StandOut Magazine January 2025

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API integration with ticketing platforms

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Virtual hangers

Complement existing stewards’ role

On the day payments

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Full Reporting

Improved ESG

Always the right choice

IJANUARY

2025

’m not sure what the collective noun for a group of event controllers is, but I am sure there’s a suitable word to describe such methodical and calm brains and potentially a joke or two. This month has been an interesting one, as I have talked with so many event professionals to learn all there is about running a good event control room (ECR). From killer incident management software to a room layout that’s conducive to dynamic comms and more.

To quote some of those we have interviewed this month, watching a rockstar event controller is akin to watching a conductor lead an orchestra. It’s magical and harmonious even in the most tense situations. If you turn to page 29, you can read all about ECRs in our dedicated feature that takes an in-depth look at command and control best practices – including pay, radio etiquette and the relevance of social media – which I believe will be a hot topic in 2025.

With the impending introduction of Martyn’s Law, a new legal precedent being set in court which will impact how the police are willing to deal with protestors at events, and SAG guidance being reviewed, I believe that safety will be high on the agenda over the next 12 months. And rightly so because we all want fabulous events to be safe regardless of whether we are organising them, supplying services to them or attending them as a customer.

I spent so much of 2024 in a field in a high viz and steelies that I could not help but witness first-hand the safety processes and methodical planning that go into world-class events and festivals. What’s interesting is that every organiser has their own way of doing something and it’s these insights that I hope to share even more of as 2025 gets underway.

Frankly, I can’t believe another year has passed and that we are all now firmly focused on a new event season. I hope that we can move forward and things begin to settle down. Whilst a myriad of events have been cancelled, more and more are launching, which makes me smile. As StandOut prepares to celebrate its 20th anniversary, to see new events continuously emerging signifies that regardless of what has been before, new shoots will always appear.

Happy reading,

Caroline

Cover image: Farnborough International Exhibition and Conference Centre

Check out the latest event tenders and news of contract wins

12 CHAMPIONING THE INDUSTRY

Find out which event professionals have been revealed as the new StandOut magazine ambassadors

14 CUMBRIA CALLING

As Kendal Calling prepares to celebrate its 20th anniversary, Ben Robinson and Andy Smith, the festival’s co-founders, talk about what role trust and ambition have played in ticket sales and their journey

17 JOY DIVISION

StandOut explores a growing winter events market and chats with organisers about event planning, event delivery and lessons learned

25 ALL RISE

Rebellion Live’s James Kenny discusses Monmouth Rising, a new 45,000-capacity festival heading to Monmouthshire

27 ETHOS = ENERGY

When everyone’s tired, but you still need your team to dig deep, how do you keep staff and crew motivated on-site?

29 IN CONTROL

Great event controllers are programmed to remain calm in the most tense situations, but how can organisers and operations teams help? Event controllers share best practice and their recipe for the perfect event control room

40 TIME TO GROW

Jack Willis on his first steps into the freelancing world and why saying “yes” to every opportunity is not necessarily the right thing to do

43 THROWING THE PERFECT BASHO

For the first time in more than three decades, sumo is returning to the UK and the Royal Albert Hall

50 AMAZING SPACES

A surge of new event venues will open in 2025. StandOut takes a look at the market and what established event venues are doing to appeal to new audiences

54 THE MAKING OF A MARKET TOWN VENUE

Melton Mowbray Town Estate’s Dean Rees on how he plans to use events to change the image of a Leicestershire market town famous for cheese… pies!

14 CUMBRIA CALLING

50 AMAZING SPACES

43 THROWING THE PERFECT BASHO

17 JOY DIVISION

29 IN CONTROL

CONTRIBUTORS: This month’s

MATHIEU GRAINGER

Mathieu combines creative vision, technical expertise, leadership, and project management skills into a powerful force. As a producer at Moment Factory, he orchestrates a team of contributors to elevate each project to its fullest potential. His talent for inspiring teams to innovate and push boundaries has led him to create extraordinary experiences, including Childish Gambino’s This Is America tour and the first experience of the Light Cycles series in Adelaide, Australia. In this January edition, Mathieu discusses the UK debut of Light Cycles and how immersive storytelling is being used in this new trail.

SOPHIE PHILLIP

Sophie has been in the events industry since 2014, working her way up through a huge variety of roles as a freelancer within the greenfield festival scene and sports sector. She has come to specialise in control rooms, managing some of the biggest event controls around, from shows well known to us like Boomtown and Boardmasters to further afield giants like Soundstorm’s MDLBeast and Diriyah Season. An avid lover of the freelance lifestyle, Sophie is based in the French Alps where she plans events remotely over winter and then travels internationally in the summer to deliver them. Taking a break from snowboarding, in this issue, Sophie discusses event control room best practices and the importance of real-life conversations.

MATTHEW TODD

Matthew has worked in music management for more than 25 years in a wide variety of roles and genres, including as producer, promoter, agent and now at one of the world’s leading venues. As director of programming at the Royal Albert Hall, Matthew oversees the hall’s hires, has responsibility for the hall’s engagement programme, and is a member of the executive team. Matthew oversees the production and technical department and the tours team. This is why he is best placed to talk with StandOut this month about all things sumo wrestling. Sumo will return to the iconic venue in October 2025 for the first time since 1991.

Wallace and Gromit have decorated London’s Battersea Power Station, home to Apple’s UK headquarters. From 5pm until 10:30pm, until New Year’s Eve, a pair of Christmas trees will light up two towers on the landmark’s river-facing façade. Visitors will see the two characters decorate the giant trees in their own inimitable styles. Aardman, the animation studio and creator of Wallace and Gromit, used iPhone 16 Pro Max to create a short animation to transform the chimneys. iPhone 16 Pro Max was mounted on motorised heads on set to capture two angles of the Christmas trees, shooting a total of 6,000 frames. Eight iPhone 16 Pro Max devices used the 5x Telephoto camera to shoot super-high-resolution images in ProRAW, which were then assembled frame by frame to produce a 6K video.

LINKEDIN POST OF THE MONTH

NEWS IN BRIEF

Mark

Norman,

events educator and safety consultant

Back in my 20s, I used to dread planning events. Overwhelmed before I even started. Sound familiar? Here’s what changed everything:

1. Brain dump. Everything. No filter.

2. Categorise tasks: Must-do, nice-to-have, can delegate.

3. Time-block in the calendar – 20-minute focused sessions (still do this)

Result? Productivity in my first week. Stress levels? Halved. The secret? Start messy. Organise later. Don’t aim for perfection. Aim for progress. What’s your go-to productivity hack for event planning?

#EventPlanning #ProductivityHacks

#GetStarted

The Green Events and Innovations Conference takes place on February 17

Leeds Beckett University has produced a careers guide to help encourage young people into the outdoor events industry thanks to a Purple Guide grant.

A report on guidance to help plan, integrate and deliver events that meet the needs of children and teenagers has been published by Oxford Brookes University.

HM Treasury has published a consultation that outlines proposals for digitalising business rates.

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Image: ©Apple/Aardman

HPower Group has appointed James Shaw LVO as chief executive officer.

Jay Hunt has been appointed chair of Hay Festival Global for a term of three years.

Adam Henry is now senior festivals and events officer at The City of Edinburgh Council.

Experience12 has appointed Nick Swift as client services director.

Jen Mitchell has joined The NEC Group as managing director for arenas.

Ben Wray is the new head of events at E1 Series.

Kate Barnes is now deputy event manager at U-Live

Pitch and win

Looking for new business?

Discover the latest event tenders, details of prior information notices, and news of contract wins

Mar-Key Group has been awarded a three-year contract to supply temporary structures to Ascot Racecourse, including its flagship event Royal Ascot.

Hay Festival Foundation is inviting suppliers to submit an expression of interest to supply IT and associated networking for the festival on a three-year contract. The deadline is January 6. Email nia@hayfestival.org

Showsec has been awarded a contract to provide crowd management services to Aberdeen City Council’s P&J Live.

Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has issued a prior information notice as it is looking for event development and management support for Great West Fest, a circus-themed family festival fun day. Email naveen.pitchumani@nhs.net for more details.

Weymouth Town Council and Portland Town Council seek project management services for Towns of Culture – a programme of cultural and community events. The deadline is 12pm on January 6. Email janebiscombe@weymouthtowncouncil.gov.uk

Technegol has won a contract to build stands for the Welsh Language Commissioner at both Urdd and National Eisteddfod.

London Stadium is looking to create a framework for stewards for events. This tender is divided into lots: Crowd safety services, hospitality, stewarding dog teams and traffic management. The closing date for this tender is 12am on March 31. Email procurement@londonstadium185.com

Belfast City Council wishes to find a sponsorship specialist. The deadline is January 15. Email cps@belfastcity.gov.uk

HAY FESTIVAL

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Championing the industry

StandOut reveals the experienced event professionals who are set to act as an editorial soundboard, shape future magazine content and champion the events industry

tandOut has recruited the expertise of several experienced event professionals who will act as magazine ambassadors and help shape future content and editorial strategy.

Betsan Moses, chief executive officer at National Eisteddfod, Suzanne Johnson, senior site manager at LS Events, Frankie Tee, director of EnTEEtainment, Danny Greene, events production manager at Coventry City Council, and Faye Rockley, director, global corporate health and safety at IMG Endeavor, are the first StandOut magazine ambassadors to be revealed with more to be announced soon.

As leading event professionals in the industry, they will support Caroline Clift, editor of StandOut magazine, to shape future content, ensuring the industry title remains relevant and relatable and a true resource for everyone working in live events and festivals.

Johnson explained: “I was absolutely delighted to be invited to be a magazine ambassador by Caroline. I’m passionate about celebrating the creativity, innovation, and dedication that define our industry. With years of hands-on experience in festival organisation and managing highprofile events, I understand the challenges and triumphs professionals face. This role offers a platform to connect with like-

minded individuals, share insights, and inspire others by showcasing the incredible work happening behind the scenes. I’m eager to contribute to the magazine’s vision by amplifying voices, sharing trends, and fostering a community that thrives on collaboration and excellence.”

Together, the StandOut magazine ambassadors will openly and confidentially share their knowledge and learnings and actively contribute to conversations on a range of topics that can have a significant impact for anyone working on an busy event or festival site.

Greene said: “StandOut magazine has been a great resource for many years, covering many topics that affect us all. It’s well written with a no-nonsense approach, and it’s not afraid to get its hands dirty and be out in any weather! Sometimes, the articles are a great source of information about new products, trends and practices. At other times, it’s reassuring to know other event organisers are facing many of the same challenges and coming up with similar responses that we are. I am pleased to be a StandOut ambassador, to bring my perspective to the group. There’s so much to be gained from sharing knowledge and good practice, and I can bring to the table the local authority perspective – why we love working with great event organisers,

why different local authorities’ approaches to events don’t always seem the same from one area to another and how councilorganised events often offer something truly unique.”

StandOut magazine’s team of ambassadors represent a breadth of events – small and large, music, culture, and everything in between. The group held its first meeting at Event Buyers Live in November. It will meet and communicate regularly, ensuring key information is shared, feedback is provided and trends are identified.

Clift commented: “I am so chuffed to reveal such an amazing bunch of people as StandOut magazine ambassadors. What better soundboard could StandOut have than Betsan, Frankie, Danny, Suzanne and Faye. Together, they represent the great minds within our sector, the many different roles and responsibilities that are carried out, and the scope and scale of our worldclass industry.

“Quite frankly, I can’t wait to pick their brains about the realities of life on-site: What are the issues impacting them and their peers and what stories do they and others want to read about? I am certain that they will do a fantastic job speaking on behalf of other #Eventprofs and suggesting ideas that will truly resonate with others.”

SUZANNE JOHNSON (she/her) AND DANNY GREENE (he/him)

FAYE ROCKLEY (she/her)

KENDAL CALLING

Images: George Harrison/Abbie Jennings/Nat Argent/Jess Huxham

Cumbria Calling

As Kendal Calling prepares to celebrate its 20th anniversary, Ben Robinson and Andy Smith, the festival’s co-founders, talk about what role trust and ambition have played in ticket sales and their journey

ust three weeks after revealing its line-up, Kendal Calling announced it had sold out. The 2025 edition of the 40,000-capacity festival has become the fastest-selling year in Kendal Calling history, cementing its status as one of the most indemand festivals in the UK.

Ben Robinson and Andy Smith, co-founders of Kendal Calling, are unassuming when we settle to chat about the four-day music festival. Moreso, it’s 20th anniversary, which it will mark in 2025 when The Prodigy, Courteeners, Fatboy Slim and Kaiser Chiefs headline the main stage at Lowther Deer Park.

“I was thinking earlier this morning that I actually do remember going into the local record store in Kendal and buying a single by this unknown artist that everyone was talking about,” Robinson says. “It was I Predict A Riot by the Kaiser Chiefs, and the energy on that record was insane. The spirit of those times was built around live bands, I think, in a way that maybe isn’t in terms of the charts anymore. But back then, there was a lot going on over in Leeds, a lot going on in Sheffield, and it felt like there was a live scene going on in every town.”

