You’re already acutely familiar with business health and safety, but not everything occurs within the office, warehouse, or institution. Sometimes, you are responsible for running an event. This could be a corporate gathering or even a party. Whatever it is, you must ensure that everyone is safe when they attend. Event health and safety is much different from what you are used to, though, and that means you must approach it slightly differently.
Identify Who You Are Responsible For
There is a lot to do at any event, and this means you and whoever else is in charge needs to identify who you are responsible for. The obvious answer is the guests, but the guests are not the only people attending.
As there will also be musicians, catering staff, and event security in place, you must know who everyone needs to care for. If it is a large event, it will be impossible to look out for everyone yourself. So make sure to delegate different sections that will allow you to keep an eye on your specific area and act fast should something happen.
Carry Out Risk Assessment
If you have the opportunity to go to the location of the event beforehand (and you should), you can take this chance to carry out a risk assessment. Here, you will be able to look at possible hazards, such as sloped surfaces or nearby roads, among other options.
A detailed risk assessment will give you a better idea of what could happen, allowing you to formulate ideas to avoid or overcome them. Hopefully, nothing bad happens. But if it does, you will at least be prepared to deal with it.
Anticipate The Weather
One thing that separates outdoor events from indoor events is the weather. You hope that it will be blue, sunny skies and reach 30 degrees (at least). However, you know as much as anyone else that things could change in an instant.
A sudden change in weather could be a significant hazard. Therefore, you should make arrangements that prevent the most obvious issues. Things like temporary flooring solutions will keep the ground from getting muddy following a storm, whereas covered areas can prevent people from getting drenched and still keep the event flowing.
Have an Emergency Procedure
Finally, you will need to have an emergency procedure in place that you should share with other people in charge. Once again, these emergency procedures should be there for nothing more than peace of mind, but there is always the chance you need them.
Emergencies can include injuries or catastrophic equipment failure, and as long as you have carried out a thorough risk assessment, you won’t have any issues knowing what to do when disaster strikes.
The Safe Outdoors
Getting outside and celebrating anything is always a welcome change from the stuffy, crowded alternative of indoors. But, with different hazards come different procedures and demands. If you want to ensure your event is successful, you must adhere to the correct safety practices to guarantee a good time for everybody.
