Whether your event security is for a small gathering or a large festival, it’s important to ensure that everyone who attends the occasion is safe. This means screening your guests to make sure that they’re not bringing weapons or other prohibited items into the venue. It also means having security on the premises to monitor activity and look for suspicious behaviour.
1. Identify the Risks
Event security isn’t just about preventing physical attacks, but also protecting the personal data that attendees provide. You’ll want to review and adhere to GDPR and other data protection laws, which can help prevent hackers from stealing your guests’ information.
While you’re preparing for your next event, take the time to evaluate the risks that may affect your venue and attendees. It’s important to consider the hazards that you and your event team are likely to face, including human-related risks (including crowd control issues, violence), technological and environmental hazards, and legal and contractual issues.
For example, a music festival that’s held outdoors faces many potential threats from weather conditions. Hot, humid weather can make people dehydrated, while a storm could ruin equipment.
A safety checklist will help you assess your risks and think of reasonable solutions. You can use a scale of one to five, with five being a severe risk.
Once you’ve surveyed your event’s risk, create an emergency response plan. This will allow your staff to quickly evacuate the venue if any situations arise. It will also help you communicate with local authorities about possible threats that could affect your event.
In addition to creating an emergency response plan, you should also set up checkpoints and other measures that will discourage agitators from entering your event. This will give your security staff a chance to catch them and prevent any damage from occurring.
2. Develop a Primary Security Plan
If you’re planning an event, there are a number of security options that can help ensure the safety and peace of mind of your guests. Whether it’s a big corporate event or a family celebration, a primary security plan can make all the difference to the safety of attendees and staff.
The first step to developing a security plan for your event is to identify the risks and vulnerabilities that can impact your event. The next step is to determine the best mitigation strategies for those threats, vulnerabilities and hazards.
This will include a variety of security methods, from overt and covert trained personnel to temporary fencing and barricades. It also involves ensuring that your staff has proper training and that they understand the responsibilities that come with the job.
A professional security team can conduct a risk assessment of your event, which will provide you with a comprehensive list of potential threats to consider. The team can then recommend a strategy that’s personalised to your specific needs.
Event Security
It’s also important to take the time to evaluate the type of audience your event attracts and how it’s likely to be publicised. For example, a political rally may draw more attention than a family celebration, so your team should analyze the balance between publicity and security.
Moreover, it’s important to assess the location and accessibility of your event. This can be tricky, as different areas of your venue may have different safety risks. Having access control measures in place for vehicles, people and assets is essential for security. You’ll also want to establish a security credentials system for your event.
Finally, you’ll need to have a good understanding of the traffic flow at your event. This will help the security team direct traffic and ensure that everyone is safe.
Lastly, it’s vital to review your security plan after every event to see how it performed and to ensure that it can be improved for the next time. This can include a debrief with your team to discuss what worked and what didn’t work. This will help ensure that your events are even safer than they were last time around.
3. Prepare for Emergencies
If your event is open to the public, you need a plan for the emergencies that could arise. A well-developed emergency action plan can help reduce the risk of injury and loss of life.
A good emergency action plan will include detailed instructions on how to respond to a variety of hazards and events. These include fires, natural disasters, severe weather, injuries, and hazard-related situations.
It’s important to review your plans regularly, so you can be prepared for any unexpected incidents. Also, you should consider implementing emergency training for staff. An emergency action plan will also list all relevant personnel and their responsibilities. This can be a staff member, a guest or a volunteer. This person can call 911 and alert authorities about the situation.
During your preparation meetings, run through a variety of emergency scenarios with your team members. Ask them what they would do if someone had a heart attack or a fire broke out, for example.
The answers you get will give you an idea of your team’s level of emergency readiness. It will also allow you to identify areas of weakness that could lead to a more serious situation.
A thorough, thoughtful emergency action plan can be the difference between a good and a great event. Creating one will increase your staff’s confidence and reduce the potential for negative consequences.
4. Train Your Staff
One way you can reduce your event’s risk of an incident is to train your staff. This involves ensuring they’re screened, properly trained and motivated.
Ensure all of your staff (full-time, part-time and volunteer) have received proper training on the venue’s safety protocols. In addition to your in-house staff, you’ll want to make sure you’ve enlisted the help of professional security services.
This forces them to confront your security personnel or even the registration staff before they can cause any harm. This will discourage agitators from making trouble while they’re still outside the venue and allow your staff to focus on their responsibilities inside. It also makes it less likely for them to sneak in and cause damage when they’re inside the building.
