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Sales: 0808 175 4117 Support: 0344 477 9991 Contact Us Staff & Client Login From major music celebrations to cultural icons, festival season is a key fixture of summertime across the globe. It makes sense, then, that festival security would be a significant consideration for both attendees and those who spend the time planning and organising the event.
A comprehensive festival security solution involves a range of different factors. That ranges from risk assessments and planning, to crowd management and security guarding, to the more technical aspects like CCTV surveillance and metal detection. Key considerations revolve around festival entry points, prohibited items like drugs, and emergency responses.
Let’s look at those components in more detail.
While festival goers often don’t consider the behind-the-scenes organisational work that goes into creating a robust festival security plan, it’s an area that you simply cannot afford to neglect.
Here are just a handful of the main reasons why security at a festival is a vital part of what you need to consider and how it serves a major purpose in keeping your events running smoothly.
Arguably, one of the most important factors to consider for any outdoor event, especially so for festivals, is having security personnel that can patrol every area of your festival grounds. That’s not only important for the stages and attractions themselves, but festival tent security and coverage around the camping areas is essential, too.
With events like music festivals attracting hundreds of thousands of visitors and commanding a substantial premium for admission, it’s natural that you’ll have people who attempt to trespass or gain entry to your event without paying.
Festival security guards are specifically deployed to guarantee the integrity of your site’s perimeter and stop any possible trespassers at the first signs of trouble. These mobile officers are expertly trained in conflict de-escalation techniques and can help in averting an unwanted situation before it can ever develop into something more serious.
Those officers are also there to enforce the rules. You’ll have no doubt set out to keep your festival secure, safe and free of disruption, and that’s crucial for keeping everything running smoothly.
Leeds Fest, for example, clearly outlines how anyone caught without a wristband faces eviction from the grounds – your festive security guards are there to deal with those issues and to maintain the peace for legitimate festival-goers.
All festivals and outdoor performances will naturally have off-limits sections. If you’ve ever been to a festival, you’ll likely have seen those heavily reinforced areas, but the sheer extent is quite staggering (and so often unrealised by those not involved with festival security). These areas include:
Protecting these areas is paramount and further guarantees the smooth running and efficient operation of all areas of your festival. That’s particularly true when it comes to ensuring that essential equipment can be set up and deployed effectively, including staging and sound kit.
Your festival security staff are the ideal countermeasure to anyone who intends to harm or otherwise hinder your festival preparations. These expertly trained operatives can monitor key access points and stop the admission of any unauthorised visitors.
This is particularly effective in conjunction with robust and high-tech festival access control solutions, which encompasses simpler options (such as I.D. badges), as well as the very cutting edge of security technology (inclusive of facial recognition and biometric entry).
Of course, one of the most integral parts of your festival site is the designated entrances into your grounds. This is especially important for sites that have separate camping areas and performance areas, such as music festivals or multi-day events.
Your entrances act as the first point of contact for your guests and ensure that only those who’ve purchased tickets can gain entry to your site. You’ll need a comprehensive ticket scanning system, as well as a flowing system to ensure the smooth transition of guests.
This ties closely with our previous point on patrolling officers, who provide the more active counterpart to the entrance and exit security you’ll no doubt need. Many festivals opt for wristbands as these are a cheap and difficult-to-lose option for ensuring the right guests get admission to the right areas.
Festival security is a crucial part of this process, scanning tickets and directing guests where appropriate. This applies to festivals of all sizes, although it naturally has more of an integral role at larger or more sprawling events.
A critical component of any safe and secure entrance procedure at a festival involves searching bags and any other luggage your guests may be bringing with them. Security at a festival must be thoroughly vigilant to ensure that drugs don’t slip through the net, especially as recent statistics point towards an uptick in drug-related offences post-COVID.
Of course, while drugs are a huge cause for concern, they aren’t the only thing that festival security needs to be vigilant for.
Alcohol, weapons, glass containers and flammable materials are all contraband items for the vast majority of festivals, and, as an event organiser, you need to ensure that these don’t make their way onto site.