TRUST

Twenty years ago, both Robinson and Smith were trying to push gigs, blown away when they booked a band that had supported

The Libertines. Wouldn’t it be great if they booked a band whose songs they had listened to on the radio? And wouldn’t it be great if they could develop a scene that provided huge opportunities for local artists? To do that, they had to get a bigger stage, and the only way to get a bigger stage was to build their own venue.

“One step led to another,” explains Smith. “If you’re going to build a stage that looks like a festival, you might as well give it a name. And if it’s a festival that you’ve created, you’ve got to come back next year. One small step at a time, and suddenly we had Kendal Calling.”

From humble beginnings, Kendal Calling started as a small, 900-capacity gathering at Abbot Hall Park in Kendal. Marking its first foray into the wonderful world of festivals, Smith and Robinson managed to nab festival giants Pendulum and Kendal’s own British Sea Power for the first-ever line-up. Kendal Calling has since snowballed, transforming its Lake District home into a feast for the senses. In 2007, the festival moved to Grate Farm before settling into its home of Lowther Deer Park in 2009.

But what makes a great festival? It’s a great question that organisers often ask of their audiences. Who do customers want to see on stage, what do loyal festivalgoers want to experience, and what price are they willing

to pay? To some, a great festival is all about the music, but to returning customers, it’s more than that.

“A great audience, a great line-up and a great location,” comments Smith. “People know what they’re getting. You know there’s a reason why Kendal Calling has sold out every year for the last 20: it’s because it’s gradually grown. It’s kept the audience coming back because it’s consistently great fun. They trust the line-up, which is why it sells three-quarters of tickets before we announce a band. There’s a lot of trust there. That’s what it comes down to.”

For Robinson, passion, authenticity and an ability to relate play a big part in the festival’s success. He adds: “As the festival organisers, we’re still absolutely passionate about creating a festival that we would want to go to ourselves. Every time a decision is run through, it’s not just run as a commercial decision, we always ask what do we think our friends and family would think of this. What would my Auntie make of that? What’s she going to say about the price of that wine? You know, it’s kind of running it from that perspective.”

FESTIVAL APPEAL

According to Smith, Kendal Calling works because it appeals to everyone. Whilst most festivals that sell out have a niche, Kendal

breaks the mould because if you want to have a festival that works, especially when people travel far to attend, you’ve got to have something that appeals to everybody in the village.

“When we started, it was just a case of here are some bands on the stage,” Smith adds. “It was all about the music, and as we’ve grown up and become more cultured, we’ve just seen more things in life, seen more things that we enjoy. So now immersive is important, and decor and making the site look wonderful and making sure there’s a surprise around every corner. That’s something that we previously didn’t know that we wanted because we hadn’t experienced it.”

ONE YEAR AT A TIME

Little by little, the festival has grown. Smith likes to take things one year at a time. Well, he certainly did in the early days, and now the focus is on incremental gains, which Robinson and Smith believe can be achieved because they have finally got the right team in place.

“The biggest lesson we have learned in the last 20 years is around employing people,” Smith explains. “We noticed a big difference when we brought in professionals [like Engine No 4 and Artist Operations] to manage all the different aspects of the festival.”

Robinson concurs. He believes life got simpler when the right people were

working in the right departments. For example, artist liaison was great for a while; then it became “stressful”, and then Robinson found somebody “who’s brilliant” to take on and own the role.

“There was a couple of years where we talked about artist liaison at every meeting, and now we don’t even talk about it,” says Robinson. “Now things just happen because we know we’ve got the right team.”

WILD AND SURPRISED

Smith says that there’s still much to do behind the scenes to make sure the festival’s 20th-anniversary celebration is more than anyone could imagine. For example, Team Kendal Calling is looking at a final spectacle that will bring people together: a festival finale that will be completely new to the KC audience and blow them away.

This excites Smith, who is keen to bring arts and spectacles to Cumbria – an installation or stand-out moment that people don’t even know they want because they haven’t seen it yet. Luckily, Smith and the Kendal Calling team have a good handle on what people enjoy, and that’s because it’s the same things that they enjoy, too. Being wild and surprised.

Smith concludes: “It occurred to me quite a number of years ago that it’s fascinating that you buy the ticket because of the headliner or one of the big acts. Yet, if you were to ask a customer after the show what their favourite moment was, it’s generally something that was never on their radar.

“I’ve always said it’s the people who make the festival and the Kendal Calling community is truly something special, the very heart of what makes it all so magical. For nearly two decades, these four days have been the beating heart of summer, filled with joy, wonder, and celebration. Selling out before the year’s even up is astonishing, but there’s still so much to do to make sure this 20th-anniversary celebration is everything you could dream of and more.”

SOLAR-POWERED MOBILE STAGES

Joy division

StandOut explores a growing winter events market and chats with organisers about event planning, event delivery and lessons learned

In November, Moment Factory – in collaboration with Fever – welcomed the first visitors to Light Cycles, a curated trail of light, music and digital art set in deepest, darkest Warwickshire.

Following successful outings in Japan, Italy, and the USA, the immersive winter event debuted in the UK and is currently inviting visitors to take a night walk, immersing themselves in five art installations comprised of cutting-edge projection mapping, vibrant lighting effects, and original musical scores. Inspired by nature, the curated trail, stretching approximately 1-1.5 kilometres, explores the hidden communication of trees, the rhythms of plant life, and the hues of a sunset, using technology to connect with nature on an entirely different level – until it closes its doors on February 16.

“We’re trying to create an atmosphere where guests can spend time connecting with the environment and connecting with themselves,” explains Mathieu Grainger, producer at Moment Factory. “We’re not bombarding guests the whole time with a soundtrack. Yes, the audio is big and immersive, but between each zone, we want guests to step out, talk about what they’ve experienced and maybe just stay in silence. Light Cycles offers them a place to have that space and time to do that.”

DEVELOPING A CONNECTION

According to Grainger, Light Cycles encourages people to interact with nature at night; the premise of Light Cycles is not about a character but more of a story that enables the subject to fall in love with the great outdoors.

A story, a “language”, and a connection that Grainger and his colleagues have perfected thanks to a shared appreciation for developing shows outside of big black theatrical boxes and the synchronisation of technological tools.

“It’s not just about entertainment,” Grainger continues. “We’re taking guests along a journey, along an experience. We’re celebrating nature and how nature communicates and creating a space where we’re not forcing a narrative on anyone. We’re doing it with as much respect for the environment as possible, to offer the guests time to reconnect with nature, with themselves and with the groups they’ve come with.”

CONTEMPORARY APPROACH

In terms of location, Fever suggested to Moment Factory the idea of Birmingham.

HELMINGHAM HALL GARDENS

Images: © Culture Creative/ Geraint Lewis/Moment Factory

Whilst the area is by no means small, the huge population that sits within the “smaller” and less “noisy” markets [not London] appealed to Grainger and his team.

“The idea is we are going to sit in Birmingham for two, three, four or five years, for as long as Birmingham will have us,” says Grainger, who explains that Moment Factory has spent months working with local stakeholders to ensure the puzzle that “is contemporary in its approach” has been put together without disturbing the environment or the community.

“We work in different markets, and so do our technical teams, so one of the first questions we had to ask ourselves was how do we deliver this [Light Cycles] here, in the UK,” Grainger continues. “How will our technology work in this environment, whether it be the sound levels or light levels? I wouldn’t say it’s been a learning curve because we travel the world delivering events, but sound is by far the thing that

envelops you the most because it gets everywhere. You can feel it. You can hear it. We want people to be able to talk about it between zones. We want it to feel like it’s your show or like that big moment of a film where the soundtrack takes off, and you’re just running through the field. That’s what we’re trying to achieve. That comes through volume and well-balanced sound pressure, so we have had to think about creating something special in a protected environment and focus the speakers.”

AFFORDABILITY

Moment Factory is supported on-site by A&G Security and Events, Event Safety Plan, Insert Productions and Show Works. Together, they have developed event management, operational and safety plans that will allow a maximum of 800 people per hour to enjoy the trail comfortably and safely.

On a smaller scale, at White Post Farm, a Nottinghamshire-based wildlife park and

farm, up to 400 people an hour can walk through Light Post Farm, a new one-kilometre trail from the teams behind the family-friendly attraction and Gloworm Festival.

Richard Walpole, director of Gloworm Festival, talks about the new event. He says:

“This is the first trial that we’ve done as a business. It’s an odd one because the market feels a little bit saturated, but I think what was missing in the market was affordability. These trails, fantastic as they are, have become slightly less accessible to families because of the costs involved.

“The whole idea behind Light Post Farm was to build and design a light trail that was affordable, somewhere that was accessible, to give families affordable things to do during the winter period.”

COSTS

Gloworm and White Post Farm have a longstanding relationship; the farm has provided the three-day family-friendly festival with a

CHRISTMAS AT WESTONBIRT

petting farm experience since 2016, so the light trail was a natural extension of their partnership. “I’ll admit, we did have a look at a few venues in Nottingham and Derby,” Walpole continues. “But the problem that we had with the other venues was cost. When you look at heritage sites, there are some fantastic venues, but it becomes slightly more problematic when you need to bring in things like more fencing and generators.

“White Post Farm has a huge amount of existing infrastructure, so we could build the trail around that and the existing walks that would take place around the farm. And, in addition to the light trail, customers can enjoy those animal encounters that they would do ordinarily.”

IT’S NOT EASY

Light Post Farm has been in the planning for nine months, and family tickets [two adults and two children] are priced at £49.50, inclusive of booking fees.

Despite running a festival aimed at families and children up to the age of 12, Walpole laughs when he says that organising a light trail is “not easy”.

“I’ve always been hesitant about doing winter events because of the weather,” Walpole adds. “I mean, we struggled for good weather in the summer, let alone the winter. We had to cancel our first Saturday because of Storm Bert, but we managed to support those customers effected by getting alternative dates. So yeah, light trails are more complex than I’ve ever given them credit for.”

POSITIVE STEP

Walpole is already looking ahead to winter 2025. Despite only having a one-year arrangement in place, he is confident that he will produce another light trail with White Post Farm, but he is also conscious of being complacent.

“This year, it was very much a proof of concept piece to see if it would work and

to see if there was an appetite from the customers to do it. And yeah, I certainly think it’s worked. It’s definitely been a popular move for us, but then our marketing for it has been massively different to what we would ordinarily do. We’ve done a little bit of online, but it’s been predominantly offline marketing that’s worked. We’ve had stands at Christmas markets with lots of banners, we’ve had informal conversations with people, telling them about it, we’ve tracked everything through a QR code, and sales have gone through the roof.

“That’s going to form a lot of our strategy for most projects over the next year because platforms like Facebook are so saturated.”

Walpole continues: “If you had asked me two years ago if I would do a Christmas event, I’d have probably said no, just because I have always had massive anxiety around the marketing side of Christmas events. I think there’s always an appetite for Christmas, but when you use words like immersive and

wonderland, I think the expectation – once that terminology enters the marketing –almost becomes unrealistic.

“On the flip side of things, a concept like this – that runs for longer than one weekend – becomes less risky. Yes, we have had to cancel one of the days so far, which was really unfortunate, but as it was so early into the campaign, we’ve been able to redistribute those customers over to other available days, whereas if it was Gloworm, that would be it,” Walpole adds. “I think the only battle that we’re going to have moving forward is the saturation of the market, but I certainly think that launching Light Post Farm was a positive move for us as a business.”

NEW MOVES

Storm Bert and Storm Darragh have impacted several winter events, including Proud Events’ Christmas in Chelsea, Seventa Events’ Christmas in Cambridge, From the Fields’ Northern Lights Leeds and the Illuminated Garden Trail at Helmingham Hall Gardens, which saw Gofer work with the estate to increase the number of installations to keep the trail fresh and guests’ returning.

Likewise, this year’s light trail in Windsor Great Park was hit by stormy weather, which is why the organising team worked hard to engineer equipment that would withstand windy and rainy conditions. But also, the team identified opportunities to enhance the guest journey, including expanding the trail to 16 zones and strategically placing F&B outlets at the halfway point.

Rob Paul, design director at LCI Productions, which helps IMG to design and deliver Windsor Great Park Illuminated, explains: “The unique landscape of Windsor Great Park presented a unique challenge, requiring us to adapt our designs to the specific characteristics of each location. Each zone is strategically placed within the natural landscape, guiding guests through the park and highlighting its unique features. To enhance the visitor experience, we’ve incorporated motion-activated lighting sequences and dynamic features that last for three minutes. This timing is designed to encourage continuous movement through the trail, preventing bottlenecks and ensuring a smooth flow for all visitors.”

According to Paul, each of the 2.2-kilometre trail’s distinct zones is complemented by a bespoke audio score that is programmed to engage visitors and encourage them to discover more.

But maintaining a large outdoor attraction during the harsh winter months requires significant effort, a point that Zoe Bottrell, managing director at Culture Creative, knows only too well.

For more than a decade, Bottrell and her expanding team have been producing and delivering the Christmas at [Blenheim, Kew Gardens, Dunham Massey etc] light trail series that continues to grow today.

