WINTER | TRENDING
Elephant technical production. She
says having an action plan in place,
and working with local stakeholders
is key.
“We Love Reigate, a residents’
group which operates where
my festival is based, are a great
organisation. In our first year, we
were presenting a product that no one
knows, so there’s inevitably caution.
But going into year two with great
feedback from visitors and a happy
council is a relief. We also worked
with the Greenspaces team, who look
after the parks.
“We had a lot of objections on our
first premises license, but we got
through the hearing, and got the
restriction lifted. I worked with the
residents’ association, and assured
them the event was friendly for
children, parents, grandparents
and that there would be an eclectic
audience, as well as eclectic beverage
options, with a champagne bar and
a cocktail bar, and we try to keep the
price reasonable.
“Noise, particularly the bass, was
the concern. We have decibel limits in
place , so we employed a company to
take readings, and we stayed within
those limits. Parking restrictions
were also put in place and local
residents came, enjoyed it, and saw
the benefits. The event allowed people
to see other things in Reigate, so it
boosted businesses.
“Priory Park is Reigate’s jewel in the
crown, so damage to the grass was a
28
worry, but the ground is sandy and
drains well. We were also careful of
not moving vehicles if it was raining.
Reigate were proactive but the park
doesn’t have its own premises license.
A few events had tried to start but not
taken off. You’ve really got to show
people you have something to offer,
which takes investment in production
and make something worthy of the
town.
Hasler’s good reputation also
helped in year one: “The council
contacted me to do the event after
seeing me do an event successfully
in another town, the police knew our
head of security and had seen my
other event, so the licensing people
were supportive.”
Things can get far more
complicated, however, and Morgan
says it can be hugely frustrating
when councils don’t communicate
internally. “We have spent hours with
council commercial teams who are
really keen to host one of our shows,
however they haven’t engaged with
the hierarchy and when it is finally
presented for approval to the Head of
council or other councillors they turn
down applications simply because
there was no prior engagement from
their officers and are ambushed with
an application without any prior
knowledge.
“There is also huge disparity
between councils who are used to
hosting events and those that are
less experienced. Whilst you would
Pictured above: Beer
Bop A Lua
think they would draw upon those
councils with the experience they
often don’t, and therefore a lot of
work has to be done to try and make
them understand the benefits of
events and the realism of what they
are undertaking. They often present
unrealistic requests initially which
are simply not practicable.”
There are also problems with
understanding the overall impact of
an event. Morgan says: “In terms of
economic impact to the area, councils
might simply focus on the show day
and the spend generated externally
to the festival site. However, we can
have up to 400-500 support staff
on a show including suppliers, who
all spend in the local area and need
accommodation through the build
and break period. Sometimes we are
on site for 3-4 weeks so the economic
impact needs to be considered.”
Some authorities are being
proactive in supporting events, and
embracing the benefits, while others
would benefit from a wider outlook.