including specialists in structures, flooring, heating, generators, finance, tools & equipment, & many other essential products & services. T: 01962 671974 E: info@covermarque.com W: www.covermarque.com
Stand numbers correct at time of print
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WASTE MANAGEMENT
Bin there – do that Organisers are taking proactive steps to improve waste management practices. But exceptional waste management takes forward thinking and collaboration. Read on, as event professionals explain
SORTING TABLES: FALCON CLEANING IN ACTION Festival is one of the UK’s R eading biggest music festivals, bringing
significant benefits to the town. However, every year, the organising team’s efforts to tackle waste are overshadowed by images of tents and camping equipment left behind. Following this year’s festival, Reading Borough Council’s Finn McGoldrick, lead councillor for environmental services and community safety, outlined how it had worked with Festival Republic to reduce the festival’s environmental impact, supporting several new measures specifically aimed at waste. Festival Republic introduced a new campsite repair facility, run with local Repair Café volunteers, who repaired 264 items over the festival weekend. The organising team also launched a Campsite Clearance Commitment, an initiative implemented at both Reading and Leeds – a pledge to the campsites being cleared and returned to their natural state within two weeks following the festival.
PROACTIVE WASTE MANAGEMENT
Under the Live Nation Green Nation Charter, the target is for all its events to be zero waste to landfill. Reading Festival has achieved this since 2019 and has already exceeded the charter’s target, with the proportion of waste diverted through recycling and composting increasing from 69 per cent in 2021 to 87 per cent in 2025. McGoldrick confirmed that thanks to 30 local litter-picking volunteers, nearly 1.5 tonnes of waste and recycling was collected. Ultimately, the aim is not simply to clear the site
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after the festival, but to reduce the amount of material left behind in the first place. However, there is a big conundrum. As organisers expand VIP glamping areas, for example, adding more showers and toilets to improve the customer experience, liquid waste increases significantly. This results in higher tankering costs, explains Clive Owen, director of A1 Loo Hire, which provides portable sanitation and waste management to Reading Festival. The challenge, then, is finding a balance between improving the festival experience and reducing the environmental cost of doing so. It is a tension that puts greater emphasis on waste and cleaning teams as an integral part of how events are planned and delivered. Paul Gilbey, CEO of Nu Group, which has supported Reading Festival, Brighton Pride, RHS Chelsea Flower Show, and Brighton Marathon this season, says that it’s encouraging to see organisers increasingly looking at waste management as an important part of the overall event operation, rather than simply something that happens behind the scenes. And Chelsea Hoskin, head of operations, Farnborough International (FIL), could not agree more. She explains: “Farnborough International Airshow (FIA) is unlike a permanent venue or a purpose-built exhibition site. Every edition sees large sections of the showground effectively rebuilt, with temporary exhibition halls, more than 100 chalets and outdoor exhibits, almost 500 stands, and a constantly changing operational
footprint. That scale brings huge opportunity, but it also creates a very specific set of logistical challenges, particularly during buildup and breakdown. “With hundreds of contractors and deliveries arriving in a concentrated period, even small amounts of unmanaged waste can quickly affect access routes, housekeeping, and safety. Historically, we were seeing aisles become congested with packaging, materials, and abandoned waste, which made it harder to move equipment, deliver bins, maintain emergency access, and identify who was responsible for specific waste items. “Our objective was simple: to move from reactive waste collection to proactive waste management,” Hoskin adds.
POSITIVE IMPACT
Farnborough International considered a number of options, including deposits, levies, and financial penalties. Instead, the organiser chose a collaborative model focused on education, early planning, and active engagement on site. Working closely with its waste partner, Collard Environmental, it developed a programme that combined practical waste services. The most significant operational change was the introduction of dedicated waste marshals for the first time at FIA. These marshals provided a visible presence in the exhibition halls throughout build and break. Hoskin continues: “Working with Collard, we developed clear job descriptions, reporting processes, escalation routes, hall allocations,
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WASTE MANAGEMENT
FARNBOROUGH INTERNATIONAL AIRSHOW shift patterns, and communication plans with the wider operations team. The waste marshals worked alongside floor managers, aisle marshals, logistics teams, and safety teams, ensuring contractors had face-to-face support from the moment they arrived.” The impact was immediate. Waste was identified and removed earlier. Aisles remained clearer, and access was improved. From a safety perspective, cleaner aisles reduced trip hazards, supported emergency access, minimised the accumulation of combustible materials, and helped manage hygiene concerns linked to food waste. When compared, contractor and FIL totals from 2024 to 2026 increased by only four per cent. But that is particularly significant given the scale of growth between the two editions, with 15 per cent more exhibitors and 41 per cent more visitors. Hoskin continues: “The reduction in FIL waste output is one of the clearest wins. We reduced the FIL waste bill by 40 tonnes, which is roughly equivalent to the weight of a Boeing 737-800. In a year when the event grew significantly, that represents a 13 per cent decrease in our own waste output and shows the value of pushing contractors to take greater ownership of the waste they generate.”
UNDERSTAND THE OBJECTIVES
Gilbey says that planning is hugely important and the secret to good waste management is collaboration. For example, at BST Hyde Park, Nu Group held regular meetings with the organising team throughout the planning process to determine clear expectations. He explains: “A major focus was improving recycling performance without compromising the operational delivery of such a large event. We worked collectively to ensure the right infrastructure and processes were in place and introduced new waste initiatives, making greater use of the waste hierarchy, closedloop programmes, and finding opportunities
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to reuse materials that may previously have gone to energy recovery. “The results were extremely positive. In our first year, we achieved a 73 per cent recycling rate alongside the introduction of waste and recycling initiatives that give us an excellent platform to continue improving performance.” He continues: “You can have ambitious recycling targets and introduce new initiatives, but they will only deliver the desired results if everyone involved understands the objectives and works collectively towards them.”
GAME CHANGER
Nu Group recently launched a waste data portal, giving organisers greater visibility of their waste and recycling performance, including the ability to see how their event is performing while it is taking place rather than waiting until after the event for the data. “It has been a real game changer, particularly on events running across multiple weeks,” says Gilbey. “If we can see an area isn’t performing as expected, we can respond and make changes while the event is still live. It turns waste data into something that can actively inform decision-making rather than simply becoming a post-event report. “Waste management shouldn’t be treated as something that is bolted onto an event at the end of the planning process. When it’s considered from the beginning – from procurement and infrastructure through to training, operations and what happens to materials afterwards – that’s when you can achieve really meaningful results.” Stuart Jackson, managing director of Falcon Cleaning and Support Services, concurs. This year, Falcon’s new towable waste baler was trialled at Silverstone F1 and compacted approximately eight tonnes of cardboard generated by the Lando Norris pop-up store at Silverstone Woodlands. The compacted cardboard was condensed into two vehicles.
Furthermore, six 1,100-litre bins of drinks cans were also compressed into two bales. Whilst these figures are “impressive”, the trial gave Jackson the ability to make some improvements to the baler, which he hopes will make life behind the scenes even easier for organisers. And it is not the only example of new tools and resources being put through its paces at major events this year.
COSTS V SAVINGS
In July, TeraSort tested its new eight-robot sorting technology system at Latitude, sorting waste from the arena and campsites. Until the festival, TeraSort had been developing and testing the robot system but Latitude provided an opportunity to put the system through its paces. TeraSort says that more developments will follow but can robots replace humans at sorting tables? Perhaps, but costs and ethics will surely be deciding factors. Currently, organisers are resisting additional costs because of extra labour needed to manually sort rubbish, but, thankfully, some organisers recognise the great results that can be achieved by combining tools and resources. For instance, Labyrinth on the Thames, increased its recycling rates from 20 per cent to 35 per cent this year. Working with Jackson, Labyrinth Events is now considering using the waste baler in 2027 alongside sorting-table deployment. Jackson acknowledges that organisers are concerned about the additional labour cost of sorting tables, but he says that reductions in haulage costs outweigh labour charges. Ultimately, whether it is robots, sorting tables, balers or simply better planning, the message is clear: when it comes to festival waste, investing in the right people and technology today can deliver a cleaner, more sustainable event tomorrow.
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EVENT SAFETY UNDER REVIEW: HOW POLICE WORK WITH SAGS ON PUBLIC EVENTS
Image: © Shutterstock/J Thomas Salas
Don’t miss a beat Event safety experts discuss the challenges of the summer, lessons learned, and the latest review into public safety at events heat was never far from E xtreme the headlines this summer. The
uncomfortable summer months followed on the heels of a notable record-breaking heatwave in late spring. Now, Met Office data, which goes back to 1884, has called this summer the warmest ever season with an average mean temperature of 16.5°C. Dr Amy Doherty, who leads the National Climate Information Centre at the Met Office, says that the records we’ve seen this year are now breaking with increasing frequency, and her colleague Dr Mark McCarthy, head of climate attribution at the Met Office, says we can expect to see these extremes more often. McCarthy warns that recent analysis indicates we should expect intense heatwaves to now be a roughly one in nine year event. However, climate projections suggest that UK summers will continue to become hotter; meaning concerns around baking hot temperatures and their impact on events and festivals is completely justified.