“We [Culture Creative and RG Live] work with Forestry England and the National Trust, and we’re having constant conversations

LIGHT POST FARM

THE GREAT SKATE

LIGHT CYCLES

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about what opportunities and potential there is for trails across various parts of the country,” Bottrell tells StandOut. “This year, Westonbirt – run by Forestry England – was a new site for us. It had an existing product, so we worked with the landscape, brought in some more installations and made the trail a bit more dynamic than it has been in the past. Now, that’s no detriment to what’s been done before; it’s just different, and we have tried to move it on a step.”

MEETING THE OBJECTIVE

RG Live also made changes to Christmas at Blenheim Palace, one of the organiser’s long-running light trail sites. For 2024, Culture Creative and RG Live worked with Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH) to bring Neverland [GOSH owns the IP] to life inside the palace. Plus, Culture Creative, RG Live and Blenheim Palace worked collaboratively to develop “the product’ which saw the addition of new features, including a Ferris wheel and ice rink [The Great Skate] thanks to Arena.

“We wanted to create almost that onestop-shop family experience for Christmas, where you don’t have to go somewhere else to go ice skating or somewhere else for a Christmas market,” Bottrell explains. “The premise is about how we can build that whole daytime visit and increase dwell time. You need sufficient activities – things like ice skating, shopping, high tea and a tour of the palace – to be able to turn up in the morning or lunchtime and not sit around, twiddling your thumbs, until you go on a trail later. How could we do that?

“We have the space at Blenheim, but not filling that central courtyard is equally problematic – from a creative perspective –because it’s a big void if you don’t put things in it. We had to think about how we could present the venue, and guests could feel that buzz constantly.

“By adding the ice rink and the Ferris wheel, you encourage people to travel a little further because they know they can spend the day here,” Bottrell adds. “It’s one of Blenheim’s objectives. How does the palace sit within the local economy? So, if we can drive a product, which means that for those people that come from further away, they may be staying overnight, they’re going and doing something else, that’s part of the puzzle, and there is a wider benefit.”

BALANCING ACT

So far, public reaction to The Great Skate has been positive, but the addition of the ice rink has been a careful balancing act between filling the palace courtyard and not losing the magic of the World Heritage Site.

Bottrell and her team have been working at Blenheim since 2016. But she is honest in her appraisal when she says she continues to learn more about the estate. She says: “I’d never say we’ve got it nailed because that’s one true fire way of it coming back and biting you on the arse. We’ve often looked at whether we need to change the trail route to make it fresh, but as big as the site is, there are not actually that many footpaths.”

Over the next couple of years, Blenheim Palace will undergo some construction and

restoration work, which will have an impact on the building’s physical appearance. Currently, no one knows exactly what this will be or how it will impact the Christmas event, but Bottrell and her team just know that they will have to shift with the sands.

NEXT GENERATION

“Currently, there are lots of conversations going on,” Bottrell comments. “Some of them will come off. Some of them will go into another year. Some of them won’t happen. But we’re in a really fortunate position, and we think 2025 is going to be another, dare I say, step change for us.

“We will continue to develop Christmas. For example, we’re in conversation with Sony Technology, and there are several projects which we’re looking at. We want to begin to understand how we can use tech more. We’ve got a generation of children where that instant gratification of video is their life, and that’s what they perceive as normal. So how can we take some of that energy and maybe blend it a bit with what we do in the palace? How can we take that intricacy of 3D and interlace the wonderment of 2D in technology? We’ve got a plan, and there are lots of opportunities, but I can’t talk about it too much right now.”

Bottrell concludes: “Halloween has been really successful, and therefore, that is the product that we will look to develop most. I’m not saying Christmas is done. It’s definitely not, but we all know that the market is fairly well saturated, and I think the Christmas market is beginning to find its level.”

CHRISTMAS AT WESTONBIRT

• We can cater for any job, big or small, o ering a high level of service at a ordable

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BRADSHAW EVENT VEHICLES

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The team behind the ice rinks

Nick Morley, national operations manager - HVAC and temperature control, explains how Sunbelt Rentals supports operations across multiple winter events, including ice rinks

s temperatures drop, festive ice rinks pop up across iconic locations, offering winter magic to thousands. At Sunbelt Rentals, we pride ourselves on being the team behind the team – ensuring every winter event operates seamlessly, no matter the challenge.

EXPERTISE AT THE CORE

Managing ice rinks demands a unique combination of technical precision and on-site expertise. For example, professional skaters often prefer harder, faster ice for performance, while recreational skaters benefit from a softer surface offering greater grip. Striking this balance requires a deep understanding of ice dynamics and temperature control.

To support this, we employ a complete telemetry system allowing 24/7 monitoring and remote adjustment of all deployed equipment. These systems track operational conditions in real time, alerting us to anomalies and enabling swift responses – often before the customer is even aware of an issue.

For instance, during a recent event, telemetry detected a fault with our client’s native, on-site power supply. Thanks to the telemetry technology, coupled with our experienced engineering team, we resolved the issue remotely, ensuring uninterrupted skating.

INNOVATION MEETS SUSTAINABILITY

This year, we’ve introduced a more sustainable heat transfer fluid, replacing traditional propylene glycol. Historically, propylene offered an environmentally friendly option. However, it was compromised by less than favourable heat transfer performance. The fluid now used is safer and less impactful. Paired with our modern chillers and pumps, we deliver efficiency and reduce our customer’s environmental footprint.

TAILORED SOLUTIONS

Each location we work on presents unique challenges. For instance, in delivering for royal sites, our team worked carefully to install equipment without impacting historical grounds, while at rinks located in busy shopping centres, we navigated tight city-centre logistics. For each rink, we design bespoke solutions.

Training plays a critical role, too. When commissioning a rink, we provide handovers and checklists for on-site teams, empowering them to manage daily operations and spot potential issues. This collaborative approach ensures consistent performance throughout the busy festive period.

EQUIPPED FOR SUCCESS

Our teams understand the stakes of winter events, from creating magical experiences for skaters to meeting the demands of organisers. Whether it’s a last-minute emergency hire or routine maintenance, we are committed to delivering solutions that allow the show to go on.

This season, as skaters take to the ice at some of the UK’s most iconic venues, they do so with the confidence that Sunbelt Rentals is behind the scenes, ensuring flawless performance every step of the way.

Wicked Event Water Services provides quality assured water solutions.

Satisfied long-term clients include Glastonbury festival, Victorious Festival, The BBC, ITV and Netflix.

During the pandemic we were involved in two nightingale hospitals and a temporary mortuary in London.

29th-31st August 2025

Monmouth Showground, Monmouth

All rise

A new 45,000-capacity festival is heading to Monmouthshire next August. James Kenny, director of Rebellion Live, the festival’s promoter, talks about Monmouth, music, and his… mum!

Two weeks ago, I was sitting at Freddie Mercury’s piano at Rockfield Studios,” says James Kenny, director of Live Action Events and Rebellion Live. “Rockfield Studios is where Oasis recorded their first album, and Queen wrote Bohemian Rhapsody. It has this incredibly rich musical heritage unbeknownst to most people, and so I wanted to play on that.”

Kenny is talking with StandOut about music and Monmouthshire. Why? Because, on the last weekend in August, he and his team from Rebellion Live will take over Monmouth Showground with Monmouth Rising, a new three-day camping, 45-000 capacity festival set to rock the market town. “I’m joking,” Kenny laughs. “The real reason is that my mum lives in the town. No, seriously. It’s a lovely town, and as with most small towns in England and Wales, it’s had its heart ripped out. I sat with my business partner [Stuart Hopwood] and thought about what we could do for the area. Monmouth Rising was born.”

BIGGER, BETTER, CHEAPER

Monmouth Rising will officially launch on January 28 and hopes to appeal to a Radio 2 audience – customers with a couple of kids who want a weekend away but want something slightly more premium at a reasonable price.

“For a long time, I worked in the wedding industry,” Kenny continues. “I learned very early on that weddings are so unique and standalone to an individual that you have to be incredibly adaptable, and it’s your job as an event professional to make it work. I think that’s where putting the customer first is where I sort of found myself in life, and so when I was researching Monmouth Rising, you look at historical evidence and find out what people want.

“The consumer wants bigger and better, but they want it cheaper. It’s that simple. People shouldn’t have to spend half a month’s salary to go to a festival. So Monmouth Rising will be affordable with tickets from £180.”

AN INCREDIBLE THING

Rebellion Live is working with Do Not Bend Productions to bring the new festival to life. Plans are being finalised. The legalities are done. There are no pitch fees. Traders will pay ten per cent on all sales. Artists are being contracted, and tenders – for equipment and services such as fencing and security – will soon be published. Plus, Monmouth Rising has the support of the local council, who will do “everything they can to make sure the festival happens”.

Kenny concludes: “People will have the ability to add on glamping and Airstreams

and that kind of thing, but what we’re really looking to create is that feeling of individually, we are unique, but together we’re something special. And that’s the thing behind the festival, that we want to create this incredible thing. We want to create these moments that are just brilliant, that people talk about and go, that’s why you go to a festival.”

Monmouth Rising will take place from August 29-31, 2025.

JAMES KENNY (he/him)

Ethos = energy

When everyone is tired, how do you keep morale high and your teams motivated?

ou’ve been on site for two weeks, you’ve experienced every type of weather system, a supplier has let you down, and there are just three days to go until you open the gates. You need your team to dig deep, but everyone’s tired. What do you do?

The above is a familiar scenario amongst site managers and operations teams, so when StandOut was asked to find out what event professionals do to keep teams motivated, we jumped at the chance to canvas the industry.

A SPACE TO THRIVE

At Goodwood Festival of Speed (FOS), the operations team plays FOS Bingo using event-specific terminology and LS Events plans in downtime during the build to ensure team members have something left in the tank to see them through live days.

We Organise Chaos arrange quiz nights and film nights on site, weekly well-being sessions with stretch and breathing classes, and have even provided a masseuse when shows have been particularly hard! Other organisers chose to distribute ginger and turmeric shots during the morning meeting whilst Far and Beyond (FAB) organise pizza parties and treasure hunts, or if there’s still work to be done, then there has been the occasional accreditation “party” which involved writing passes!

Hannah Lowery, head of people and culture at FAB, said: “We know when working in events that the hours can be long, and with so many of our team members often working away from home for significant periods, it’s important that we take responsibility in providing safe spaces for our team to work

“It’s important that our teams feel supported by our People and Culture team (a mix of onsite and remote support). However, they also need to feel that support from the team they are working with on the ground. We ensure that WhatsApp groups are set up for each project where our teams can connect socially and arrange opportunities to unwind!”

VALUES

Good welfare facilities and making sure team members are part of the decision-making process (when appropriate) play a huge role in making team members feel valid and valued. Clare Goodchild, project director at We Organise Chaos, believes keeping teams motivated is more than a beer and a bean bag. Yet, it’s still positive that the number of organisers providing teams with designated quiet/rest areas is growing. For example, Boomtown includes freelancers in its welfare programme and teams can access mindfulness

Lowery continued: “For those moments when team members might need a little bit more support, four members of our team are trained as Mental Health First Aiders and ensure that the team is aware of how to access this support if needed.”

Goodchild says that teams are motivated when everyone understands their role is critical, no matter how small the job or junior the position. If they understand that the wider team is there to assist them, relationships develop. It is these connections that will pull them through tough days.

Goodchild explained: “Focus on the proper bones of how you look after people – looking at eerie shift lengths, making sure there is resilience in the team, and people aren’t pushed to their limits, giving scheduled days off, looking at how they are fed and where they are staying, making sure they understand how they can report issues and making a space so they feel like this is possible.”

Harriet Grace, director of Accept Management, agreed. She said: “Please and thank you cost nothing, so I hope that the last thing everyone hears from me each night is ‘thank you’. Also, I am not afraid to be vulnerable as the senior person on site because acknowledging if I’ve stuffed up or found a day hard creates a safer atmosphere for other people to share.”

Goodchild argues that event and festival organisers should focus on core values, ensuring there is space for clarity and belonging and believes technology should be used to build remote connections during the whole of the year and not just whilst people are on site.

She concluded: “If you can create a valuedriven culture year-round, then the on-site motivation is not a struggle, because no matter what you face, the staff are part of one united team who all understand the part they need to play and are there to support their colleagues to get through the hard stuff.”

WE ORGANISE CHAOS

TEAM FAB

In control

IGreat event controllers are programmed to remain calm in the most tense situations, but how can organisers and ops teams facilitate the smooth running of event control? Read on as event controllers share best practices and their recipe for what makes the perfect event control room

f you’re coming into event control, please turn your radio down,” says Chrissie Gilbert, a senior event control manager at Site Dog and operations manager at Chronosoft, the incident management software provider. “Don’t come in and have it blaring. We might be listening to three radios or in the middle of a delicate conversation, and suddenly, someone walks in, and all we can hear is someone shouting for a podger.”