Your festival security staff should already be familiar with any specifics of your “banned items” list and be able to fully enforce those rules. Some festivals will naturally have stricter requirements, but the principles remain the same, and guests should already know what’s expected.
With effective festival security guarding, you can rest easy in the knowledge that your grounds are kept as secure and safe as possible and that no forbidden items can make their way onto your property.
Naturally, once your guests have been safely admitted to your site, there’s still more that your festival security can help with. Guards at a festival or event will have an intimate knowledge of where things are and can provide guidance and information to your guests when they most need it.
These guards will also be able to prevent any blockages or slowdown of your attendees and ensure that, once guests have come in, they’ll be able to move freely around the attractions and stages that you’ve laid out for them.
That’s also especially important after the last act finishes. Egress for your thousands of guests can prove a challenge, but festival security officers provide that seamless solution your visitors will be looking for.
There’s an overlap here, too. Performers, production staff and other members of the festival team need the time and space to safely clean up, pack up, and prepare for the next day if necessary. Festive security personnel help facilitate all of that without the interruption offered by unruly guests.
Plus, having guards on site who have an excellent level of familiarity with your unique site means you can enjoy the fruits of your labours and watch everything you’ve meticulously planned unfold.
Those who are familiar with British festivals might recall the infamous T in the Park, which ran annually in several locations across Scotland until its cancellation in 2016 due to multiple deaths on-site and widespread disruption.
While this is an extreme example, one of the key reasons behind stopping the festival was the amount of antisocial behaviour which marred what could’ve been a superb summer festival. It serves as a stark reminder that, while many festivals run smoothly year after year, there is always the risk of things going wrong.
The presence of festival security has seen an uptick since then, naturally, and it’s meant that modern festivals are among the safest they’ve ever been. While incidents like those the BBC reported on at Staffordshire’s Stafford Walking Street festival in 2023 are still there, they’re rarer than they had been previously.
Much of that falls to the impact of festival security personnel, as well as their pivotal role as a connection point between festival organisers, attendees and the Police.
While an emergency happening at your festival is the last thing you’d like to think about, they can and do happen. That’s been well-recognised, of course – community resources, national initiatives like St. John’s Ambulance, and the emergency services themselves are so often on hand at festivals and large-scale events to provide that support.
However, with so many areas to cover and resources at a premium, trained festival security guards can act as that bridge between your attendees and the necessary treatment they need. Staging areas and bars are often crowded places, but they’re also where there’s most likely to be issues.
Your festival security officers can be the first responders and, with the right professionals from a company like ProFM, can even administer basic first aid to ensure that the person or people are kept safe until the emergency services do arrive.
This all links back to a point we made earlier – festival security revolves centrally around knowing the site (including visitor areas like camping grounds and toilet facilities), and by choosing to invest in that, you’re extending the coverage across every aspect of your festival.
Of course, as we’ve just seen, every inch of your festival should have some form of security presence. Whether that’s patrols around the boundaries of your site, or at the entrance to your grounds, there’s a clear and pressing need to have robust and comprehensive security for your festival in place.
However, as a general rule, there are a few areas that are in more dire need of strengthened festival security than others. This includes:
It’s crucial to keep in mind, though, that all events are different and will likely have their areas that are more in need of effective festival security coverage. It’s a certainty, however, that you’ll need strong security in at least one of the examples we’ve provided above.
As one of the more in-demand and sought-after forms of security, festival security guards have an extensive and diverse range of duties they’ll be expected to undertake. As standard, they will:
Of course, multiple duties extend beyond that core skill set, but these will often be tailored towards your unique circumstances and the demands of your event. For instance, if you’re running a motoring festival, your officers will likely need to have some awareness of the security concerns that arise from being around engines.
Similarly, if you’re looking at security for a music festival, your security personnel will need to be aware of the expected crowd, if there’s likely to be moshpits or other distractions, and what the expected start and ending times are for that set.
With such a broad range of aspects to consider when planning for the security of your festival, it’s essential you choose a provider that’s not only capable of accommodating those needs but doing so in an all-encompassing package.