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LUKE FITZMAURICE (he/him) WHERE’S THE GAP?
Certainly, this summer, as StandOut hopped from site to site, heat was the hot topic. Specifically, its impact on build schedules, crew and customer welfare, essential resources, such as water, and safety.
Luke Fitzmaurice, director of LFX Safety, agrees. To cope, he says, most people opted to avoid working during the “peak” hot hours of the day. Simple. But the real issue is, “Where do you make up those five hours?” He explains: “Do you make them up in the dark, or do you make them up when you’re not allowed to make any noise because of noise restrictions and local residents? Do you make them up when you don’t have appropriate security in place because you’ve gone down to an overnight staffing level? Or do you make it up when you don’t have the rest of the site wide resources available? “I think that’s probably where the gap is,” he adds, iterating the point that whilst some people may want to blast through a build, heat stroke is a killer. “You might have a plan that says at 35 degrees, we’ll make some adjustments, but what you need is a plan for how to actually implement those adjustments.”
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EVENT SAFETY
SIMON JAMES (he/him)
MATT WILLIAMS (he/him) “Then, people say that messes up the schedule. Well, guess what, change the schedule,” Cleary comments.
FORENSIC EXAMINATION
OLLY GALVIN (he/him) argues that there are benefits to building event sites in the heat. For example, the ground’s better to drive on, you’re not slowed down by mud, the site’s “not trashed before punters arrive”. Instead, he suggests that councils are putting more pressure on organisers to look after the people coming when he would like to see “people adult properly”. Bring a hat, turn up with water, use an umbrella. “This is where I get tutted at,” says Cleary. “But take responsibility for yourself.” He continues: “I went to a conference a few years ago and one of the speakers said that we must embrace the heat. It’s going to be dry, so use it, she advised. “In theory, she said, we’re going to get a longer season because of the drier weather so we need to adapt, and we do need to respond to the changing environment. “Quite often, when we talk about the events industry, when we talk about changing environments, we’re talking about trends around music, and we’re talking about trends around technology and equipment. But actually, maybe we should be looking at what is going on in the world, and should we adapt to build at night?
62 n www.lfxevents.co.uk
Like Cleary and Fitzmaurice, Simon James, director of The Event Safety Shop (TESS), recognises that weather has been a big challenge this season. He believes that whilst weather is a key consideration, a bigger issue events need to overcome surrounds better water supplies, better water infrastructure, and a water feed that can’t be compromised. “From an event perspective, you can determine how your punters arrive, how they get in, all of those kind of things,” he comments. “But you can’t change the weather. So, therefore, be prepared for absolutely everything else.” Yet, that requires a meticulous approach to event safety. Live Safety’s Matt Williams, director, thinks that as an industry, there’s a need to be more detailed and forensic in everything it does, particularly in relation to public safety. A former firefighter and Union investigator, he believes in empowering people, ensuring they have the skills and information to handle emergencies. He says it’s one thing having an emergency procedure in place, but you’d never ask someone to drive a car without any experience just because they are wearing a seatbelt. He explains: “We need to spend more time developing all practices that see us not getting into an emergency in the first place, and we do that by forensically looking at everything.”
PREVENTION
This summer, Williams was engaged by Festival Republic to deliver and integrate a Showstop procedure system into the organisation’s own safety measures. This appointment came directly out of Festival Republic’s Audience Safety Group, which looks at audience safety, including design, programming, artist and audience profile, and risk assessment.
Williams supports having solid emergency procedures, like Showstop. However, he argues for doing more work to ensure the emergency procedure is not necessary. “Organisers need to deep dive into their events and their emergency management plans,” he comments. “It should follow the five stages of emergency management: the mitigation, preparedness, prevention, response, and recovery. “What mitigations have we put into place? How prepared are we? What prevention work have we undertaken? If there is an incident, you should be able to look at these five stages and identify what you missed, because generally these things don’t creep up on you.”
COMPLIANCE
But preparedness is only effective if those attending an event follow the procedures designed to keep them safe. Olly Galvin, director of Acumen Safety, explains: “Unfortunately, we’ve had a few challenging egresses, which have been from specific audience groups who just aren’t compliant with instruction. They don’t want to wait or queue, so they make their own way offsite, down routes they shouldn’t be going down. “It’s quite individualistic behaviour, because someone doesn’t want to wait; they’ll walk around a queue and get out on the road, but it causes problems, operationally. “It’s often exacerbated by Uber drivers and taxi drivers not complying with the systems that have been put in place.” Galvin and his team are currently working with Beyond Boundaries Festival, Brighton, to create a system that separates out prebooked vehicles, like Ubers, from Black Cabs. That way, Uber drivers don’t sit waiting for their fare in the Black Cab rank, snarling up the operation and complicating egress.
SAGS
This is just one of a handful of measures being implemented across events and festivals to ensure greater safety. Other organisers are looking at using WhatsApp numbers so
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EVENT SAFETY that customers can text event control if they are being harassed, feel scared, or believe someone is acting in a suspicious manner. Audience intel can make all the difference, says Galvin so it is something he will look into more for 2027. It’s just one small change that could have a positive impact, especially as the events industry awaits new legislation and to see what action – if any – will be taken following a recent report of how the police work with safety advisory groups (SAGs). Michelle Skeer, HM Chief Inspector of Constabulary, thinks a Government-led review of public safety is the way forward. Why? Because SAGs should bring together event organisers, local authorities, and the police to plan thoroughly and manage risk together. But where they don’t exist, or operate inconsistently, that joint working is missing and the public’s safety is at risk, she says.
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Alongside a call for a review, His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services has made 36 recommendations, including the need for improved training for police commanders and SAG attendees and developing a national police support function for events. James – who welcomes any opportunity to educate police commanders on how events work – believes the report will sharpen people’s minds. He also hopes that the police do start training their teams to understand events better from an external perspective, and not just a police perspective. Because it’s one thing knowing the law but it’s another knowing how to keep 70,000 people alive and happy in a field. On the report, Eric Stuart, founder of Gentian Events, states that most police do not fully understand events. Furthermore, he
is concerned that the outcome of this review could have a profound impact on how public events are planned, regulated, and delivered across the UK for years to come. James argues that an amendment to the current Licensing Act would provide more legal validity to SAGs, rather than create entirely new legislation that the industry “does not need”. As it is SAGs that are unregulated; the Licencing Act isn’t, he says. Ultimately, the debate is not simply about whether more regulation is needed, but about whether the existing system is being applied by people with a genuine understanding of how large-scale events operate. For those in the industry, the hope is that the review will lead to greater consistency, better training, and a more informed approach to safety – without adding another layer of legislation where existing powers could be strengthened.
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Nicky Downs, project engineer at Sunbelt Rentals UK and Ireland, on why early planning has a positive impact on event safety attendees are focusing on headline acts or sporting W hile action, the foundations of a safe and successful event have
been established well in advance. Months of planning, site surveys, and collaboration happen behind the scenes, shaping everything from crowd movement and access routes to supplier logistics and installation schedules. In my experience, the most effective approach is to make safety one of the first conversations during planning, because early decisions StandOut_May 26_Ratchet Straps_QP.indd 1 16/04/2026 16:13 can influence how people and vehicles move around the site and how efficiently the entire event operates. This requires looking beyond the live event itself and understanding what the site needs from the arrival of the first supplier through to the final stages of de-rig. Understanding the site early helps identify challenges and ensures infrastructure solutions suit the environment and its intended use. Infrastructure then provides the framework on which the event can be built. Temporary trackway, barriers, and fencing are typically among the first elements installed, supporting contractors, suppliers and production teams before attendees arrive. Trackway enables vehicles to navigate challenging ground conditions, while barriers and fencing PLANNING DELIVERY establish working zones, secure perimeters, and control access routes. TESTING & EXERCISING As the site moves from build into live operation, that infrastructure continues to play an important role in supporting pedestrian SERVICES movement, queuing, and emergency access. Crowd Safety Planning For high-attendance events, this is where taking a holistic view Crowd Management Operations becomes particularly important. Entry and exit routes, emergency Security Coordination access, and pedestrian movement all need to work together, while Control and Command Support practical considerations such as the location of equipment compounds, vehicle routes, and staging areas can have a significant impact during Zone Ex and Last Mile Delivery the build. If equipment cannot reach the area where it is needed in the Testing and Exercising timeframe required, what initially appears to be a logistical decision can quickly have implications on the tight schedule of the event. The wider environment must also be considered, with installation schedules planned around local businesses, residents, and restrictions to minimise disruption and keep the event build moving safely. None of this happens in isolation, which is why collaboration is so important. Organisers, infrastructure providers, security teams, local RADIUS-EVENTS.COM authorities, and emergency services all bring different perspectives, with the most effective solutions emerging when those perspectives are shared early. Experienced teams understand how these elements INFO@RADIUS-EVENTS.COM connect, helping create one joined-up plan for the build, live event and de-rig.