Gilbert is talking about her pet peeves, the do’s and don’ts of event control, like the absence of radio earpieces or lengthy messages over the radio that should be a phone call. “If you can’t say it on the radio in about ten or 15 words, get off the radio and ring me,” she continues. “For example, say Hi, it’s Caroline, site manager. Lengthy conversation needed. Calling now. Then, pick up the phone. Because whilst you’re trying to tell us with 30 words that a fence line has fallen, if you only have one channel for all comms, someone else might be trying to radio in to say that they’ve got someone in cardiac arrest or there’s a lost child.”

Gilbert is an experienced event control room manager. This year, she was the event control manager at Tramlines, Mighty Hoopla and Lambeth Country Show, and in 2022, she was the senior controller on Operation London Bridge. So, it’s fair to say she knows her stuff and is a trusted linchpin in the live events world.

Frankie Astle, a freelance control room manager, is a massive fan. She says Gilbert’s rock star event controller moves are like watching a conductor lead an orchestra. Both magical and harmonious, even in the most tense situations.

“There’s no point being in that space if you can’t be calm,” Gilbert adds. “If you can’t be calm, you’re in the wrong job, but also, we’re not having our worst day, someone else is. We’re there to support them through it and to ensure it doesn’t, if possible, get any worse.”

YOUR SAFETY NET

Having experience in event control is a great way to understand an event and its cogs. Again, Astle is a big fan and believes that everyone should experience a shift in an event control room (ECR) – it’s the engine room of an event. She uses her knowledge of ops to help create event control systems and standard operating procedures (SOPs) that, when coupled with detailed table tops and fitfor-purpose incident management software, provide events with an “ amazing safety net”.

FRANKIE ASTLE (she/her) Image: © Oubai Muhna

Unfortunately, there are companies and individuals operating within the industry, packaging themselves as event control experts, and Rob Walley, managing director and founder of Controlled Events, a resilience, readiness, communications and control specialist, says there are worrying instances where freelancers are being thrown into – and undertaking – ECR roles with more responsibility than they are equipped for. To top things off, the role is often undervalued even though event controllers shoulder massive responsibilities.

PUSH BACK

Event professionals report that there is resistance from some promoters to pay event controllers more. Thankfully, some organisations are starting to realise they need better controllers. Ones whose evidence, notes and ability to accurately log incidents are required in court.

“It’s important to have someone in event control who can ask all the right questions and go through the steps and start to make decisions,” Astle explains. “You need to have confidence that if you have four or five beefy things happening, everything is being captured, and decisions are being logged.”

Plus, you need to ensure that your event controller is not afraid to push back if things aren’t right. “One of the things that I think is very important to event control is the willingness by the promoter to share information,” comments John Badcock, a freelance event operations manager and

event controller. “There is still an old-school mentality surrounding how many tickets have been sold, and sometimes, there’s a reluctance to share plans or make plans available in a useful form.”

Astle explains that good event controllers have the confidence to ask for things. They want to know where is the security management plan, who is my point of contact for X or Y, and where’s your lost and found child policy.

“That’s why I love the Johns, the Bens [Sidaway] and the Chrissies of this world because they will fight and say, I need this, I don’t understand this, or I have to have some of your time for this,” Astle adds. “When these people tell me they see an error, or they see something they don’t understand, you know that they’re not joking.”

TEMPORARY TEAM

Astle is a big believer in incident management software, and there are a range of software providers on the market, such as Controlled Events, Chronosoft, Halo, WeTrack and Raven.

Sophie Phillip is an event freelancer who has event control room manager experience from Kendal Calling, Bluedot, and MDLBeast. She says: “There are now tonnes of different software options out there that can be used. Some are good, but some can hold an event back. For shows with a smaller control room, I would not use any software; I stick to a shared Google Sheet with an offline backup. For larger control rooms, I was introduced

to Chronosoft a few years back by John [Badcock], and I really like it. It allows realtime sharing of information to the wider room, increases collaboration and gives excellent time stamps, meaning you can review things post-show in great detail.

“However, there are several risks we take when using software that I think event organisers often don’t consider. For example, buggy software and Wi-Fi loss. These can take down an entire control room.

“I had it happen to me years ago when I was a junior, working in one of the largest control rooms I had seen at the time. Sharing of information and logging stalled entirely when the Internet was not sufficient for the software. We had to get ethernet cables installed in the room during peak ingress. It was a tough gig!”

Phillip continues: “Also, a lack of software education/training or uptake means you are opening your show with one hand tied behind your back. Unless everyone is welltrained and fully confident before the show opens, using software can be an incredibly clunky way to open your event. It doesn’t matter how many pre-event training sessions you offer or how much you encourage people to log in beforehand; there will always be a few people who are struggling to get on with the software. I find the best way to get around this is to have someone in the room (separate from the control team) dedicated to sorting people’s logins and generally troubleshooting so that the control team can get on with opening the event.”

Walley agreed. He says that the secret to running a good ECR is the ability to bring together a very temporary team of people who haven’t all had the opportunity to be at the table top exercise, who haven’t all read the event plan and who have possibly been brought in at the last minute. Unfortunately, these are sometimes people who are paid the least, but you expect the most from them. Often, security and medical teams who – despite the best will in the world – will struggle to work with a system that is not straightforward to use.

COHESION AND TRUST

According to Phillip, incident management software should not mean a reduction in real communication and physical conversations. At its core, a good control room thrives on cohesion and trust – elements that can often be challenging to foster in a group of individuals that have just been thrown together. Typically, a control room is primarily made up of contractors, a few controllers/ loggers working directly for the festival, and a director or silver role. Since the majority of the contractor’s face time with the director is in the control room, they are always keen to be seen to be doing a great job, which they generally are. However, when significant incidents arise, says Phillip, a reluctance to acknowledge mistakes can hinder problemsolving, making it difficult to understand what went wrong and how to address it. Therefore, it’s paramount to create a safe space that’s in a quiet location, away from the

“noise”. An ECR that people can go to with anything, explains Gilbert, even if they think it’s insignificant. One piece of information might not mean something, but when there’s an incident, and another piece of information is logged, those two pieces of information might be vital pieces of a puzzle.

CODES CAUSE CONFUSION

“Say it as you see it and be confident in what you’re saying,” says Gilbert, because it can massively impact any coordinated response. Gilbert wants everyone reporting incidents to event control to be succinct. Neil Minter, founder of Mint Command, an event control provider, concurs. Minter is a fan of Controlled Events’ “easy to use” software and says that if you hear it, see it, say it or do it, log it! Yet, it’s not his only piece of advice.

It may sound simple and obvious, but he would like anyone operating a radio on a channel that is talking to event control to know how to use it and understand the basics of ABC – accuracy, brevity and clarity. He continues: “Avoid introducing codes into radio comms unless absolutely necessary. Different events that use different code words or numbers can cause confusion. Clear speech can be safer and more effective.”

Ben Sidaway, managing director of Event Command, a command and control provider, agrees. He comments: “Different events use different codes. You could have someone who’s been on a festival site for six weeks and then comes onto site and, within five minutes of their first shift, needs to use a different

code but doesn’t know what it means. Therefore, the response is slower.

“There’s a really big push at the moment for codes to be removed. The research says that audiences don’t panic when they hear genuine conversations. They panic when they don’t understand.”

UNDER PRESSURE

Event controllers urge event professionals to break down comms into small, manageable chunks of information that can be absorbed easily.

HALO AT P&J LIVE

Lloyd Major is the founder of Halo Solutions, a software system that acts as a central command-and-control function and integrates the monitoring and recording of multiple feeds of information from security and CCTV to live drone feeds. He explains: “If you went into a control room to be a logger using a spreadsheet and a radio, because you are good at typing, what starts to happen is the very reason that Rob [Walley] created his system, I created mine and Ian [Kerr] created Raven, is because that humans can only listen to so much information before they start summarising.

“If they’re not a natural typer, they’ll start making notes, then you’ve got to remember which notes relate to what and obviously read them after you’ve written them down under pressure. That’s difficult.

“In a 999 control room, the public rings in, the phone operator answers it and fills the incident in, it gets thrown over to the geographic channel that is responsible for responding to it, but never do you have the same person answering the phone and on the radio dispatching the resources. There’s a wall between the two.”

But in the events industry, that’s not always the case. Major continues: “The worst thing we’ve ever seen – and we call them inputs – is one person dealing with 36 different inputs, and in the middle of that, it was also her responsibility to disappear from the control room to go to the local shop to buy a buffet and make a spread for 40 different security guards.”

ADVICE AND OPINION

Major argues that great advisors are the key to great event control yet acknowledges that not everyone has the budget to employ lots of people. It’s frustrating as promoters spend millions on artists and technically advanced

production, but they don’t wish to pay more than a couple of hundred quid for an event controller on a wet Saturday in July.

“You can’t do it all alone,” says Major. “Decent advisors to support decisions being made are crucial. Be careful who you put in this role. There is a trained, legal difference between advice and opinion. Advice is legal, policy-based and full of options with pros and cons. Decision maker picks their preferred option, and then you just have to get on with it and make it as great and safe as possible. No ego. No gossip. Total trust.”

INCIDENT DATA

A poorly skilled person using a poor system does nothing more than create a perfect storm. Similarly, when promoters – potentially under pressure from low ticket sales –scrutinise incident data from previous years in a bid to “get away with a bit less”, are also heading towards stormy conditions.

Walley states that many reputable organisers make incremental changes to their chosen ECR set-up. Yet, the challenge is to engage the agencies within that ECR configuration. Every year, there is an additional person, an extra camera or an extra radio channel in event control and suddenly, the “space is too noisy to be efficient”, he warns.

“I think we need to evolve to think about the grey space/Zone X,” continues Walley. He is an advocate for a hybrid control room setup with a phone point of contact where event controllers can also watch reactions outside of an initial event footprint. With that in mind, what tech or what stakeholders do event control rooms and event control managers need to integrate with?

Hoping to help ECRs be more efficient is EventWatch, a new service that extends the visual reach of fixed CCTV systems. By

deploying all-weather commercial drones with cameras and thermal imaging, it’s now possible to quickly provide live images directly onto control room screens of almost any part of the event site. EventWatch’s pilots provide a fast response service under the direction of a control room manager, and the thermal imaging allows a live assessment of crowd densities.

In 2024, the EventWatch operated on a trial basis at the RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival and also at Rewind’s 20,000-capacity festival at Henley. Both control rooms were “astonished” at how quickly a deployment resulted in crisp, useable footage, which could be directed using open-circuit comms between the drone pilot and the control room staff.

SOCIAL MEDIA

Sadly, the number of incidents happening on-site is increasing. Consistency, therefore, will be key. However, that’s easier said than done when not even the language used to describe event control and liaison roles is not uniform. Walley is currently working with the UKCMA and The Purple Guide to rewrite the guide’s chapter on communication so that a standard and a precedent can be set across the industry. Furthermore, the introduction of Martyn’s Law will only raise standards further, Walley says. It’s one of the trends he has identified for 2025. Badcock has others, including the role and importance of social media footage.

“There are two events that I do every single year where the audience is mostly under the age of 24,” explains Badcock. “I’m not lying when I say that for all the CCTV we’ve got in the campsite, and all the stewards and volunteers, quite often TikTok knows more about what’s going on in our campsites in the middle of the night before we do.”

EVENT COMMAND

BEN SIDAWAY (he/him)

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Badcock continues: “A lot of events now have a marketing team and a 19-year-old person sitting in the corner of a room, scrolling through social media. They ask you, Have you seen X? That intel about what is going on at your event or festival in real-time on social media is quite astonishing.

“TikTok, Snapchat and Snap Map can tell you a lot, so has your marketing, communications and promotions team, whoever is receiving the direct messages, had any training in customer complaints?

And what if someone says I’ve been sexually assaulted, and I’m in a tent here? Do they know how to escalate that to event control?

So much information goes through social media, but quite often, you’ll find out something three weeks later when someone says, oh, we had all of this info on social media. That info would have been great to know at the time.”

TEAMWORK

Badcock describes event control as a “source of truth”. If you’ve chosen a good event controller that can take on the mechanics of the event, it leaves an organiser to think about strategic direction, knowing that wellconsidered operational and tactical decisions are being made and actioned on your behalf by competent personnel.

Importantly, somebody, somewhere, owns that event and will have a view on what decisions are made, how, and why, says Major. That information should be ironed out, voices should be heard, decisions should be recognised in advance, and all that information should be in the event management plan. And when it comes to the live event, anyone who needs to pick up a phone and says “I’ll check with so and so” should not be in an ECR.

Phillip continues: “A team that trusts each other is more likely to rally together during

challenging times. In such an environment, errors are quickly identified, and mitigation strategies are implemented efficiently, ultimately leading to a safer event. The responsibility for cultivating this positive culture falls on the event control room manager – my role!

“When you see great control room culture, it makes all the difference. When the medics are stacked at the end of the night, the security will walk patients to the medical centre. When security is stretched because of a challenging egress, the traffic teams will help out on the vehicle gates. When the traffic team are struggling with poor ground conditions, the Police will feed in information on the roads. When the Police need help with information, the welfare team will work to get them everything as fast as is appropriate. It goes on and on, and it is a brilliant thing to be a part of,” Phillip concludes.