With ProFM, we’ve got a robust, 3 step process that takes your festival or event from little to no existing security to a fully planned, meticulous service that’s specifically designed with you and your unique circumstances in mind.
A huge part of securing a festival is those initial management plans. While you may have a complete knowledge of the layout and overall map of your festival grounds, it’s often another step entirely to consider the security presence you’ll need.
That’s where ProFM truly begin to excel. With our dedicated team of Events experts, we’re one of very few festival security companies to be able to provide a comprehensive, tailor-made plan for the security of your festival.
We’ll be in constant contact throughout this and every stage of your contract with us, ensuring that we’re as knowledgeable about the specifications of your festival or event as you are. It’s part of the custom-built approach we take to every security project we undertake.
As part of this, we’ll provide tailor-made security information on:
We’ll use this information, in conjunction with any further factors you’d like us to consider, to create an event security plan from the ground up.
This also encompasses the very latest in Counter Terrorism and large events planning guidance from the UK government.
As part of our commitment to keeping channels of communication open and active, we’ll keep in regular contact as we work on the plans for your bespoke festival security package. Once they’re finished, you’ll naturally have the final say.
This is a key component of our process. We’re firm believers that, while we’ll get to know your event inside and out, nobody can understand its constraints and selling points in the same way you do. Plus, our discussions don’t necessarily have to be over the phone or a video call.
As part of the whole process, we’ll take the time to visit your site personally, ensuring that we not only have the drawn-up plans and visual overview of the site, but that we’re completely familiar with the security we’ll be providing.
Seeing the site in person also gives us the opportunity to get to know you. Festivals are often on a recurring, annual basis, and we’re naturally keen to ensure that we’re your chosen provider for years to come and that we’re the right match for each other.
This is where the wheels really start to turn, and you can gain a more concrete understanding of how we work and what you’ll be receiving by choosing ProFM. We’ve got a few different factors in this regard that really set us apart.
We’re the UK’s #1 security company. An independently audited metric, this certifies us to be an exceptional provider, and one that’s been able to provide consistent, tailor-made security solutions across a range of different sectors, industries and events.
This is unparalleled across other festival security providers, and it’s a figure we’re exceptionally proud to have achieved over the last 3 years. We can provide, and have provided, security solutions that are completely scalable to exactly what you need.
We’ve got a huge network of security operatives. Not only does this mean that we can offer festival security coverage regardless of where you’re based, but it also means that we’re in the perfect position to offer huge-scale security solutions – an absolute must when considering the often massive scope of festivals and other events of that nature.
We can provide 24/7/365 coverage. Festivals, regardless of their size, are very rarely a self-contained event, with preparation in the days leading up to the event itself and often spanning multiple days or over the course of a weekend.
With ProFM’s expansive Control Room, you’ll have constant contact throughout your event, providing you with the reassurance and safety net you need to run an event that’s true to what you envisioned.
We operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, and are always on hand with the support and guidance you need. Our guards are also able to be deployed throughout the day, and our extensive network means we can offer 24/7 guarding and patrolling across the duration of your festival.
Of course, now that we’ve rigorously planned and discussed your security plans, we’ll start implementing the solutions we’ve agreed upon. This is where we truly start to shine and where you can really see the extensive benefits of choosing ProFM for your festival security needs.
You’ll have access to the full scope of our professional Control Room, as well as our expertly trained security operatives on site, all of whom have had extensive training across a huge range of areas.
They’ll be perfectly positioned to ensure all of the duties we mentioned earlier are carried out to the highest possible degree of effectiveness and with consummate professionalism throughout. That also extends to the de-escalation of conflict or trouble and maintaining a good flow of people and staff throughout the duration of your event.
You’ll have the support of our guards and other personnel throughout the duration of your festival, as well as in the aftermath, to ensure the safe and secure removal of stages, equipment, and vehicles from the grounds.
All of this is included as part of your price, and we’re more than happy to discuss any and all additional services throughout your contract with us. If you’re keen to get started now, get in touch with our knowledgeable operatives today!
Event Security
Event Security