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VIEWPOINT
Do you have what it takes? Qualified. Experienced. Competent. These are often words used to describe someone in a position of authority. But how do we really know if someone should be in a role making potentially momentous decisions? Events Resilience Group’s Dave Sammons asks the question
DAVE SAMMONS (he/him) conversation with a respected A recent security assessor left me with a
question I couldn’t leave alone. We were talking about my role leading security at a major festival when they observed that, on paper, you could question whether I was qualified for it. I disagreed, quite strongly at first. I have security qualifications, event safety qualifications, emergency planning and crisis management qualifications, command training, safeguarding qualifications, counter terrorism training, an SIA licence, post-graduate education, and plenty of operational experience. Once I’d stopped arguing with the premise, I realised something: none of those things says that I’m competent to lead the integrated security operation of a major festival. They contribute towards it, absolutely, but they don’t prove it. That is a much more interesting problem, because who does qualify?
DEFINITION
We often use three words as though they mean the same thing: qualified, experienced, and competent. They do not. HSE’s definition is useful here: competence combines training, skills, experience, and knowledge with the ability to apply them to perform a task safely.
The ability to apply them is the important bit. A qualification can show that somebody has met a defined standard of knowledge or practical skill. Experience shows exposure to an environment. Neither proves they can interpret what is happening, exercise judgement, and apply what they know in a complex operation. It isn’t simply hundreds of security officers with somebody senior at the top. At different points, the security lead may be working across contractors, crowd management, accreditation, searching, perimeters, campsites, arenas, response, safeguarding, intelligence, counter terrorism, police liaison, event control, welfare, and emergency planning. Those functions overlap. Often the hardest part is working out which one you’re actually dealing with. A security issue may really be a crowd management problem, while a crowd problem can quickly become a security problem if handled badly. The security lead needs to understand those boundaries and accept that they aren’t the expert in everything. That may be the most important part of the role.
RANK OR ROLE
So, who is the right person? Traditionally, one answer has been the former senior police
BOARDMASTERS
Images: © Mark Campbell
officer, with good reason. Some of the best people in events have come via that route. But it doesn’t automatically make somebody competent to lead a festival security operation. Policing a festival and being responsible for the event-side security operation are different jobs. Previous rank doesn’t answer the question, but neither does coming through private security. Some contractor heads of security are exceptional operators who understand deployment, supervision, logistics, and delivering hundreds of people. Others understand how to run their business, but couldn’t necessarily run an integrated show. The same argument applies to crowd managers, event safety officers, protective security specialists and emergency planners. Each is a potentially excellent route into the role, yet none automatically proves competence for it.
TRAINING
The UK isn’t short of relevant learning: There’s the ISRM’s Level 5 Award in Strategic Planning and Management of Major Events; NCS4’s Senior Leader Course in Sports and Entertainment Security; the SFJ Awards’ Level 3 Award in Counter-Terrorism Protective Security and Preparedness; and the Level 4 Certificate for Protective Security Advisers. All are credible and all are useful. The irony is that, even if you held all four, they still wouldn’t prove that you can lead the integrated security operation of a major festival. Four certificates still would not tell us how somebody would perform at 01:30 on a festival campsite when information is incomplete, contractors disagree about what happened, an allegation reaches safeguarding, police are asking questions, social media says something different, and event control wants to know what we’re actually doing. That is not a criticism: they are not designed to answer that question.
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VIEWPOINT
BOARDMASTERS LEADING THE FIELD
Oddly, spectator safety may be ahead of security. The Sports Ground Safety Authority (SGSA) uses National Occupational Standards that define not only knowledge, but the performance somebody should consistently achieve in the workplace. For safety officers, the SGSA recognises the Level 4 Diploma in Spectator Safety Management as a competency benchmark, while making clear that candidates should not be judged on qualifications alone because they arrive through different career routes. The Cabinet Office’s work on crowd behaviour makes a similar point. Its guidance stresses first-hand knowledge, skills, and experience alongside multi-agency working, clear command structures, communication, coordination, and flexibility. JESIP treats communication, coordination, jointly understanding risk and shared situational awareness as fundamental to command. It also emphasises understanding the capabilities and limitations of organisations working alongside you. That is very close to what good festival security leadership looks like: not somebody at the top knowing everything, but somebody capable of making the whole operation work together.
THE DIFFICULT BIT IS JUDGEMENT
We can teach most individual components: legislation, counter terrorism, search policy, crowd dynamics, risk assessment, safeguarding awareness, incident command and emergency planning. Judgement is considerably harder to teach and assess. When do you challenge advice, accept that somebody else knows more, or decide the plan written six months ago no longer fits what is happening? And, perhaps most importantly, when do you change your own decision?
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Can you then explain what you knew, what you didn’t, which options you considered and why you chose one? That is competence. Experience matters enormously, but it has to be relevant. Saying somebody has done festivals for 20 years tells us little on its own. Have they taken on progressively more complex decisions and responsibilities, or repeated broadly the same experience? Have they dealt with serious incidents, been challenged, and got things wrong? More importantly, have they changed the way they work because of what they got wrong? Twenty years in the industry and 20 years of development aren’t necessarily the same thing.
MAKE A DISTINCTION
Martyn’s Law makes this more relevant, not less. The Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025, expected to come into force in spring 2027, does not create a qualification for festival security leadership. Importantly, the statutory guidance does not try to. The guidance makes a useful point: the Act does not mandate a generic counterterrorism course. People responsible for procedures and measures need the understanding, experience, training or instruction to carry them out effectively. It recognises that supervisory staff may need different or additional development, and that prior security training does not remove the need for event or site-specific preparation. That is exactly the distinction we need to keep making. Completing training isn’t the outcome. Being able to perform the role is.
WHAT’S MISSING?
We’re not missing another three-day training course. Creating one now could make the
problem worse by adding a certificate that appears to answer a question it cannot. We need to define the job before deciding what qualifies somebody to do it. What should a person leading a major festival’s integrated security operation know and have experienced? What decisions should they be capable of making? What should they be able to demonstrate, rather than simply describe? And perhaps most importantly, what does good judgement look like in this particular role? That probably means a competence framework rather than another standalone course: agreed areas of professional competence, evidence from live operations, assessed decision-making in complex scenarios and some form of continuing professional review. The route into the role could remain open. The standard of performance would not. I don’t think one professional background owns the answer. It isn’t policing. It isn’t private security. It isn’t crowd safety. It isn’t event safety. It isn’t emergency planning. The right person might come from any of them. What matters is whether they’ve developed enough breadth to understand the whole operation, enough depth to recognise when something isn’t right, enough humility to know when they need somebody else’s expertise and enough authority to decide when a decision actually needs making. That’s a very different test from looking at someone’s CV. The question isn’t, “What qualification should a festival security lead have?” It’s this: What does competent leadership of a modern festival security operation actually look like, and how do we demonstrate that somebody can do it? Until we can answer that, adding another certificate to the pile won’t solve very much.
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SAFETY
Don’t drive tired
Earlier this year, Daniel Pycock, CEO of VA 361 Productions, took part in the Dakar Classic, a gruelling historic motorsport rally. Drawing on his race experience, he discusses the dangers of fatigue and why the last hour of an event starts in the first planning meeting – when you have an opportunity to protect decision quality on long event days V6 engine and exhaust created a T he constant thunder inside our Mitsubishi
Pajero. Our Stilo helmets and noise-cancelling intercom made it bearable, but when the leftrear tyre tore apart on stage nine, the change in sound was almost imperceptible. I felt it instead: the back of the car began to drift, and I had to compensate with the steering. My first thought was “Damn, there goes the suspension.” We were running on a limited budget and had been dealing with suspension breakages throughout the rally. Our mechanics were repairing them every night. Nine stages in, we had not had a single tyre problem. I stopped the car and inspected the situation alongside Fran Gómez, my navigator and business partner. When we both jumped out and saw the rear tyre, we realised this was much more than an ordinary puncture. He stayed calm, helped me change it quickly, and kept me positive. I have spent more than two decades producing live events as CEO of an AV production company. Fran and I completed all 13 stages of the Dakar Classic in 2026, finishing 84th overall in our 1993 Mitsubishi Pajero. Looking back, I recognise a lot of the same pressures in the work we do every day.
