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UK Bodies Share Advice For Festivals Ahead Of Next Summer
Christian Eede , October 14th, 2020 13:10

A document put together between the Association Of Independent Festivals, the Events Industry Forum and Attitude Is Everything recommends mask-wearing and other measures

A number of UK music and events industry organisations have come together to produce a document to guide festivals on how they might be able to proceed in the summer of 2021 as the country continues to battle the COVID-19 pandemic.

The advice is led by the Association Of Independent Festivals, the Events Industry Forum (EIF) and Attitude Is Everything, while the Department For Digital, Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) and Public Health England (PHE) have also offered additional guidance.

Amongst the key suggestions within the document is that festival-goers may have to wear face masks as a means of helping to limit the spread of the virus. On this specific area, the document says: "Face Coverings – worn at all times by all public attendees and front-of-house staff, how will they be advised of this and how will it be implemented?"

Effective use of the track and trace app, and the UK's overall track and trace system, is also cited within the document as key to ensuring that festivals can take place as safely as possible next summer.

The advice comes in the wake of a summer of festival cancellations, incurring heavy losses for promoters as a result of insurance policies that did not anticipate a pandemic like COVID-19 happening.

"Risk mitigation is what festival promoters do for a living, so the intent of this guidance is to outline COVID-19-specific planning considerations that will allow for bespoke risk assessment approaches in liaison with relevant authorities and agencies," the Association Of Independent Festivals CEO Paul Reed said.

You can view the guidance, which will be updated on an ongoing basis, here.