Events - and the Police

Please note that the information on this page does not create a legally binding contract or agreement between Kent Police and the Event Organiser. It defines the respective duties and responsibilities of the Police and the Event Organiser.

Involving the Police in Your Event

Pre Event Liaison

The nominated police planning officers will meet with the event organiser, via Swale Borough Council (SBC) or the Safety Advisory Group (SAG):

• Review previous practices at similar events;
• Consult in terms of contingency plans and evacuation procedures;
• Consult in order to achieve an agreed traffic management plan;
• Establish the role of police liaison and communication during the event;
• Establish what the request for police resources is for the event, by the organiser;

Useful contact details for Mid Kent Police:

Call: 01622 604295

Responsibilities of the Event Organiser

The event organiser and officials for the event will be responsible for, and take all reasonable steps to ensure: -

1. The safety, control and monitoring of all persons attending the events.
2. They will provide stewards who will be adequately trained and fully briefed on their role and the emergency evacuation procedures.
3. The provision of an Event Management Team. They will require the appropriate access to internal and external communications.
4. The regular briefing and updating of event officials.
5. The implementation of the agreed Traffic Management Plan and its subsequent withdrawal. The traffic management plan should also include working with the local council and the expected input from them and any request by the organiser for police resources in relation to the event.
6. The provision of adequate first aid / medical staff at the event.
7. They have a lost and found property system in place to receive, catalogue / document, store and return items This system must allow for random searching and cross-referencing of items, which will be needed, if property owners are to be identified.
8. Nominate a suitable central point of contact for lost children in order to ensure that they will be to be securely supervised and located.
9. The minimum adverse effect of the event on the local community.
10. The event organiser will be responsible for ensuring the proper management and security of the event site. The Police Commander, in liaison with the event organiser, may arrange for the temporary/permanent closure of any part of the event site where necessary in the interests of public safety and/or to prevent disorder.

The Role of the Police

1. The role of the police at public events is based on the need to discharge our core responsibilities, which are:

• To prevent and detect crime;
• To prevent or stop breaches of the peace;
• Traffic regulation within the legal powers provided by statute, a Road Closure Order (TPCA 1847) or a Traffic Regulation Order (RTRA 1984).
• The activation of a contingency plan where there is an immediate threat to life and the co-ordination of resultant emergency service activities.
• Police powers of arrest will be exercised at the discretion of the police commander or individual officer.

2. The police, in partnership with the event organiser and other agencies, will carry out their duties and policing objectives contained within their Operational Order under the direction of the Police Commander and will include:

• To prioritise requests for police attendance to incidents that may occur at the event;
• To respond to incidents that come under their core responsibilities as detailed above.
• To liaise with event organisers and other agencies as and when required, and co-ordinate the activation of a contingency plan.
• To consult with the event organiser with regards to an Event Traffic Management Plan.

3. In any circumstances where the Police decide that they have to take overall control of all safety or public order aspects at the event by virtue of their duty to preserve life and protect property, they shall notify the event organiser of that decision. During this period of Police primacy, the employees and agents of the event will work in conjunction with and under the direction of the Police Commander.

The Police Commander reserves the right to alter any proposed arrangements which they have reason to believe may place public safety at risk or result in public disorder or criminal offences. The Police Commander will inform the Event Organiser of their decision and the reasons for that decision.

Contingency Planning

The event organiser will with other agencies and the emergency services, prepare contingency plans to accommodate the arrival of the emergency services at the event in order to deal with any incident or emergency that may occur. These plans will be made available to the police to review and liase with the organiser as necessary.

More Information

Useful web pages

• Events - Toolkit
• Events - Risk Assessment
• Events - Affecting the Highway
• Events - Licensing Requirements
• Events - Guidance on Accessibility