IT’S ALL IN THE PREP
At a recent hotel event for a new client in the pharma industry, the deadline was tight and expectations were high. Our team had spent the day installing staging, audio, lighting, LED walls, and video systems across several rooms. We had also accommodated unexpected changes, bringing in an extra truck of LED equipment from Madrid. Late that night, video and LED glitches were affecting the three main event spaces. Everyone was tired. The agency needed to deliver – as promised – for its client, and our reputation was on the line. My technical director and project manager were keeping the client calm while the technical team worked hard to find the fault. I reminded them to breathe and tackle the elephant in chunks. We needed to work through the problem meticulously, one piece at a time. With the team, we investigated and ran tests until we isolated and fixed the issue. We were finally able to get some rest, knowing it had been resolved in time for the event to run as it should. In live events, you need to be ready when the doors open. The timetable does not move simply because the work has become
difficult. Dakar Classic is not about going as fast as possible; it tests regularity and navigation. But the pressure of working to a demanding timetable, with a team depending on you, is familiar. For me, a leader’s first responsibility comes well before delivery. Give people the right tools and equipment, but also the information and systems they need to use them properly. A capable team cannot work efficiently if it is missing essential information or does not know what is expected. That preparation must include backups and contingency plans. Knowing an alternative exists is not enough. The team needs to know how to act, when, how to make the decision, and who is responsible. That plan is much easier to develop before everyone is tired and the client is standing right beside you.
DANGEROUS MISTAKE
Fatigue is the part of this story I cannot leave out. On the return to camp after the penultimate Dakar stage, I made a dangerous mistake. It was late, I had been driving for 16 hours, and visibility was poor. I missed a turn and we jumped over the central reservation of the highway.
CAR 756 IN THE SAUDI ARABIAN DUNES
Images: Jesús Pérez (@Chuseto)
www.bradshawev.com n 71
SAFETY
FRAN GÓMEZ (he/him) AND DANIEL PYCOCK (he/him)
DANIEL PYCOCK (he/him) We could have rolled the car or travelled in the wrong direction with oncoming traffic. Neither happened, but that does not make the mistake any less serious. Fran stayed calm. He understood how exhausted I was and did not add panic or blame. I regained concentration and we made our way back to camp. I was grateful that nothing more serious had happened. But the exhaustion had already led to a dangerous mistake.
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MECHANICS WORK ON THE SUSPENSION During delivery, leadership also means giving people emotional support. Remind them to breathe, help them stay calm, and bring your knowledge and experience to the problem. That support needs to be practical: help investigate, work through the options, and make the next decision manageable. I think about Fran helping me stay positive beside that damaged tyre, our mechanics repairing the suspension each night, and
the team methodically testing those video systems. In each case, people needed both the means to do the job and support from those around them. That is what I believe every leader should aim to do: prepare properly, make the alternatives clear, and stay available and useful when the pressure rises. Then, together, just work through the elephant in chunks.
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HUMBER STREET SESH
HUMBER STREET SESH
Images: © T Arran Photo/Milly Warkup Photography
From Hull with love Humber Street Sesh’s Mark Page on grassroots music, community, and the future
desire’s still there, and the passion T he is still there,” says Mark “Mak” Page,
founder and festival director of Humber Street Sesh, an annual music festival that takes over Hull’s marina for one day in August. But the festival is more than a passion project. For Page, Humber Street Sesh is what happens when you’re obsessed with grassroots music and believe in community. “I’m not going to lie; it gets harder each year when you get rejected from Arts bids when all you’re trying to do is something good for the community – when you’re trying to provide platforms and opportunities,” he explains. “We just need a bit more support.” Page is sitting opposite StandOut, in a small music venue, an ex-warehouse that once gave Hull’s Humber Street its edgy character. He started the Sesh, a live grassroots live music night in 2002. It championed local bands and artists. Momentum grew and in 2012, Page had the foresight to celebrate a decade of his weekly live music nights.
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“I wanted to do a one-night festival in a nightclub but I walked through the marina and noticed there was a lot of derelict buildings down Humber Street, where there was a lot of hustle and bustle in the 70s, 80s, and early 90s. “I thought we could put a stage outside a venue called Fruit, thinking we might attract 1,000 people and put on 50 or 60 bands,” Page recalls. “We raised £18,000 on Facebook, got everyone to muck in, and pulled off the first Humber Street Sesh in just six weeks. “It was a real community effort and we made lots of mistakes,” he confesses. “We put two doormen down one end of the street, two doormen at the other, about four portable toilets, and there were no risk assessments. No event management plan. We were completely wet behind our ears.” Ten-thousand people turned up to the free event. “That put us under a bit of pressure that day,” Page admits, wincing. “The council
spoke with us and said, ‘It’s a fantastic event but if you’re thinking of doing it again, we’d like to support you, and we would suggest you get some help’.”
EVOLUTION
The inaugural festival attracted 10,000 people and grew rapidly in the years that followed, eventually reaching a capacity of 32,000. Following the pandemic, the redevelopment of Humber Street and ongoing work on the A63, a major arterial route, reduced the space available to the festival, bringing its capacity down to 15,000. Since returning in 2022, Humber Street Sesh has evolved into a more boutique, community-led event while continuing to welcome exciting emerging artists from Hull and further afield across 11 stages.
FINANCE
Next year, the event will celebrate its fifteenth anniversary. It’s just one of the things that StandOut talks about with Page as
2027
15th - 17th Nov
2028
20th - 22nd Nov
2029 19th - 21st Nov
HUMBER STREET SESH
we drink tea. In just six days, the fourteenth edition of Humber Street Sesh takes place and like all independent promoters, money is on Page’s mind. “If you could put a figure on it, how much money would make a difference to you?” StandOut asks. “How much financial support do you need?” Page looks. He doesn’t take long to ponder. “This festival’s coming in just close to £500,000 to put on a one-day event,” he answers, honestly. “To go into the city centre and expand it, I would probably put another quarter, maybe half a million on top of that.” A self-confessed “socialist” at heart, Page has dreams of expanding the festival. He wants stability; the backing of the city, Arts Council funding, and more grassroots artists to thrive. He wants local businesses to fully engage so everyone can work hard and play hard, fairly.
BODY BLOW
Page is nothing but honest and reflective. He describes dropping Humber Street Sesh from 32,000 capacity pre-COVID to 15,000 post-pandemic as “a body blow” when the festival “was flying”. But he states the condensed footprint brings the “community closer together”. That’s Page all over. A realist and optimist rolled into one. Business is not easy but it doesn’t stop him from trying. He’s desperate to see Humber Street Sesh push on and take place in 2027 and whilst the festival is now run as a community interest company in a bid to secure a more sustainable future, the business community is backing the event. In fact, sponsorship has doubled.
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To many this would be positive but a “slump” in ticket sales casts a shadow. Yet, it hasn’t stopped Page from dreaming. Next year’s festival could be expanded, he says, with the festival “joining the dots” between the marina and the city centre. And given Hull City Council’s ambition to become a UNESCO City of Music in 2027, his wish might come true. “We’ve started to have conversations about next year but we’ve got to get through 2026 first,” Page adds. “We can’t go through this year and fail and then start thinking of going bigger. “Next year, it might be a case of coming back and consolidating what we’re doing and trying to make it work financially. But it might mean we look at changing the model a little bit. Personally, I don’t want to change the model, but I’ve got directors that see it a
different way and think that maybe we need to be more family-friendly.” Page is not so keen on the idea of adding silent discos and funfairs to the mix. As well as being a socialist, he’s a purist. With live and local on the brain. “I’m passionate about grassroots music, and that’s the reason why we do a free live music night, and I have done for 25 years,” he continues. “It’s not about the money; it’s about providing those platforms, creating that community, and then trying to elevate them all. And by doing the festival, we’re bringing them all together into one place, creating confidence in the city. “I’m very proud of what we’ve achieved as a community,” Page concludes. “We’ve pulled off something quite special.”