TWO-WAY RADIO HIRE, SALES AND SERVICE

Organising

Prevent and protect

Are your safeguarding protocols up to scratch? Here, Hatty Cadman chats to Electric Cat Productions’ Cat Kevern and X2Consult’s Thomas Stead about why dedicated safeguarding teams could make a world of difference to your live event and why professional curiosity should be encouraged

Public expectations of safety, inclusion and accountability are at an all-time high. For live events, particularly mass participation festivals, this signals a shift in the approach to safeguarding from a tick box exercise to a practice that cornerstones trust between organisers and their audiences. Whether to protect vulnerable individuals or address wider societal issues, such as harassment or substance misuse, safeguarding is a vital aspect of hosting events – one which, due to multiple factors, has been critically overlooked in the past.

This article explores the safeguarding dynamics currently at play in the UK’s live events sector. We will discuss the strides made over the past decade, the challenges organisers still face, and actionable recommendations. Above all, we aim to celebrate the innovative and collaborative work of organisations and individuals to prioritise safety and inclusivity while maintaining the magic of live experiences.

UNDERSTANDING SAFEGUARDING

The scope of safeguarding in the event and festival world is enormously broad and, to the untrained eye, tricky to define. Despite their distinct differences, this often results in it being bundled together with welfare, security, or medical provisions. At its core, safeguarding aims to create an environment where everyone – staff, performers, and attendees – feels safe. This includes addressing harassment, child protection, mental health support, and equitable access.

Thomas Stead, managing director and safeguarding consultant of X2Consult, believes that safeguarding is not about looking for problems but about mitigating risks. He explains: “It’s about creating an inclusive environment where everyone feels respected and able to have a good time.”

Whilst this seems an integral element of organising a festival or event, safeguarding continues to be treated as an afterthought by many in the UK events industry.

protocols because they’ve “never had an issue before” or lack the knowledge to anticipate potential risks. Financial constraints exacerbate this; safeguarding measures and specialist teams can seem cost-prohibitive when budgets are already tight. Neglecting safeguarding, however, risks far greater costs, including harm, reputational damage, fines, or even event shutdowns.

Another challenge lies in the siloed nature of festival teams. Even with a robust overarching safeguarding strategy, communication breakdowns among on-site departments can lead to critical gaps. Cat Kevern, director of Electric Cat Productions, recalls working festivals where staff were rushed through briefings, leaving them unaware of safeguarding protocols or how to escalate concerns. She says: “When festival staff are guaranteed to be busy and overstretched, information must be accessible and actionable.”

URGENT NEED

As a relatively young discipline within the events industry, safeguarding lacks the historical framework and legal backing that security protocols benefit from. This gap highlights the urgent need for industry-wide education and standardised practices.

Thankfully, the past decade has witnessed the rise of innovative safeguarding solutions designed to tackle new challenges that have shaped the landscape of the UK events industry. Therefore, there has never been a bigger case for understanding the issues and developing safeguarding best practices.

CAT KEVERN (she/her)

HATTY CADMAN (she/her)

THOMAS STEAD (he/him)

SAFEGUARDING

TECHNOLOGY ADVANCEMENTS

Apps like Halo Solutions have revolutionised incident management and reporting, enabling attendees and staff to report concerns in real-time. Attendees can report issues instantly, allowing organisers to respond swiftly and effectively. Many ticketing systems now incorporate identity verification to combat fraud and unauthorised access, ensuring events remain secure.

Likewise, wearable tech is another gamechanger. Devices such as panic buttons and GPS trackers enhance personal safety, allowing for rapid response to emergencies. These tools are increasingly popular and are shaping the future of safeguarding in the events sector.

CULTURAL SHIFTS

Movements such as #MeToo and Black Lives Matter have drawn attention to insidious social issues. Organisers face mounting pressure to address harassment proactively, ensure diverse representation, tackle substance misuse and mental health concerns, and create safer environments.

Many festivals have responded by implementing mental health first aid training for staff and offering on-site support services for attendees. The industry is increasingly recognising that safety goes beyond physical security, including psychological and emotional well-being.

all staff know what to do and who to contact.

Risk assessment: Risk assessments should be informed by past events, learning from incidents, and Safety Advisory Group (SAG) recommendations. Pre-event briefings are an opportunity to share this information, while post-event reviews provide insights for continuous improvement.

Encourage knowledge sharing: Reputation concerns often stifle open communication. However, real-time knowledge sharing –whether via radio or reporting apps –ensures better decision-making and coordination. A culture of transparency, both within organisations and across the industry at large, can significantly improve safeguarding outcomes.

Provide rationale and reporting protocols: Ensure all safeguarding decisions are documented and defensible, enhancing trust and accountability. Decisions are rarely down to one person. Collaboration is essential.

LOOKING AHEAD

As the industry evolves, safeguarding faces new challenges and opportunities: Immersive events: The demand for virtual and AR events introduces a roster of safeguarding concerns. These range from physical concerns, such as disorientation and injury, to psychological and emotional risks, from exposure to triggering or distressing content to data privacy and harassment.

Cyber-safety: With increasing reliance on technology, protecting attendees’ personal data and digital experiences is becoming a safeguarding priority. Additionally, as wearable tech becomes more widely used, new concerns arise regarding the misuse of these tools.

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR IMPROVEMENT

Guidance and legislation: Key to the industry-wide improvement of safeguarding practices is more stringent guidance and legislation requiring its use. Specifically, we would like to see the use of dedicated safeguarding officers or teams at events and festivals mandated by law.

Training: Widespread investment in training programmes for staff and volunteers on safeguarding, mental health first aid, anti-harassment, and crowd management. Ideally, this training should be specialised for events.

Encourage professional curiosity: Promoting a “check and challenge” culture empowers staff to observe, question, and report concerns, even if they lack specialised safeguarding training.

TAKE STEPS

The importance of proactive safeguarding measures at events cannot be overstated. Over the past five years, we have seen the

Time to grow

Jack Willis is new to freelancing. Here, in this Q&A, he talks about his first steps into the freelancing world and why saying “yes” to every opportunity is not necessarily the right thing to do

hat attracted you to the world of events?

I’ve been working in the events industry since I was 18, but to be honest, I stumbled into it. My initial passion was music production. I started making songs and backing tracks for friends when I was 15. It wasn’t until I connected with the team at Music AV that I got my first taste of the live event world. I was brought on as a front of house engineer for some shows, and that’s when everything clicked. The fast-paced, dynamic nature of live events completely captivated me. Every day brought new challenges, new tasks, and a different energy. That variety and constant change is what truly sparked my love for the industry, and I’ve been hooked ever since.

You have worked with LFX Events for two years. What did you learn during this time?

Working with LFX Events has been a pivotal moment in my career, and I’m

incredibly grateful for the opportunity. Luke [Fitzmaurice, MD of LFX Events] took a real chance on me. At the time, I had very little experience in festival management and had only worked on a handful of jobs. But from the moment I joined the team, I knew it was the right move.

Luke pushed me to perform at my best on every project, and I’ll always appreciate the time he took to guide me through challenges or simply debrief after a job.

During my time with LFX, I gained a deep understanding of the logistics and operations that go into making a festival run smoothly. Before this, I had mostly worked on the technical side, so seeing the bigger picture, from the planning to the execution, was a huge eye-opener. My experience at LFX has been invaluable. At just 23, I’ve walked away with a wealth of knowledge and hands-on experience that would have taken years to accumulate without the support and mentorship of Luke and the team.

You have decided to enter the world of freelancing. What made you take this step?

I decided to go freelance to continue growing within the industry and to broaden my experience. I wanted to work with a variety of companies and event professionals to

JACK WILLIS ( he/him)

learn different approaches and understand how others operate. Sometimes, it’s easy to get used to the way things are done at one company, but once I started taking on jobs with different teams, I quickly realised how dynamic and diverse the industry can be in terms of problem-solving, decision-making and overall workflow.

What attracted you to freelancing?

One of the main attractions for me was the opportunity to take on international work. But beyond that, freelancing offers the freedom to manage and plan my own workload. I’ve come to appreciate how challenging freelancing can be, and I have a great deal of respect for those who’ve been doing it for years. That said, I love the idea of having control over my calendar, deciding when to take on projects and when to schedule breaks is something that appeals to me.

Another major draw is the ability to diversify my experience. I’ve worked on numerous festivals, and a few corporate events, but freelancing opens the door to a broader range of opportunities. When the chance to work on international sporting events came up, I jumped at it. It was a completely new facet of the industry for me, and the idea of diving into that exciting challenge was something I couldn’t pass up.

What roles are you interested in/looking for? Is there anything you enjoy doing more? Or, are you looking to broaden your experience in particular areas?

I specialise in technical production management, which has always been my strong suit. During my time at LFX, I led on this aspect, and with my background in tech, it’s a role I feel both confident in and wellprepared for. I absolutely love the challenge it presents.

This year, I’ve made a conscious effort to further develop my skills by engaging in mentoring and having conversations with other tech production professionals to deepen my understanding of the sector.

Alongside technical production, I’ve also been heavily involved in site management and project management. This is another area I grew to love during my time at LFX. I really enjoy the process of designing and mapping out sites, collaborating with suppliers to finalise specs, and sourcing the necessary equipment. Then, seeing the entire show come to life on-site is incredibly rewarding. There’s something special about watching a massive team transform an empty field into a fully functional, vibrant festival space.

You have only just begun your freelancing journey. What have you learned so far? Has anything surprised you?

One thing I’ve been pleasantly surprised by is just how supportive the industry is. I always knew people were friendly, but the outpouring of support I received after announcing my career shift was overwhelming. The day I posted on

LinkedIn, my phone didn’t stop ringing! It was an incredible feeling to have so many people reach out, offering their wellwishes and inviting me to join projects for next year. The relationships I’ve built with companies and event professionals over the years have paid off, and I didn’t expect such a positive reaction.

I’ve also learned that freelancing isn’t just about filling your calendar. Initially, I was eager to take on every opportunity that came my way, but I quickly realised that could lead to a year without breaks, which is not my goal. So, I took a step back to evaluate where I want to be in a year and what kind of work will get me there. I understand why this is a tricky time for freelancers, especially after the busy summer season when there’s uncertainty about what’s next. However, I reminded myself that I made this decision for my own growth, and I’m focused on taking on projects that will help me level up professionally and personally.

What one piece of advice would you give to other people thinking of leaping into the freelancing world?

First of all, just do it! This industry is vast, and there are so many incredible people in it. One of the best decisions I made was taking the time to connect with others. Don’t be afraid to reach out, whether it’s asking for advice or simply checking in to learn about

someone’s experiences. People are usually more than willing to help a newcomer, and if you show determination and a genuine interest in learning, you may find yourself working alongside them in the future.

And remember, always be kind, always smile, and don’t forget to look after yourself. The work can be demanding, but maintaining a positive attitude and taking care of your well-being are key to long-term success.

What events are you working on this year, and what are your future goals?

I’m excited about my calendar for next year! I’ll be returning to Slam Dunk North for the fourth year, and I’m also looking forward to travelling to events like Hideout Festival, Rock n Roll Circus, and others. It’s shaping up to be an incredible year, and I can’t wait to see where it takes me, with some super exciting updates coming soon, which I cannot discuss yet, unfortunately!

As for my goals, they’ve always been pretty simple: to keep improving. I don’t believe anyone can ever reach perfection in this industry, there’s always something new to learn, especially given how much the industry is constantly changing. My aim is to continue learning, to give my absolute best to every job, and to always push myself to be the best version of myself. Ultimately, it’s about growth and staying passionate about what I do.

Throwing the perfect basho

For the first time in more than three decades, sumo is returning to the UK and the Royal Albert Hall (RAH). Matthew Todd, director of programming at the iconic venue, reveals all

n October, the Royal Albert Hall (RAH) will be transformed when Japan’s iconic sport of sumo returns to the UK. Grand Sumo Tournament, delivered in partnership with the Nihon Sumo Kyokai (Japan Sumo Association), will take place 34 years after the first-ever official tournament held outside Japan took place at the venue.

Organised by RAH and Askonas Holt, this will be a rare opportunity to experience one of the world’s oldest sports, an official five-day basho with a complement of Makuuchi rikishi (wrestlers).

With origins dating back more than 1,500 years, the tournament will focus not only on the sheer skill of Japan’s most elite rikishi but also on the sacred traditions of the deeply ritualistic sport. With each match beginning with a series of historic symbolic acts representing the sport’s core values – respect, honour and perseverance – the tournament promises to give audience members a real insight into the culture and historical customs of Japan and sumo.

Matthew Todd, director of programming at RAH, explained: “The sumo tournament is unlike any other event we have built in the arena in recent years – it involves

a dohyo constructed of special clay and straw bales, with a yakata, an overhead roof canopy representing a Shinto shrine. This construction, combined with the number of sumo wrestlers in attendance, will make this event an exciting technical challenge.”

100TH ANNIVERSARY

Todd and his team have been in discussions with the Japan Sumo Association for several years. The RAH hoped to bring sumo wrestling back for the hall’s 150th anniversary in 2021. Unfortunately, those plans were waylaid by the pandemic. Serendipitously, the event will now take place in time to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Japan Sumo Association.

