Event Planning: Amusements, attractions, exhibitors and promotional displays

If you are planning to include amusement activities at your event, you should consider the following points:

• Appropriate siting of the activity within the venue
• Emergency access routes
• Crowd management issues
• Competence of the operator
• Health and Safety Requirements
• Power & lighting requirements

Ensure that any planned activities are included in the application made to Dover District Council.

If you are having other attractions/entertainment within your event, there is certain documentation you will need from them.  Such as:

• A description of what they will be doing/providing, equipment that they will bring, space they will need, other requirements such as power, water, barriers, stewards etc.
• A risk assessment.
• Copies of their public liability insurances to the value of £5m, this includes voluntary groups, charities, societies etc.
• Test certificates for equipment such as fairground rides, inflatable’s, temporary structures (staging), gas appliances, electrical equipment etc.
• If an attraction is of a technical nature, evidence that those operating the equipment are competent to do so.

Outside companies or organisations coming into your event, e.g. concessionaires, trade stands, fairground rides all come with standard documentation and they will consider it normal practice for you to ask for copies of these in advance of your event.  These documents will form part of your overall risk assessment.

If anyone wants to be part of your event without the proper paperwork or doesn’t provide it within a timescale that you set be prepared to say no.  Remember the responsibility for safety rests with you and if legal action occurs because of an accident at your event you will be liable.