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Innovative Hire Unit N, Lion Works Estate, 543 Wallisdown Road Bournemouth BH12 5AD T: 01202 941 068 W: innovativehire.co.uk
www.falconteam.co.uk n 79
CONNECTIONS NSR Communications Ltd 16 Caxton Way, Watford, Hertfordshire, WD18 8UA E: james@nsrcommunications.co.uk W: nsrcommunications.uk/ : @nsr-communications-ltd : @NSRComms Qdos Event Hire Ltd Fernside Place, 179 Queens Road, Weybridge, Surrey KT13 0AH T: 0845 862 0952 E: enquiries@qdoseventhire.co.uk W: www.qdoseventhire.co.uk : @qdoseventhire : @Qdos-Event-Hire : @QdosEventHire Wernick Events Joseph House, Northgate Way, Aldridge, Walsall WS9 8ST T: 01922 472 900 E: events@wernick.co.uk W: www.wernick.co.uk/events : @WernickEvents : @WernickEvents CAR PARKING Event Traffic Control Limited Baldersby Gardens, Ripon Road, Baldersby, Thirsk, North Yorkshire, YO7 4PS T: 08000 246 800 E: info@eventtc.com W: www.eventtc.com CLEANING & SUPPORT SERVICES
CONTROL ROOM MANAGEMENT MinT Command Ltd Unit 1063, Kent Science Park Sittingbourne, Kent ME9 8PX E: neil@mintcommand.com W: www.mintcommand.com : @neilminter : @MinTcommand : @MinTcommand CORPORATE CREW Rodeo Crew 128 Wey House, 15 Church Street, Weybridge, Surrey, KT13 8NA T: 020 8075 7799 E: bookcrew@rodeocrew.uk W: www.rodeocrew.uk CREW SERVICES MLD Event Group T: 01903372773 E: office@mldeventgroup.co.uk W: www.mld.events Olympus Crew T: 07904 903452 E: info@olympuscrew.co.uk W: www.olympuscrew.co.uk Optimal Events Group Ltd / Trading as Optimal Crew Marsh Mill Village, 5A, Fleetwood Rd N, Thornton-Cleveleys FY5 4JZ T: 07375 843976 E: enquiries@optimalcrew.co.uk W: optimalcrew.co.uk
Falcon Cleaning Chipping Hall Farm, Chipping, Herts SG9 0DP E: info@falconteam.co.uk W: www.falconteam.co.uk W3W: bless.loses.typed
PS Events Crew Suite 117-119 Lovell House, Birchwood Park, Warrington, WA3 6FW T: 0151 319 8888 E: operations@pseventscrew.co.uk W: www.pseventscrew.co.uk
The Nu Group T: 0208 594 0800 E: info@thenugroup.co.uk W: www.thenugroup.co.uk Top Mops Event Services 7 Bell Yard, London WC2A 2JR T: 0800 970 4035 E: info@topmops.net W: topmops.net
S3K Group The Old Mill Building, Rookery Farm, Bognor Regis, West Sussex, PO22 6EP T: 0845 299 7991 E: office@s3kgroup.com W: www.s3kgroup.com : @s3kgroup : @s3kgroup : @s3kgroup
Markey Ltd 39b Park Farm Ind Estate, Buntingford, Hertfordshire, SG9 9AZ T: 01763 271110 E: info@markey.co.uk W: www.markey.co.uk
Stage Miracles Ltd The UK’s Leading Crew Company We supply crew in: London (and surrounding areas), Leeds, Hull, Sheffield, Birmingham, and more Rooms 39-40, The Enterprise Centre Cranbourne Road, Potters Bar EN6 3DQ T: 01707 662 500 E: mail@stagemiracles.co.uk
COFFEE BARS
80 n www.falconteam.co.uk
Sponsored by the Falcon Team
CONNECTIONS YOUR Group – A global workforce T: 0203 576 2330 E: connect@your-group.co.uk W: www.your-group.co.uk : @your.comp.group : @your-companies-group Video: https://vimeo.com/yourvid/ presentationuk
CM Production Management Ltd T: 020 8056465 E: hello@cmpm.co.uk W: www.cmpm.co.uk : @cmpmlive : @cmpmlive LFX Events Unit 10 Merchants House, Market Place, Stockport, SK1 1EU E: enquiries@lfxevents.co.uk W: www.lfxevents.co.uk
CROWD MANAGEMENT K4 Group of Companies Event Safety: Security, Crowd Control & Medical Services Under One Roof 4th Floor, Holdsworth House 65–73 Staines Rd, London TW3 3H T: 020 3143 3998 E: admin@k4group.co.uk W: k4group.co.uk : @k4groupofcompanies : @k4-group-of-companies : @k4groupofcompanies EQUIPMENT HIRE GAP Event Services CityPoint 2, 25 Tyndrum Street, Glasgow, G4 0JY T: 03330 094 153 E: events@gap-group.co.uk W: www.gap-group.co.uk EVENT ACCOMMODATION
Saward Marketing and Events T: 07788 660996 E: admin@saward-me.com W: saward-me.com Victorious Events T: 07922 836227 E: info@victoriousevents.co.uk W: victoriousevents.co.uk EVENT PASS PRINTING Eyecatchers T: 01772 681000 E: sales@eyecatchers.co.uk W: www.eyecatchers.co.uk / www.myeventpass.co.uk EVENT PRODUCTION Culture Creative T: 01665 798 007 E: info@culturecreative.co.uk W: www.culturecreative.co.uk
Bunkabin Tweedale Way, Oldham, OL9 7LD T: 0345 456 7899 E: hires@bunkabin.co.uk W: www.bunkabin.co.uk Zoo Events Group Ltd Stockton Dairy, Stockton, Warminster, BA12 OSQ T: 01258 840233 E: info@zooeventsgroup.co.uk W: www.zooeventsgroup.co.uk EVENT CONSTRUCTION Setstage Ltd T: 01274 265217 E: info@setstage.co.uk : @kate-greenwood-82315223 EVENT CONTROL, RADIO & WI-FI SERVICES Controlled Events T: 0203 286 6392 E: info@controlledevents.com W: www.controlledevents.com EVENT MANAGEMENT Bright Events Ltd T: 07856588815 W: www.brighteventsltd.com : @karen-edwards-events
Sponsored by the Falcon Team
SC Productions Ltd T: 02921 850 650 E: admin@scproductionsltd.com W: scproductionsltd.com EVENT SAFETY Acumen Safety T: 07557 669523 E: hello@acumensafety.co.uk W: acumensafety.co.uk K4 Group of Companies Event Safety: Security, Crowd Control & Medical Services Under One Roof 4th Floor, Holdsworth House, 65–73 Staines Rd, London TW3 3H T: 020 3143 3998 E: admin@k4group.co.uk W: k4group.co.uk : @k4groupofcompanies : @k4-group-of-companies : @k4groupofcompanies LFX Safety Unit 10 Merchants House, Market Place, Stockport, SK1 1EU E: enquiries@lfxsafety.co.uk W: www.lfxsafety.co.uk
www.falconteam.co.uk n 81
CONNECTIONS Number 8 Safety The Hay Shed, Sparrows Lane Matching Green, Essex, CM17 0RP T: 0203 7437292 E: info@number8events.co.uk W: number8events.com Radius Desklodge House, Redcliffe Way, Bristol, England, BS1 6NL E: info@radius-events.com W: www.radius-events.com : @radiuseventsltd SafetyDocs Layton Lane, Rawdon, Leeds, LS19 6RG T: 0208 242 4942 E: info@safetydocs.org W: safetydocs.org
Zone Secure Gorsley Business Park, Ross on Wye HR9 7SD E: info@zonesecure.co.uk W: www.zonesecure.co.uk FENCING SCRIM & SITE SUPPLIES Concept Products Ltd 10 Cary Court, Somerton Business Park, Somerton, TA11 6SB T: 01458 274020 E: ben@conceptproductsltd.co.uk W: www.conceptproductsltd.co.uk FESTIVAL GAS Festival Gas Supplying LPG gas solutions to major events and festivals in the UK T: 07930 758893 E: simon@festivalgas.co.uk W: www.festivalgas.co.uk
EVENT SERVICES Number 8 Hire Ltd The Hay Shed, Sparrows Lane, Matching Green, CM17 0RP T: 0203 7437292 E: info@number8events.co.uk W: www.number8events.com
FIRE COVER Red Rose Fire Solutions Ltd 6 Brissenden Close, New Romney Kent TN28 8JD T: 01995 503504 E: info@redrosefiresolutions.co.uk
EVENT VEHICLE HIRE Bradshaw Event Vehicles New Lane, Stibbington, Peterborough, PE8 6LW T: 01780 782621 E: rentals@bradshawev.com W: www.bradshawev.com : @Bradshaw_EV EXHIBITION STAND CONTRACTORS Access Displays Unit 38, Whitehill Industrial Estate, Whitehill Lane, Royal Wootton Bassett, Swindon, SN4 7DB T: 01793 613088 E: sales@accessdisplays.co.uk W: www.accessdisplays.co.uk EXHIBITION TRAILERS & MOBILE UNITS Inchmere Event Design Ltd Swan Close Studios, Swan Close Road, Banbury, OX16 5TE T: 01295 661000 E: alastair@inchmere.co.uk W: www.inchmere.co.uk TCM Trailers Ltd Watery Lane, Lichfield, Staffordshire, WS13 7SE E: emily@tcmtrailers.co.uk W: www.tcmtrailers.co.uk FENCING & BARRIERS Augusta Event Support Ltd Cadeby, CV13 0BD E: Sarah@aesteam.co.uk W: augustaeventsupport.com