POINT OF DIFFERENCE

But whilst the traditions and rituals surrounding sumo have not changed, event production, marketing, and customer expectations have. Todd concurred and acknowledged that the RAH’s approach to presenting the event is different from 1991.

“We now have much larger backstage facilities and technical advances in the areas of lighting, sound, and broadcasting – all of which we expect will enhance the experience.

We also have a much more direct means of communication with our audiences through our social media channels, which we will use to share the sporting and cultural differences sumo will bring. The biggest point of difference since 1991 is that the hall now promotes a large share of its own shows, and we are co-promoting this event with Askonas Holt, all of which means we will have much closer involvement this time on many aspects of this show from production to marketing.”

But what can people – who have never experienced sumo before – expect from the event? Todd concluded: “Something truly unique, unlike anything we have in the UK. Sumo is a blend of sport, athleticism, culture, and tradition, and will bring a piece of Japan to the UK for those five days. People can expect to be totally immersed in the traditions of sumo, as well as watching a gripping physical contest.

“We are excited to bring the Grand Sumo Tournament to the UK in October 2025, and at this stage, we can only hope that it won’t be another 34 years before they return!”

The Grand Sumo Tournament will take place from October 15-19, 2025.

SUMO AT RAH IN 1991

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Big and bold

Big screens and LED technology can bring an event to life. Discover how big screen tech is being used to tell stories, inform guests and create events that stand out O

n November 23, Samsung lit up the Las Vegas Strip for the Formula 1 Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2024. Samsung display technologies illuminated the Grand Prix Plaza (GPP) pit building and surrounding areas with three huge grandstand screens, dynamic tight pitch displays, and a display in the shape of the F1 logo. When combined, the 250,000 LED modules in the installation totalled 35 million pixels – enough digital signage to wrap around the street circuit two and a half times.

Strategically placed LED screens in the grandstands around the track ensured that fans never missed a moment, from overtakes and turns to pit stops, and the 1,480-square-foot LED escalator display welcomed fans to GPP, delivering a “wow” factor with dynamic content.

Before and after the track action, fans enjoyed engaging content on the grandstand and escalator screens, featuring driver highlights, concert footage, venue activities, photo opportunities and partner activations from various parts of the venue.

It’s just one example of how innovative screen technology is being used to enhance the customer experience at live events and increase fan engagement at sporting events.

INTERACTIVITY

ADI has worked with The FA for several years and provides sports presentation and technical

event production for all On the Road fixtures for the England Lionesses. To extend and enhance the matchday experience, the LED screen, event production, and content creation specialist has been working with The FA to deliver a fan zone outside each host stadia, providing live entertainment programming before spectators take their seats.

A big screen solution is central to this setup. Luckily, ADI has a large range available, including stage screen options. For example, for On the Road, it provides the Lionesses with the iCONIC 60S, which incorporates a large 60 square metre LED screen and integrated stage in a fully branded mobile unit. This requires a relatively small footprint and can be set up within an hour, so it brings ease of delivery to site, operation, and cost efficiencies for the client.

ADI also assists with sports presentation, lighting, audio and interactive elements, such as its QVue fan cam and QPix social media wall apps. Fans scan a QR code and then use their mobile devices to livestream and share selfies, adding custom AI filters and themes.

Thomas Taylor, global head of sales and sports presentation at ADI’s Live Division, explained: “User-generated content is an important element of the fan zone programming that’s broadcast on the big screen and links with the fan interactivity

that continues inside the stadium bowl. The younger audience demographic in particular love being part of these digital activations and on-screen content.”

Taylor continued: “We also work with clients like England Netball and Badminton England to create interactive LED photo walls. These combine fine pitch modular LED screens, creative content, green screen shoot assets and gesture control software to deliver uniquely interactive, Instagramworthy experiences. Fans can enjoy a photo experience with their favourite players, teams or celebrities. This content-driven experience is designed to drive activation and reach beyond the event venue and be shared across social media.”

TRANSFORM A SPACE

According to Taylor, more event clients are looking at bespoke and creative staging using modular LED screens, including digital gantries and LED totems, in addition to more traditional 16:9 big screens for live feeds. He added: “Integrating digital infrastructure can be useful for activating sponsors and partner brands while also sharing live feeds, event information, dynamic data and usergenerated content. With the right design and application, they can help transform an event space or outdoor venue.”

DRIVE ENGAGEMENT

In October, Kia Oval appointed Encore as its AV partner with a remit to elevate event and matchday experiences for all visitors, Europalco recently supplied 19 large screens for Belron’s Best of Belron 2024 competition held in Lisbon’s MEO Arena, ensuring every attendee had optimal visibility across the event’s various zones and First Sight Media worked with the British Thoracic Oncology Group (BTOG) to drive engagement at its annual three-day conference at ICC Belfast. All three are different examples of how different organisers use screens in various ways.

Rich Belcher, managing director of First Sight Media, concurred with Taylor. Large screens and digital infrastructure can transform an event and help increase sponsor and partner return on investment.

For example, First Sight Media used big screens as digital signage to promote BTOG’s conference satellite sessions to drive engagement. Each screen was used as a digital poster to raise awareness of each content session, including the subject and speakers. For instance, a 30-second promo film was played twice before each live session and a one-minute promo was featured on each screen twice before the sessions started – directly inviting the audience to attend the “session starting now”.

First Sight Media produced detailed guides for symposia sponsors so they could make the most of the opportunity afforded by the large LED screens, placed at the top of the escalator for maximum footfall visibility.

The concept was a success. The sessions experienced an uptake of more than 50 per cent, with one increasing by nearly 80 per cent. Therefore, this move was replicated by First Sight Media for the NHS ConfedExpo at Manchester Central. There was a need to move

more than 5,700 attendees efficiently around the venue. Big screens and digital signage were identified by the team as a perfect solution for this task.

Belcher explained: “When you have an action-packed agenda across two plenary halls, seven learning theatres and numerous breakout rooms, it requires an effective

way to inform delegates what’s on and coming up. Our custom-designed digital signage was updated in real-time from the live agenda and built around the event floorplan – allowing delegates to see where to go clearly. With screens placed around the venue, these were an exceptionally effective way to deliver live information.”

SAMSUNG FOR F1

ON THE ROAD

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What’s new?

StandOut takes a quick look at new products and services set to make site life, event management and operations easier in 2025

hat’s new in the world of events? This is a question that StandOut often gets asked when we’re out and about. Organisers want to discover new products and services that will make life on-site easier or find something that they didn’t know they needed. With that in mind, the team at StandOut HQ agreed to take a look at some of the new equipment and tech to hit the market. Check out our findings below:

WeezCrew is the latest addition to Weezevent’s suite of event management tools, set to launch in the UK market in 2025. Already a proven solution in France, where it has been deployed at thousands of events, WeezCrew is a management and coordination platform designed to streamline the organisation of staff, volunteers, and accredited audiences. Its features cover everything from recruitment and scheduling to real-time reporting and access management, catering to events of all types and scales. The platform automates time-consuming processes, such as creating white-label registration forms, sending personalised email and text message campaigns, and managing provisions for meals, accommodation, etc. For organisers, this means less time spent on administrative tasks and more focus on delivering great customer experiences.

Site Event has launched Site Sleep, eco-friendly sleeper cabins. Tailored for event crews, Site Sleep’s Sleeper Cabins are designed to offer a practical, sustainable, and comfortable on-site accommodation solution. But what’s great about these units is that they not only feature comfortable beds and a microwave, kettle and fridge, but they also feature a private bathroom, incorporating sustainable waste management. Each unit is fitted with specially designed vacuum toilet pans with a 1L fresh water flush system, which reduces waste water. Additionally, Site Sleep has split the black and grey waste to allow for the shower waste to be disposed of into a soakaway. This minimises wastewater and reduces the need for frequent tanker empties, contributing to both environmental sustainability and cost savings.

Nick Mattingley has launched Decision Support Centre (DSC), a national events database for organisers and events recording key information and intelligence – what, where, when and who. Acting as a centralised information sharing portal between the authorities, insurers and organisers, DSC is intended to be a source of critical information, providing national and strategic detail regarding threat levels, public health information, drones, meteorology and more.

has invested in new heavy-duty cable ramps with a 45-degree curve. They can be joined to either end of a run of cable ramp and are the

Pass Sheet Pro, a web application designed to simplify the often time-consuming and manual process of creating event pass sheets, has been launched by Rick Latham and 305 Live. Developed “by event professionals for event professionals”, Pass Sheet Pro offers a “cost-effective solution” for generating pass sheets that are essential for security and accreditation at events. Pass Sheet Pro pairs accreditation with security checkpoints, and an app automatically formats the data into printable, individual PDF pass sheets with customisation options to suit different event needs.

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TAmazing spaces

A surge of new event venues will open in 2025. StandOut takes a look at the market and what established venues are doing to appeal to new audiences

he venue you chose and the location of your event are two of the most important choices you can make; either can have a massive impact on your guests’ experience, and let’s face it, as an organiser, you want nothing more than to set the right tone and create the right atmosphere.

The great news is that the UK is experiencing a huge period of growth in terms of new venues and venue developments, providing organisers with a vast choice of spaces for live events, exhibitions, conferences and more.

CHOICE

New event spaces are planned to open in 2025, and even more are planned to open in 2026 and 2027. What does this mean for the industry? It means an opportunity to breathe new life into areas of the country that will profit from the economic benefit that we all know live events provide.

The new openings include Olympia in London, Becketwell Live in Derby, Vision Hall (up to 800 guests) in King’s Cross, The Sage in NewcastleGateshead, Everton Stadium in Liverpool, a 15,000-capacity indoor arena in Cardiff called Atlantic Wharf, Marina Lake Events Centre in Southport and The Belfry in Birmingham. Plus, several established venues are making improvements to their portfolio in a bid to win new business and attract new clients.

In autumn, the Sage International Conference Centre – with 5,720 square metres of exhibition space, 2,520 square metres of adaptable meeting space, 17 conference rooms and a banqueting suite – will open in the heart of Gateshead on the banks of the River Tyne and the Sage Arena (12,500 capacity) will open in 2027.

Derby’s £45 million Becketwell Live –which will soon open as it is recruiting – will comprise a 3,500-capacity auditorium

suitable for live events and large-scale performances, and Olympia London’s £1.3 billion regeneration project – which has been in development since 2021 – will finally open. The completed complex will boast a 4,400-capacity live music venue that will be run by AEG Presents, two hotels, a new conference centre with new conference spaces, meeting rooms and a further 2,000 square metres of additional exhibition space for more than 5,000 delegates.

Southport’s Marina Lake Events Centre (MLEC) will transform the existing MLEC into a “high quality” business and entertainment venue that is expected to bring more than half a million visitors a year to the area. In September, Sefton Council sent a 50-tonne excavator to the MLEC site to help deconstruct the former Southport Theatre and Convention Centre. Once the new MLEC is built, it will provide organisers with space for up to 1,200 theatre style,

FARNBOROUGH INTERNATIONAL Image: wearenarrativ

complimented by 1,500 square metres of exhibition space and views of a permanent water and light show.

In Liverpool, Everton Football Club’s new 52,888-seater stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock intends to host large-scale concerts and major sporting events. Plus, The Plaza behind the stadium’s East Stand and the stepped terrace behind the West Stand will lend themselves to event activities.

BLANK CANVAS

AEG Europe has announced plans for a major new investment in Edinburgh. The promoter and venue operator is seeking planning approval for an 8,500-capacity arena in the heart of Edinburgh Park. In fact, the preferred design option has now progressed sufficiently to allow for consultation with the local community and stakeholders.

ExCeL, which recently acquired the Business Design Centre, will shortly open

THE BELFRY THE SAGE

its 25,000 square metre expansion, making it Europe’s largest fully integrated conference and exhibition venue. For example, 12,000 square metres of blank canvas hall space on the ground floor is complemented on the upper level with high-end convention space, modern meeting rooms and catering facilities, all seamlessly integrated into the existing venue.

Construction of The Masters Suite, a new events space at The Belfry Hotel and Resort, in the West Midlands, is progressing ahead of schedule and is now confirmed to open in September 2025. At 852 square metres and with a max capacity of 920, The Masters Suite will be the hotel’s largest events space. It is ideal for conferences, product launches, mini expos, award ceremonies, charity dinners and banquets for 600 people or more.

IMPROVED FACILITIES

However, such developments come with a price tag. For example, The City of London Corporation has approved a £191 million funding package to support critical repairs and upgrades at the Barbican Centre. But that only covers 80 per cent of the cost. Therefore, a major fundraising campaign will be launched by the Barbican in 2025 to enable the complete restoration and refurbishment of key public spaces at the venue. This includes upgrades to its lakeside terrace and conservatory..

Funding raised will open up these spaces to all, deliver major new creative community and learning activities, provide improved facilities for conferences and events, and make major sustainability improvements to ensure net-zero commitments are met.

INNOVATION

As part of Farnborough International Exhibition and Conference Centre’s focus to get to net zero sooner, it has invested £1 million in solar panels.