82 n www.falconteam.co.uk
Virtus Fire T: 01895 590212 E: office@virtusservices.co.uk W: www.virtusfire.co.uk FLAGS Instant Marquees T: 01840 213063 W: www.instantmarquees.co.uk FLOORING & FLOOR COVERINGS Coir Store 8-9 Yelverton Road, Brislington, Bristol BS4 5HP T: 07983 614410 E: info@coirstore.co.uk W: coirstore.co.uk Event Flooring Solutions Ltd T: 01509 768 252 E: sales@efseurope.co.uk W: www.efseurope.co.uk FURNITURE HIRE / SALES Furniture On The Move Unit B, Canada Warehouse, Chittening Industrial Estate, Worthy Road, Avonmouth, Bristol, BS11 0YB T: 0845 459 9875 E: info@furnitureonthemove.co.uk W: www.furnitureonthemove.co.uk
Sponsored by the Falcon Team
CONNECTIONS
Innovative Hire Unit N, Lion Works Estate, 543 Wallisdown Road Bournemouth BH12 5AD T: 01202 941 068 W: innovativehire.co.uk
Tech AV Ltd London, Essex, Birmingham T: 0345 257 9969 E: lee@techav.events W: www.techav.events YSLV London & York T: 0800 080 3310 E: hire@yslv.co.uk W: www.yslv.co.uk
HEATING & COOLING SYSTEMS Cooling & Heating Solutions Ltd Marlwood House, Silver Street, Lymington, Hampshire, SO41 6DG, UK T: 01590 681 434 E: sales@candhs.co.uk W: coolingandheatingsolutions.com Spica Temperature Control Solutions Ltd 20 Crowsport, Hamble, Hampshire, SO31 4HG T: 02380 453841 M: 07780 638976 E: kay@spicasolutions.com W: www.spicasolutions.com
LIGHTING TOWERS Boels Rental T: 01245 208031 E: lighting@boels.co.uk W: www.boels.com LITTER PICKING Falcon Cleaning Chipping Hall Farm, Chipping, Herts, SG9 0DP E: info@falconteam.co.uk W: www.falconteam.co.uk W3W: bless.loses.typed
INSURANCE Howden Sport & Entertainment Insurance 1 Creechurch Place, London EC3A 5AF T: 0207 0093729 E: Steven.howell1@howdengroup.com W: www.howdengroup.com Tysers Insurance Brokers 71 Fenchurch Street, London, EC3M 4BS T: 0203 037 8000 E: tim.rudland@tysers.com W: www.tysers.com LASER & FX Laser Grafix Unit 4A Stratton Park, Biggleswade, Bedfordshire, SG18 8QS UK office: 01767 315948 Dubai office: +971 4887 9808 E: info@lgfx.co.uk W: www.lgfx.co.uk LED SCREENS EMF Technology Ltd Unit 27 Freemantle House, Kingsclere Business Park, Kingsclere, Hants, RG20 4SW T: 020 8003 3344 E: info@emftechnology.co.uk W: www.emftechnology.co.uk Lightmedia Displays Mobile & Modular LED Screen Hire T: 0333 600 6000 – 24 hour response E: sales@lightmedia.co.uk W: www.lightmedia.co.uk
Sponsored by the Falcon Team
The Nu Group T: 0208 594 0800 E: info@thenugroup.co.uk W: www.thenugroup.co.uk Top Mops Event Services 7 Bell Yard, London WC2A 2JR T: 0800 970 4035 E: info@topmops.net W: topmops.net MARQUEES Alternative Stretch Tents Building 15, Gateway 1000, A1 (M) jct 7, Stevenage, SG1 2FP T: 01920 830256 E: info@alternative-stretch.co.uk Fews Marquees Chessgrove Park, Ditchford Bank Road, Hanbury, Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, B60 4HS T: 01527 821789 E: info@fews.co.uk W: www.fewsmarquees.co.uk Instant Marquees T: 01840 213063 W: www.instantmarquees.co.uk Mahood Marquees Ltd 8 Lords Fold, Rainford, Saint Helens WA11 8HP T: 01744 882 079 W: mahoodmarquees.com RÖDER UK T: 01487 840840 E: sales@roderuk.com W: www.roderuk.com
www.falconteam.co.uk n 83
CONNECTIONS TT Tents Ltd North Waltham Business Centre, Basingstoke, Hampshire, RG25 2DJ T: 01256 397 551 E: sales@tttents.co.uk Tentickle Stretch Tents UK Ltd Langley Brook Business Park, Unit 3B London Rd, Tamworth, B78 2BP T: 0121 7401385 M: 07826 843099 E: jorg@tentickle-stretchtents.co.uk W: www.tentickle-stretchtents.co.uk Tentstyle T: 01403 333135 E: enquiries@tentstyle.co.uk W: www.tentstyle.co.uk Top Cat Big Tops Tents & Marquees Ltd The Old Stable Yard, Gasworks Ln, Achynlleth, SY20 8BY T: 01654 700030 E: info@topcatbigtops.co.uk W: www.topcatbigtops.co.uk Ziggu Marquees Dutton Green, Little Stanney, Chester, CH2 4SA T: 01244722739 E: hello@ziggumarquees.com W: www.ziggumarquees.com MARQUEES ACCESSORIES Opas Southern Ltd Enterprise House, St Lawrence Avenue Worthing, West Sussex BN14 7JH Free Phone: 0845 1300 477 E: sales@opas.co.uk W: www.opas.co.uk MEDICAL SERVICES First Aid Cover Ltd 405 Kings Road, London SW10 0BB T: 020 8875 5758 E: enquiries@firstaidcover.co.uk W: www.firstaidcover.co.uk K4 Group of Companies Event Safety: Security, Crowd Control & Medical Services Under One Roof 4th Floor, Holdsworth House, 65–73 Staines Rd, London TW3 3H T: 020 3143 3998 E: admin@k4group.co.uk W: k4group.co.uk : @k4groupofcompanies : @k4-group-of-companies : @k4groupofcompanies Quad Medical Ltd T: 07904706660 QUAD MEDICAL LIMITED E: info@quadmedical.co.uk W: www.quadmedical.co.uk www.event-welfare.co.uk
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PARKING Wise Parking T: 03301 334522 E: info@wiseparking.co.uk W: www.wiseparking.co.uk PLANT HIRE Charles Wilson 86 High Street, Harpenden, AL5 2SP T: 0800 458 5701 E: instanthire@cwplant.co.uk W: www.cwplant.co.uk PORTABLE TOILET HIRE A Star All Solutions T: 02477 350679 W: www.astarallsolutions.co.uk Excloosive Event Hire Field House, Bromley Park, Abbots Bromley Rugeley, Staffordshire WS15 3AH T: 01283 575 749 M: 07778 473 064 E: info@excloosive.co.uk LOOS FOR DOs Ltd Bakers Court, Forge Road, Kingsley, Hampshire GU35 9NZ T: 01420 588 355 E: info@loos.co.uk W: www.loos.co.uk Ontrax Rentals Elmwood Farm, Bampton OX18 2PL, England E: hello@ontraxrentals.com W: www.ontraxrentals.com Site Event The Depot, The Avenue, Lasham, Hampshire GU34 5SU T: 01256 384 134 E: event@site-equip.co.uk W: www.site-equip.co.uk Vacant Event Hire Unit C White Oak Technology Park, London Road, Swanley, Kent BR8 7AG T: 01322 761 117 M: 07960 301178 E: info@vacant.events W: vacant.events Zoo Events Group Ltd Stockton Dairy, Stockton, Warminster, BA12 OSQ T: 01258 840233 E: info@zooeventsgroup.co.uk W: www.zooeventsgroup.co.uk POWER & GENERATORS ATD Electrical Unit 93, Greenway Business Centre, Greenway, Harlow, Essex, CM19 5QE T: 01279 507890 E: office@atdelectrical.com W: www.atdelectrical.com
Sponsored by the Falcon Team
CONNECTIONS CB Potts Electrical Rose Cottage, Watergore, South Petherton, Somerset, TA13 5JQ T: 0780 8049034 E: ben.potts@zen.co.uk W: www.cbpottselectrical.co.uk Festival Power Ltd Unit 2, Temple Bridge Business Park, Bristol, BS39 5AA E: info@festivalpower.co.uk W: www.festivalpower.co.uk Gofer Ltd Unit 7 Arkwright Road, Hadleigh Road Ind. Est, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP2 0UB T: 01473 282530 E: info@gofer.co.uk W: www.gofer.co.uk IDE Systems Head Office & Manufacturing Centre, Unit 3, Swaffield Park Hyssop Close, Cannock Staffordshire, WS11 7FU United Kingdom T: 01543 574 111 E: enquiries@idesystems.co.uk W: www.idesystems.co.uk Instagrid UK Ltd Silent, Clean and Portable Power T: 07939 315074 E: andy.barnby@instagrid.co Newburn Power Rental Limited Unit 36 Lidgate Crescent, Langthwaite Business Park, South Kirkby, Pontefract, WF9 3NR T: 0845 077 6693 E: info@npr-uk.com Pearce Hire Unit 8-9 Reynolds Industrial Park, Stevern Way, Peterborough PE1 5EL T: 01733 554950 E: info@pearcehire.co.uk W: www.pearchire.co.uk Power Revolution Unit 9 Kelvin Place, Stanton, Bury St Edmunds, IP31 2AR T: 01359 256 265 E: info@power-revolution.co.uk W: www.power-revolution.co.uk Robert Blezard Electrical Contractor Ltd Unit 5, Fishes & Peggy Hill Fm, Clitheroe BB7 3BY T: 01200 777 666 E: hello@robertblezard.co.uk W: www.robertblezard.co.uk The Technical Department 14 Henley Business Park, Pirbright Road, Normandy, Surrey, GU3 2DX T: 01483 238 050 or 07850 367 917 E: chantal@thetechnicaldepartment.com