Sarah Marshall, venue director at Farnborough International, said: “Sustainability continues to be at the heart of our event planning and conversations with new and existing clients. Earlier this year, we launched Destination Zero, our sustainability commitment and charter for the venue, and invested £1 million in increasing our solar panel operation. The new solar panel arrays equate to 5,780 square metres of space on the roof of Hall 1, the equivalent of 29 tennis courts. The expanded system now produces over 1MW of usable electricity for the site on a sunny day, making the venue self-sufficient for live events held in Hall 1.”

MORE THAN AN AIRSHOW

In 2025, Farnborough International will see the return of large-scale exhibitions, such as RYA Dinghy and Watersports Show and the Homebuilding and Renovating Show and

the venue is hosting more consumer-focused events than ever before, including The British Motor Show 2025 and a new immersive event called Horrorfied.

Marshall continued: “Everyone thinks of Farnborough International for the biannual airshow, but we are so much more. We have recently launched a campaign to showcase the versatility of our venue and the events we can and do host every year while highlighting our award-winning expertise as an established organiser of both small, high-level conferences and vast global exhibitions. This has enabled us to build upon our existing reputation as world-class event organisers and hosts and to spread the word about all the amazing events and opportunities here at Farnborough for event organisers of all shapes and sizes.

“We pride ourselves on the versatility of the venue and our ability to offer both indoor and vast 100,000 square metres of outdoor space within the same secure site, as well as on-site free parking. This means we can transform our spaces to cater for events of all sizes, from a global exhibition to a dedicated live event facility to a business conference or a film set for a major feature film. The breadth and variety of our site offering means we’re always looking at how we can utilise our existing and potential new event infrastructure, so watch this space,” Marshall concluded.

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The making of a market town venue

Dean Rees, CEO of Melton Mowbray Town Estate, on how he plans to change the image of a Leicestershire market town with a diverse live events programme

ean Rees, CEO of Melton Mowbray Town Estate, is on a mission to change the face of the famous Leicestershire market town and make it known for more than just pork pies and Stilton cheese. Following his appointment in April 2024, Rees saw the town’s clear potential as an event venue and, backed by the Town Estate board, was given a mandate to bring new events to the town.

“The Town Estate is first and foremost a charity, and that means our primary purpose is to benefit the local community,” explains Rees. “We are governed by a board of ten elected trustees, historically called ‘Feoffees’, and we own and manage the town’s market, market square, golf course, campsite, and the town’s parks.

“Our parks are beautiful but underused, and although they’ve served as a venue for many events in the past, their scale and scope have recently been very modest,” Rees adds. “We want to attract audiences from the whole region, and even further afield, with larger, more professionally organised and executed events generating income for the Town Estate – which we can use to develop free-to-attend events that the local community wants and can call its own.”

Rees and the Town Estate have worked to build a strong relationship with the townspeople, which was needed to win “hearts and minds”. He began by immediately securing official suppliers from the local business community and developing good relationships with the local paper and radio station.

With suppliers in position, including Pearce Hire, Crowdsafe and Belvoir Care, Rees then launched a summer season of free-to-attend events, beginning with the live screenings of England games during the UEFA Championship. This was followed by a season of open-air film screenings.

“I wanted to show the town what was possible with a professional approach to events and the scope of events they could look forward to,” Rees continues. “The cinema screenings and football were a huge success, attracting thousands, and creating a real buzz of excitement and anticipation”

The next test of the Town Estate’s event programme was the annual fireworks show. Historically, this was a popular but free event. For 2024, Rees decided to raise the stakes, putting on a big show with live bands, hot and cold food, a licenced bar, DJs, and an additional “sensory-friendly”

fireworks show earlier in the programme. By charging for tickets, the Town Estate covered its considerable costs and will use the funds to create more free-to-attend events in the future.

“There was some resistance to charging for an event in the park, but it melted away after the fireworks festival and concert,” Rees states. “Melton had never really experienced an event of this scale or magnitude, and I think it really opened some minds as to what we could achieve as a town if we work together.

“Community relations are integral to our success because we use Melton’s public parks as our event space. We’ve struck a balance between paid-for and free-to-attend events, and I believe Meltonians understand that B2C outdoor events generate important external income and fund free community events”, Rees concludes.

With a 2025 schedule of events now in place, including three music festivals, a full summer season of weekly outdoor cinema and bandstand concerts, a motor pageant, a new monthly fine food market, and more, Melton Mowbray Town Estate is now on the map as a viable outdoor event venue for the East of England and the East Midlands.

DEAN REES ( he / him )

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W: www.eha.org.uk

MUTA

10B Red House Yard Gislingham Road, Thornham Magna, Eye, Suffolk IP23 8HH

T: 01379 788673

E: info@muta.org.uk

W: www.muta.org.uk

AV, SOUND & LIGHTING

Event Production Services

The Pack House, Drayton St. Leonard, Oxford, OX10 7BG

T: 01844 278446

E: info@epsoxford.com

Hire Frequencies

T: 0203 3026947

E: enquiries@hirefrequencies.co.uk

W: www.hirefrequencies.co.uk

Press Red Rentals Limited

Unit H11, Halesfield 19, Telford, TF7 4QT

T: +44 (0) 1952 587049

W: www.pressred.biz

BALLOONS, BUNTING & FLAGS

B-Loony Ltd

Cape House, 105 Bellingdon Road, Chesham, Buckinghamshire, HP5 2HQ

T: 01494 774376

E: sales@b-loony.co.uk

W: www.b-loony.co.uk

BAR

Bar Live Events

Unit D215, Parkhall Studios, London, SE21 8DE

T: 0208 761 8424

E: nick@barlive.co.uk

W: www.barlive.co.uk

Cambridge Event Bars

T: 01223 785401

M: 07837 707057

E: Info@cambridgeeventbars.co.uk

W: www.cambridgeeventbars.co.uk

Pop-up-Pubs

T: +44(0)1993 832155

E: info@pop-up-pubs.com

W: www.pop-up-pubs.com

SIPS Events

mikey@sipsevents.net www.sipsevents.net

Symonds Event Bars

Drakewell, Stoke Lacy, Bromyard, Herefordshire, HR7 4HG

T: 01885 490267

E: info@eventbars.co.uk

W: www.eventbars.co.uk

BAR/DRINK DISPENSE EQUIPMENT

Innserve Ltd

T: 01937 535000

E: eventsandstandby@innserveltd.com

W: www.innserveltd.co.uk

BRAND ACTIVATION & EXPERIENTIAL

Instant Marquees

T: 01840 213063

www.instantmarquees.co.uk

BUGGY HIRE

Bradshaw Event Vehicles

New Lane, Stibbington, Peterborough, PE8 6LW

T: 01780 782621

E: enquiries@eventvehicles.co.uk

W: www.eventvehicles.co.uk

Twitter: @Bradshaw_EV

Event Buggy Hire

T: 0113 393 4100

E: info@eventbuggyhire.co.uk

W: www.eventbuggyhire.co.uk

Hopkins Machinery

T: 01633 680754

E: hire@hopkinsmachinery.co.uk

W: www.hopkinsmachinery.co.uk

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

Twitter: @QdosEventHire : www.facebook.com/pages/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

CABINS

CONNECTIONS

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

CATERING

Peaks Catering Ltd

T: 07702189920

E: Info@peakscatering.co.uk

W: www.peakscatering.co.uk

CLEANING & SUPPORT SERVICES

Falcon Cleaning

The Falcon Nest, Unit 10 & 11, Lower Gower Road, Royston SG8 5EA

E: admin@falconteam.co.uk

W: www.falconteam.co.uk

COFFEE BARS

Markey Ltd

39b Park Farm Ind Estate, Buntingford, Hertfordshire, SG9 9AZ

T: 01763 271110

E: info@markey.co.uk

W: www.markey.co.uk

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

BTN Crew LTD

T: 07780 621 860

E: info@btncrew.com

W: www.BTNCrew.com www.facebook.com/BTNCREWltd/ www.instagram.com/btncrewltd/

Falcon Festival Services

The Falcon Nest, Unit 10 & 11, Lower Gower Road, Royston SG8 5EA

E: info@falconteam.co.uk

W: www.falconteam.co.uk

MLD Event Group

T: 01903372773

E: info@mld.events

W: www.mld.events

Optimal Events Group Ltd / Trading as Optimal Crew

Marsh Mill Village, 5A, Fleetwood Rd N, Thornton-Cleveleys FY5 4JZ

T: 07375 843976

E: jordan@optimalcrew.co.uk

W: https://optimalcrew.co.uk

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

Trojan Crewing Solutions Ltd

57 Eastbourne Avenue, Acton, London W3 6JS

T: 07341 922974

E: chris@trojancrew.com

W: www.TrojanCrew.com

DIGITAL PLANNING

Iventis

Think Tank, University of Lincoln, Ruston Way, Lincoln, LN6 7FL

T: 01522 837205

W: www.iventis.co.uk

E: info@iventis.co.uk

Eamon Kerrigan:

E: Eamon.kerrigan@iventis.co.uk

DRONE DISPLAYS

FlightShows

T: 020 3151 6891

E: Hello@FlightShows.com

W: www.FlightShows.com

: www.facebook.com/FlightShows/ : www.linkedin.com/company/flightshows/ : www.instagram.com/flightshows/ : www.tiktok.com/@flightshows_drones

EQUIPMENT & INFRASTRUCTURE

Falcon Site Equipment

The Falcon Nest, Unit 10 & 11, Lower Gower Road, Royston SG8 5EA

E: admin@falconteam.co.uk

W: www.falconteam.co.uk

EVENT ACCOMMODATION

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 CONTROL, RADIO & WI-FI SERVICES

Controlled Events

T: 0203 286 6392

E: info@controlledevents.com

W: www.controlledevents.com

First class Resilience, Readiness, Communication & Control for incidents or pre-planned events.

EVENT MANAGEMENT

Bright Events Ltd

T: 07856588815

W: www.brighteventsltd.com : linkedin.com/in/karen-edwards-events/

CM Production Management Ltd

T: 020 8056465

E: hello@cmpm.co.uk

W: www.cmpm.co.uk : facebook.com/cmpmlive : @cmpmlive

LFX Events Unit 10 Merchants House, Market Place, Stockport, SK1 1EU

E: enquiries@lfxevents.co.uk

W: www.lfxevents.co.uk

SC Productions

T: 02921 850 650

E: admin@scproductionsltd.com

W: www.scproductionsltd.com

Victorious Events

T: 07869 701 616

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

EVENT SAFETY

EVENT STAFF

Eep Safety Team

Unit 42, Dunsfold Park, Guildford, Surrey, GU6 8TB

T: 01483 266486

E: tom@eepteam.com

W: www.eepsafety.com

LFX Safety

Unit 10 Merchants House, Market Place, Stockport, SK1 1EU

E: enquiries@lfxsafety.co.uk

W: www.lfxsafety.co.uk

The Occasionall Group: Festivall Staff | Occasionall Staff

The Circle, 33 Rockingham Lane, Sheffield S1 4FW

T: 01144 055 044

E: hello@theoccasionall.group

W: www.theoccasionall.group

Moorepeople Event Staffing Agency

1st & 2nd Floor, 169 A High Road, Loughton, Essex, IG10 4LF

T: 0208 508 0555

E: bettina@moorepeople.co.uk

W: www.moorepeople.co.uk

EXHIBITION STAND CONTRACTORS

Access Displays

Unit 38, Whitehill Industrial Estate, Whitehill Lane, Royal Wootton Bassett, Swindon, SN4 7DB

sales@accessdisplays.co.uk www.accessdisplays.co.uk 01793 613088

EXHIBITION TRAILERS & MOBILE UNITS

DWT Exhibitions

Trailer Hire, Sales & Management

Jubilee Park, Honeypot Lane, Colsterworth, Lincolnshire, NG33 5LZ

T: 01476 860833

E: pip@dwt-exhibitions.co.uk

W: www.dwt-exhibitions.co.uk

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

Festival Gas

Priors Revel, Church lane, Middleton, Nr Tamworth, B78 2AL T: 07930 758893

E: simon@festivalgas.co.uk

W: www.festivalgas.co.uk

Aero Fire & Rescue Ltd

27 Old Gloucester Street

London WC1N 3AX

T: 0330 111 3635

E: contact@aerofireandrescue.co.uk

W: www.aerofireandrescue.co.uk

Red Rose Fire Solutions Ltd

6 Brissenden Close

New Romney

Kent TN28 8JD

T: 01995 503504

E: info@redrosefiresolutions.co.uk

FESTIVAL GAS

FIRE COVER

WH Management Group

PO Box 230, Heathfield East Sussex TN21 1DX

T: 01889 500 164

E: info@whmg.co.uk

W: www.whmg.co.uk

FLAGPOLE HIRE

Fuchsia Exhibition Services Ltd

13 Oak Park Industrial Estate, Chelmsford Road, Great Dunmow, Essex, CM6 1XN

T: 01371 644800

E: info@fuchsiaevents.co.uk

W: www.fuchsia-exhibition-services.com

FLAGS

Instant Marquees T: 01840 213063 www.instantmarquees.co.uk

FLOORING & FLOOR COVERINGS

Coir Store

8-9 Yelverton Road, Brislington, Bristol BS4 5HP

E: info@coirstore.co.uk

T: 07983 614410

W: https://coirstore.co.uk

Event Flooring Solutions Ltd

T: 01509 768 252

E: sales@efseurope.co.uk

W: www.efseurope.co.uk

Gigtent UK

Sonas House, Button End Harston Cambridge, CB22 7NX

T: 01223 870935

E: info@gigtent.co.uk

W: www.gigtent.co.uk

FURNITURE HIRE / SALES

Furniture On The Move

Unit B, Canada warehouse, Chittening industrial estate  Worthy road , Avonmouth, Bristol, BS110YB

T: 0845 459 9875

E: info@furnitureonthemove.co.uk

W: www.furnitureonthemove.co.uk

Innovative Hire

Unit N, Lion Works Estate, 543 Wallisdown Road

Bournemouth BH12 5AD

T: 01202 941 068

W: http://innovativehire.co.uk

HEATING & COOLING SYSTEMS

BiemmedueUK & Arcotherm

Unit 12, Wilson Road, South Wigston

Leicester LE18 4TP

T: 01773 836999 | E: sales@biemmedueuk.com

W: www.biemmedueuk.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

INFLATABLE STRUCTURES

Dawsongroup tcs

Export Drive, Sutton-in-Ashfield, Nottinghamshire NG17 6AF

Dawsongroup | tcs

T: 01623 518538

E: info@dgtcs.co.uk

W: https://dgtcs.co.uk/inflatable-cold-rooms/

INSURANCE

Arc International St. Clare House, 30-33 Minories, London, EC3N 1PE

T: 0207 977 7637

W: www.arc-int.co.uk/

Tysers Insurance Brokers

71 Fenchurch Street, London, EC3M 4BS

T: 0203 037 8000

E: tim.rudland@tysers.com

W: www.tysers.com

Vento

LASER & FX

Event Insurance by Event People

107 Fenchurch Street, London, EC3M 5JF

T: 0333 090 7589

E: freddie@ventoinsurance.com

W: www.ventoinsurance.com

Laser Grafix

Unit 4A Stratton Park, Biggleswade, Bedfordshire, SG18 8QS

E: info@lgfx.co.uk

W: www.lgfx.co.uk

UK office: 01767 315948

Dubai office: +971 4887 9808

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

LIGHTING

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

Events Crew Limited

T: 01963 364399

E: info@eventscrew.com

W: www.eventscrew.com

Illumin8

Nick: 07593437891

E: sales@illumin8lights.co.uk

W: www.illumin8lights.co.uk

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

Gigtent UK

Sonas House, Button End Harston Cambridge, CB22 7NX

E: info@gigtent.co.uk

W: www.gigtent.co.uk

Instant Marquees

T: 01840 213063 www.instantmarquees.co.uk

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

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

MEDICAL SERVICES

Enhanced Care Services

Unit H9, Adanac Park, Adanac Dr, Nursling, Southampton SO16 0BT

T: 02380 201561

E: admin@enhancedcareservices.co.uk

W: www.enhancedcareservices.co.uk

First Aid Cover Ltd

T: 020 8875 5758

E: enquiries@firstaidcover.co.uk

W: www.firstaidcover.co.uk

Location Medical Services Ltd

The Medical Centre, Shepperton Studios, Studio Road, Shepperton, Middx, TW17 0QD

T: 0870 750 9898

E: mail@locationmedical.com

W: www.locationmedical.com

Medirek

8 Primrose Place, Portsmouth Road, Godalming Surrey, GU7 2JW

T: 07776 128 409

safety and medical

E: ryan.soper@medirek.co.uk

W: www.medirek.co.uk

MET Medical Ltd

T: 0203 627 9042

E: info@met-medical.co.uk

W: www.met-medical.co.uk

Trident Medical Limited

Based in Essex, cover events all over the UK

T: 01268 438899

M: 07379 244718

E: events@tridentmedical.co.uk

W: www.tridentmedical.co.uk

Wise Parking

T: 03301 334522

E: info@wiseparking.co.uk

W: www.wiseparking.co.uk

Hopkins Machinery

T: 01633 680754

E: hire@hopkinsmachinery.co.uk

W: www.hopkinsmachinery.co.uk

PARKING

PLANT HIRE

Excloosive Event Hire

Field House, Bromley Park, Abbots Bromley

Rugeley, Staffordshire WS15 3AH

T: 01283 575 749

M: 07778 473 064

Email: info@excloosive.co.uk

Four Jays Group

Barling Farm, East Sutton, Maidstone, Kent ME17 3DX

T: 01622 843135

E: enquiries@fourjays. co.uk

W: www.fourjays.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

Just Loos

Paddock Barn, Manor Farm, Itchen Stoke, Hampshire, SO24 0QT

T: 01962 867808

E: office@justloos.com

W: www.JustLoos.com

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: https://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

Energy Management Services Ltd

T: 0333 305 5144

E: admin@energyms.co.uk

W: www.energyms.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

T: 01543 574 111

E: enquiries@idesystems.co.uk

W: www.idesystems.co.uk

Head Office & Manufacturing Centre

Unit 3, Swaffield Park Hyssop Close, Cannock

Staffordshire, WS11 7FU United Kingdom

Lifos Advanced Battery Technology Ltd

Stafford Park 5, Telford, TF3 3AS

T: 01952 200198

E: hello@lifos.co.uk

W: www.lifos.co.uk

Midas Productions (UK) Ltd

Unit 1, Uplandside, Manor Road, Clopton, Suffolk, IP13 6SH

T: 0333 772 0772

M: 07949 007 603

E: info@midas-uk.co.uk

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

Power Events

T: 01277 424800

E: enquiries@powerevents.co.uk

W: www.powerevents.co.uk

Power Revolution

23C Shepherds Grove Ind Est, 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

T: 01200 777666

E: hello@robertblezard.co.uk

W: www.robertblezard.co.uk

Stuart Power Ltd

Stuart House, Hargham Road, Shropham, Norfolk, NR17 1DT

T: 01953 454540

E: enquiries@stuartpower.co.uk

W: www.stuartpower.co.uk

Summit Power

T: 0333 0349433

E: enquiries@summitpower.co.uk

W: https://summitpower.co.uk/

Tempower

T: 0845 6066049

E: hire@tempower.co.uk

W: www.tempower.co.uk

Wernick Power Solutions

Joseph House, Northgate Way, Aldridge, Walsall, WS9 8ST

T: 03334 001 247

E: power@wernick.co.uk

W: www.wernick.co.uk/power : twitter.com/WernickGroup : www.linkedin.com/company/wernickgroup

PRINTERS

UK Flyers

Suite 210, Victory House, Somers Road, North Portsmouth, HampshirePO1 1PJ

T: 023 9229 3050

E: sales@ukflyers.com

W: www.ukflyers.com

PRODUCTION AND PROJECT SUPPORT

PROJECTION

Smartrad Creative Ltd

5 George Street, Snaith, DN14 9HY smartradcreativeprojects@gmail.com www.smartrad.org

T: 07711469787

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

Audiolink

T: 020 8955 1100

E: info@audiolink.co.uk

E: hire@audiolink.co.uk

W: www.audiolink.co.uk

DCRS

Edison Road, St.Ives, Cambs, PE27 3LH

T: 0800 043 2688

E: sales@dcrs.co.uk

W: www.dcrs.co.uk

SFL Mobile Radio

6 Woodway Court, Thursby Road

Bromsborough, CH62 3PR

T: 0151 334 9160

E: sales@sflmobileradio.co.uk

W: www.sflmobileradio.co.uk/

REFRIGERATED STRUCTURES

Dawsongroup tcs

Export Drive, Sutton-in-Ashfield, Nottinghamshire NG17 6AF

Dawsongroup | tcs

T: 01623 518538

E: info@dgtcs.co.uk

W: https://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

SEATING

Ace Seating Hire

T: 01832 279333

E: info@aceseating.co.uk

W: www.aceseating.co.uk

SECURITY

DBD Group Services

T: 01934 286000 and 07955314124

E: info@dbdgroupservices.co.uk

W: www.dbdgroupservices.co.uk

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

Right Guard Security

Experts in Crowd Management and Event Security

T: 01227 464588

E: info@rightguard.co.uk

W: www.rightguard.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-ltd : @TrojanLondon :@trojan_security_UK

WH Management Group

PO Box 230, Heathfield, East Sussex, TN21 1DX

T: 01889 500 164

E: info@whmg.co.uk

W: www.whmg.co.uk

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 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

STAGING

& RIGGING

IPS (Impact Production Services)

29 Mount Avenue, Bletchley, Milton Keynes, MK1 1LS

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

The Stage Bus 19 Prestwood Road, Birmingham, B29 5EB

T: 0121 585 9264

E: info@thestagebus.com

W: www.thestagebus.com

Steeldeck Rentals

Unit 58, T. Marchant Estate, 42 - 72 Verney Rd, London SE16 3DH

T: +44 (0)207 833 2031

E: rentals@steeldeck.co.uk

W: www.steeldeck.co.uk

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

TEMPORARY ROADWAYS

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

TEMPORARY STRUCTURES

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

Gigtent UK

Sonas House, Button End Harston, Cambridge, CB22 7NX

E: info@gigtent.co.uk

W: www.gigtent.co.uk

LH Woodhouse

Wolds Farm, The Fosse, Cotgrave, Nottingham, NG12 3HG

Delivering successful events

T: 01159 899 899

E: sales@lhwoodhouse.co.uk

W: www.lhwoodhouse.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

NEPTUNUS Ltd

Cob Drive, Swan Valley, Northampton NN4 9BB

T: 01604 593820

E: sales@neptunus.co.uk

W: www.neptunus.co.uk

Stunning Tents

Creative House, Station Road, Theale RG7 4PD

T: 0118 380 5590

E: team@stunningtents.co.uk

W: www.Stunningtents.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

The Dome Company

T: 07876673354

E: info@thedomecompany.co.uk

W: www.thedomecompany.co.uk

The Halo Group

T: 020 787703210

E: info@thehalogroup.co.uk

W: www.thehalogroup.co.uk

VENUES

TRACKWAY TRACKWAY

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

Worldwide Structures Ltd

Ayrshire Farm, Sharcott, Pewsey, SN9 5PA

T: 01672 565 060 / +44 (0) 7875 027369

E: enquiries@w-sl.com

W: www.worldwidestructures.com

Farnborough International Exhibition and Conference centre

T: +44 (0) 1252 532800

E: event-enquiries@farnborough.com

W: www.farnborough.com/ : @farnborough-international-ltd : @Farnborough_Int : @farnborough_int : @farnboroughinternational/ : @farnboroughinternationalex4694

WASTE MANAGEMENT

Falcon Cleaning

The Falcon Nest, Unit 10 & 11, Lower Gower Road, Royston SG8 5EA

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

TRACKWAY TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT

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

Right Guard Traffic Management

Event Traffic Management

TRACKWAY VEHICLE HIRE

CSAS Accredited Traffic Officers

Car Parking

Event Signage

T: 01227 464588

E: info@rightguard.co.uk

W: www.rightguard.co.uk

WATER

E: admin@falconteam.co.uk

W: www.falconteam.co.uk

& PLUMBING SERVICES

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

Bradshaw Event Vehicles

New Lane, Stibbington, Peterborough, PE8 6LW

T: 01780 782621

E: enquiries@eventvehicles.co.uk

W: www.eventvehicles.co.uk

Twitter: @Bradshaw_EV

TRACKWAY VENUE MAPPING

Iventis

Think Tank, University of Lincoln, Ruston Way, Lincoln, LN6 7FL

T: 01522 837205

E: info@iventis.co.uk

Eamon Kerrigan: E: Eamon.kerrigan@iventis.co.uk W: www.iventis.co.uk

Temporary Water Solutions

Water supplies for festivals and events

T: 0800 001 6041

E: info@temporarywatersolutions.co.uk

Water Direct

T: 0345 345 1725

E: enquiries@water-direct.co.uk

W: www.water-direct.co.uk

Wicked Event Water Services

Kevin: 07909 771996

E: info@wickedeventwaterservices.com

W: www.wews.biz

WIFI, INTERNET & STREAMING

Fli-Fi Ltd

UK Wide

T: 020 3778 0454

E: enquiries@fli-fi.com

W: www.fli-fi.com

SimpliWifi

Unit 13, Leominster Enterprise Park, Leominster, Herefordshire, Hr6 0LX

T: 0800 298 9434

E:  hello@simpliwifi.agency

W: https://simpliwifi.agency

Editor Caroline Clift caroline@standoutmagazine.co.uk

Publication manager

Sarah Bourne sarah@standoutmagazine.co.uk

Account executives

Jen Crisp jen@standoutmagazine.co.uk

Holley Wilkinson holley@standoutmagazine.co.uk

Marketing executive

Katie Goldsmith marketing@standoutmagazine.co.uk

Design and production

Neil Hepden

Jemma Heslop

Colin Swaffer

Emma Hickman studio@standoutmagazine.co.uk

Digital and web developer

Matthew Coppard

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

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