Sponsored by the Falcon Team
XLE Event Services T: 01789 224227 E: info@xle.co.uk W: www.xle.co.uk : @xle_events : @xleeventservices : @XLeventservices PRINTERS UK Flyers Suite 210, Victory House, Somers Road, North Portsmouth, Hampshire PO1 1PJ T: 023 9229 3050 E: sales@ukflyers.com W: www.ukflyers.com PROJECTION EMF Technology LTD Projection Mapping, Water Screens, Flame Effects, Lighting, Mains Distribution T: 020 8003 3344 E: info@emftechnology.co.uk W: www.emftechnology.co.uk RADIO COMMUNICATIONS 2CL Communications Ltd Unit C, Woodside Trade Centre, Parnham Drive, Eastleigh, Hampshire, SO50 4NU T: 0800 389 2278 E: contact@2cl.co.uk W: www.2cl.co.uk DCRS Edison Road, St.Ives, Cambs, PE27 3LH T: 0800 043 2688 E: sales@dcrs.co.uk W: www.dcrs.co.uk Icom UK T: 01227 741741 E: sales@icomuk.co.uk W: www.icomuk.co.uk Light of Night T: 0203 189 2679 E: info@lightofnight.co.uk W: www.lightofnight.co.uk Marathon Communications Ltd Oakhurst Business Park, Wilberforce Way, Southwater, Horsham, West Sussex, RH13 9RT T: 01403 473 858 E: info@marathoncomms.co.uk W: www.marathoncomms.co.uk : @marathoncomms : @marathoncomms : @marathoncomms : @marathoncomms
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CONNECTIONS RATCHET STRAPS
SECURITY
Ratchet Straps UK T: 0333 2027110 E: sales@ratchetstrapsuk.co.uk W: www.ratchetstrapsuk.co.uk
Alliance Events Ltd Ventura Park Road, Tamworth, England, B78 3HL T: 02034 885480 E: admin@alliancemanagementgroup.co.uk W: www.alliancemanagementgroup.co.uk
RECYCLING
TRACKWAY
Falcon Cleaning Chipping Hall Farm, Chipping, Herts SG9 0DP E: info@falconteam.co.uk W: www.falconteam.co.uk W3W: bless.loses.typed The Nu Group T: 0208 594 0800 E: info@thenugroup.co.uk W: www.thenugroup.co.uk
REFRIGERATED STRUCTURES Cask London T: 0208 064 2012 E: info@casklondon.com Dawsongroup tcs Export Drive, Sutton-in-Ashfield, Nottinghamshire Dawsongroup | tcs NG17 6AF T: 01623 518538 E: info@dgtcs.co.uk W: dgtcs.co.uk/inflatable-cold-rooms REUSABLE CUPS Re-uz UK Less is now Limited Unit 1A Walrow Industrial Estate, Commerce Way, Highbridge TA9 4AG T: 01278 238390 E: info.uk@reuz.com W: www.re-uz.com & www.green-goblet.com SAFETY TRAINING Acumen Safety T: 07557 669523 E: training@acumensafety.co.uk W: acumensafety.co.uk SCAFFOLD SYSTEM & TRUSS STRUCTURES SRG Structures Oldbury Lane, Bristol, BS35 1RE T: 0117 911 4034 E: info@srg-structures.com W: www.srg-structures.com SEATING Ace Seating Hire T: 01832 279333 E: info@aceseating.co.uk W: www.aceseating.co.uk
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TRACKWAY
Anubis Group T: 0800 121 6576 E: sales@anubis-security.com/ recruitment@anubis-security.com W: www.anubis-security.com ESM Operations T: 07355 094162 E: info@esmoperations.com W: www.esmoperations.com K4 Group of Companies Event Safety: Security, Crowd Control & Medical Services Under One Roof 4th Floor, Holdsworth House, 65–73 Staines Rd, London TW3 3H T: 020 3143 3998 E: admin@k4group.co.uk W: k4group.co.uk : @k4groupofcompanies : @k4-group-of-companies : @k4groupofcompanies Light of Night T: 0203 189 2679 E: info@lightofnight.co.uk W: www.lightofnight.co.uk Manchett Security The Tack Room, Lorkins Farm, Conway’s Road, Orsett, Grays, Essex, RM16 3E T: 01375 470 022 E: info@manchett-security.com W: www.manchett-security.com : @ManchettSec – : @ManchettGroup : @ManchettSec – McKenzie Arnold Group T: 01376 350 999 M: 07701 048 69 E: joanna.white@mckenziearnold.com New Dawn Security and Training Unit 10 Dunley Hill Court, Ranmore Common, Effingham RH5 6SX T: 01306779436 E: Events@ndst.ltd W: www.ndst.ltd Newman Event Services Ltd Crowd Management, Festival & Event Security/Stewarding. Bloxham Mill, Barford Road, Bloxham, Oxfordshire, OX15 4FF T: 01295 722844 E: enquiries@newmanevents.co.uk W: www.newmanevents.co.uk
Sponsored by the Falcon Team
CONNECTIONS Right Guard Security Experts in Crowd Management and Event Security T: 01227 464588 E: info@rightguard.co.uk W: www.rightguard.co.uk Showsec Regent House, 16 West Walk, Leicester, LE1 7NA T: 0116 204 3333 E: sales@showsec.co.uk W: showsec.co.uk : @showsec.uk : @Showsec : @showsec Specialized Security T: 01506 249001 E: info@specializedsecurity.co.uk W: www.specializedsecurity.co.uk Trojan Security Unit B7 Loughton Seedbed Centre Langston Road, Loughton IG10 3TQ T: 0330 113 9966 E: info@trojansecurityuk.co.uk W: www.trojansecurityuk.co.uk : @trojan_security_UK : @trojan-security-uk-ltd : @TrojanLondon SET & SCENERY CONSTRUCTION Staged Events Ltd Meadow View, Newnham Lane, Old Basing, Hampshire, RG24 7AU T: 01256578055 E: info@stagedevents.com W: www.stagedevents.com SHOWERS Zoo Events Group Ltd Stockton Dairy, Stockton, Warminster, BA12 OSQ T: 01258 840233 E: info@zooeventsgroup.co.uk W: www.zooeventsgroup.co.uk SITE MANAGEMENT Special Projects, Site Management T: 01738 505 747 E: info@specialprojects-uk.com W: www.specialprojects-uk.com SOUND, LIGHTING, VISION, POWER AND SCENIC SPH Event Production LTD Unit 7, Upper Wensleydale Business Park, Brunt Acres Road, Hawes, DL8 3UZ T: 01535 442084 W: www.event-production.live
Sponsored by the Falcon Team
STAGING & RIGGING IPS (Impact Production Services) Second Avenue, Bletchley, Milton Keynes MK1 1ED T: 01908 657950 E: enquiries@ips.co.uk W: www.ips.co.uk Rigger.co.uk T: 0333 772 0120 E: contact@rigger.co.uk W: www.rigger.co.uk Serious Stages Ltd Tor Hill Works, Dulcote, Wells, Somerset, BA5 3NT T: 01749 899 188 E: info@stages.co.uk W: www.stages.co.uk The Stage Bus T: 0121 585 9264 E: info@thestagebus.com W: www.thestagebus.com SRG Structures Oldbury Lane, Bristol, BS35 1RE T: 0117 911 4034 E: info@srg-structures.com W: www.srg-structures.com Steeldeck Rentals Unit 58, T. Marchant Estate, 42 – 72 Verney Rd, London SE16 3DH T: 0207 833 2031 E: rentals@steeldeck.co.uk W: www.steeldeck.co.uk STAND DESIGN & BUILD Saward Marketing and Events T: 07788 660996 E: admin@saward-me.com W: saward-me.com TEMPORARY BRIDGES Mitchell Bridges Limited London Road, Kings Worthy, Winchester, Hampshire, SO23 7QN T: 01962 885040 M: 07768630373 E: chris@mitchellbridges.com W: www.mitchellbridges.com
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CONNECTIONS TEMPORARY ROADWAYS
Tentickle Stretch Tents UK Ltd Langley Brook Business Park, Unit 3B London Rd, Tamworth, B78 2BP T: 0121 7401385 M: 07826 843099 E: jorg@tentickle-stretchtents.co.uk W: www.tentickle-stretchtents.co.uk
Cap Trac Limited The Stables, Loke Farm, Weston Longville, Norwich, NR9 5LG T: 01603 880448 E: info@captrac.co.uk W: www.captrac.co.uk
Triton Projects Unit D, Islington Warehouse, Little Catterton Lane, Islington, Tadcaster, North Yorkshire LS24 8EA. T: 01937 229911 W: www.triton-projects.com
TEMPORARY STRUCTURES Creative Structures Creative House, Station Road, Theale RG7 4PD T: 0118 380 5590 W: www.creativestructuresgroup.com
TT Tents Ltd North Waltham Business Centre, Basingstoke, Hampshire, RG25 2DJ T: 01256 397 551 E: sales@tttents.co.uk W: www.tttents.co.uk
Fews Marquees Chessgrove Park, Ditchford Bank Road, Hanbury, Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, B60 4HS T: 01527 821789 E: info@fews.co.uk W: www.fewsmarquees.co.uk
WH Silverbacks Unit 26, Oakfield Road, Woolsbridge Industrial Park, Dorset BH21 6FE T: 01202 096957 E: info@whsilverbacks.co.uk W: whsilverbacks.co.uk
Innovative Hire Unit N, Lion Works Estate, 543 Wallisdown Road Bournemouth BH12 5AD T: 01202 941 068 W: innovativehire.co.uk Losberger De Boer Castle Park, Boundary Road, Brackley, Northamptonshire, NN13 7ES T: 01280 846500 E: sales.uk@losbergerdeboer.com W: www.losbergerdeboer.com/uk Media Structures : Imagine, Create, Deliver Green Lane Sawmills, Outwood, Surrey RH1 5QP T: 0203 781 7772 E: lance.baker@mediastructures.co.uk W: www.mediastructures.uk NEPTUNUS Ltd Cob Drive, Swan Valley, Northampton NN4 9BB T: 01604 593820 E: sales@neptunus.co.uk W: www.neptunus.co.uk RÖDER UK T: 01487 840840 E: sales@roderuk.com W: www.roderuk.com Technical Overlay by Visions Unit 2 Thames Valley Connect, Western Road, Bracknell, Berkshire RG12 1QP T: 01189 358121 E: info@visionsgroup.co.uk W: www.technicaloverlay.co.uk
88 n www.falconteam.co.uk
TRACKWAY TRACKWAY
Worldwide Structures Ltd Ayrshire Farm, Sharcott, Pewsey, SN9 5PA T: 01672 565 060 / 07875 027369 E: enquiries@w-sl.com W: www.worldwidestructures.com
All Weather Access Ltd County Farm, High Roding, Dunmow, Essex CM6 1NQ T: 01371 700510 M: 07801 751137 E: henry@all-weatheraccess.co.uk W: www.all-weatheraccess.co.uk TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT BUKO Traffic & Safety T: 0333 110 0020 E: sales@buko.co.uk : @bukotrafficandsafety : @buko-traffic-safety : @bukotrafficandsafety Carbonite Traffic Solutions T: 020 3567 1479 E: enquiries@carbonitetraffic.co.uk W: www.carbonitetraffic.co.uk CSP (The Combined Services Provider) Unit 1, Abloy House, Hatters Lane, Watford, WD18 8AJ T: 020 8900 2405 E: sales@gotocsp.com W: gotocsp.com
Sponsored by the Falcon Team
CONNECTIONS WATER & PLUMBING SERVICES
Event Traffic Control Ltd Baldersby Gardens, Ripon Road, Baldersby, Thirsk, North Yorkshire, YO7 4PS T: 08000 246 800 E: info@eventtc.com W: www.eventtc.com
MTD (UK & Ireland) Ltd Unit 1 Westerngate, Hillmead Enterprise Park, Langley Road, Swindon, SN5 5WN T: 01264 773 818 E: sales.uk@mtd.net W: www.mtd.net
Right Guard Traffic Management Event Traffic Management CSAS Accredited Traffic Officers Car Parking • Event Signage T: 01227 464588 E: info@rightguard.co.uk W: www.rightguard.co.uk
T.E.S.S Ltd T: 01332 850 860 E: info@tess-ltd.co.uk W: www.tess-ltd.co.uk Wicked Event Water Services Kevin: 07909 771996 E: info@wickedeventwaterservices.com W: www.wews.biz
Total Event Solutions Unit 12, Bredhurst Business Park, Westfield Sole Road, Maidstone, Kent, ME14 3EH T: 01634 826 999 W: www.totaleventsolutions.co.uk
TRACKWAY WASTE MANAGEMENT
WIFI, INTERNET & STREAMING
Falcon Cleaning Chipping Hall Farm, Chipping, Herts, SG9 0DP E: info@falconteam.co.uk W: www.falconteam.co.uk W3W: bless.loses.typed ODS Group T: 01865 252039 E: sales@odsgroup.co.uk W: www.odsgroup.co.uk The Nu Group T: 0208 594 0800 E: info@thenugroup.co.uk W: www.thenugroup.co.uk Top Mops Event Services 7 Bell Yard, London WC2A 2JR T: 0800 970 4035 E: info@topmops.net W: topmops.net
attend2IT Unit 6-8 Park Farm Industrial Estate, Buntingford T: 01763 877 477 W: attend2it.co.uk Fli-Fi Ltd UK Wide T: 020 3778 0454 E: enquiries@fli-fi.com W: www.fli-fi.com NVENTS T: 0330 043 5113 E: info@nvents.co W: nvents.co SimpliWifi Unit 13, Leominster Enterprise Park, Leominster, Herefordshire HR6 0LX T: 0800 298 9434 E: hello@simpliwifi.agency W: simpliwifi.agency
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PUT YOUR BUSINESS ON THE MAP. Sponsored by the Falcon Team
www.falconteam.co.uk n 89
NEXT ISSUE
Editor Caroline Clift caroline@standoutmagazine.co.uk
Featured in our next issue...
Advertising manager Jen Crisp jen@standoutmagazine.co.uk Account manager Sarah Bourne sarah@standoutmagazine.co.uk Commercial director Michael Amor michael@standoutmagazine.co.uk Marketing executive Katie Goldsmith marketing@standoutmagazine.co.uk Design and production Neil Hepden Jemma Heslop Emma Hickman Colin Swaffer standout@tandemmedia.co.uk
TAKE THE FLOOR
Ground protection and trackway specialists discuss best practice and new products designed to protect event and festival sites
Credit control Janine Walmsley creditcontrol@standoutmagazine.co.uk Managing director Neil Fagg neil@standoutmagazine.co.uk T: 01795 509101 CEO John Denning StandOut Multimedia Limited, 10 The Metford, Evegate Business Park, Smeeth, Ashford, Kent, TN25 6SX T: 01795 509113 www.standoutmagazine.co.uk
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
F&B revenue is vital to an event – often helping organisers to turn a profit. StandOut delves into the world of bars, catering, trader and concession management Image: © Elmar Gubisch
No part of this magazine may be reproduced or stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form – electronic, mechanical or physical – without express prior permission and written consent of the publisher. Contributions are invited and when not accepted will be returned only if accompanied by a fully stamped and addressed envelope. Manuscripts should be typewritten. No responsibility can be taken for drawings, photographs or literary contributions during transmission or in the editor’s hands. In the absence of an agreement the copyright of all contributions, literary, photographic or artistic, belongs to StandOut Multimedia Limited. The Publisher accepts no responsibility in respect of advertisements appearing in the magazine and the opinions expressed in editorial material or otherwise do not necessarily represent the views of the Publisher. The Publisher cannot accept liability for any loss arising from the late appearance or non publication of any advertisement. Information about products and services featured within the editorial content does not imply an endorsement by StandOut magazine. © 2026. StandOut Multimedia Limited, 10 The Metford, Evegate Business Park, Smeeth, Ashford, Kent, TN25 6SX
SAFE AND SECURE
Organisers are taking event security to a whole new level. StandOut talks to event professionals taking active steps to make events safer
90 n www.bradshawev.com
WORKING ON SOME OF THE WORLD’S MOST PRESTIGIOUS EVENTS WE ARE A CREWING COMPANY FOR THE CLIENTS AND FOR THE CREW. WE ENSURE THE BEST SERVICES FOR YOU.
• We have a diverse skillset including carpentry, audio visual and with each member having a positive, can do attitude. • We have forklift and IPAF operators
t: 07904 903 452 e: info@olympuscrew.co.uk www.olympuscrew.co.uk
Avenue G Stand 161 21ST & 22ND OCTOBER 2026
Next Year Starts Now!
We’re getting ready for the 2027 season… More equipment, stronger partnerships & the same great service. SECURE YOUR NEXT BOOKING WITH US AT THE SHOW!
01908 562191 / hire@aceplant.co.uk / www.aceplant.co.uk