I have just read the HSE's response to the cancellation of the Northamptonshire Beer Festival. Stating that: "On behalf of the Health and Safety Executive I would like to reassure people there is nothing in health and safety law to prevent the event from going ahead" http://www.hse.gov.uk/pr...hsegen&cr=8/4-feb-13 But the HSE have on their website a raft of H&S instructions for managing events and make the following statement: "Your duties as an event organiser You are responsible for ensuring that overall safety at the event is maintained so that as far as reasonably practicable, people setting up, breaking down and attending the event are not exposed to risks to their health and safety." I can't help but think that the HSE are sending mixed messages in this instance. A bit of research shows this to be a 4 day event with an average attendance of 10,000, featuring 300 guest beers and live music , so not a small event and would certainly warrant good organisation including health and safety management. What do others think of this, is it sending mixed messages? Lisa

I think reading the article the event, to me, reads that there are insufficient volunteers and expertise in the first instance. Duly, they understand their DOC and are not prepared to run the event. I personal don’t think the HSE statement does much but to jump in and say it’s nothing to do with H&S. I know from an running events the volunteer and their commitment will make or break the actual running of the event, as they have already said, it puts the organisers at risk. Is it a mixed message? I don’t think so. With such a high turnout of people there needs to be those in the background to run it. There isn’t. So it cannot run.

They don't need to wish - Its a fact!? The HSE take criminal enforcement action via the HASAWA as an umbrella Act and Regulations underneath it - they are not interested in Civil law and never have been! Really :-)

Perhaps things would be "clearer" if HSE said that this was nothing to do with HSE's enforcement powers, and not that it isn't to do with "H&S".

Unfortunately we have gotten to a stage where H&S means different things to different people. As far as the HSE is concerned it is to do with Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and the associated legislation and nothing else- not RRFSO nor civil liability. For H&S professionals H&S is a wider term and for most includes Fire safety, civil liability and other issues involved in the management of places of work. Finally there’s ‘elf and safety’ which is a catch all term issued by the Daily Wail et al to describe any silly ( and probably made up) bureaucratic procedures. Each of these uses the term for different reasons: The HSE has become very defensive and is trying to establish its ground clearly and narrowly The H&S professionals need a wider remit because that is what they do and the media are just trying to sell stores to people who don’t really care but like to moan.

To respond to damelcfc I think I know what the HSE’s remit is. Perhaps I didn’t make myself clear…. I think the HSE are confusing the picture and trying to portray “health and safety” as being very much to do with workplace matters – to the exclusion of everything else. The HSE would quickly consider procuring the festival organisers if a beer tent went up in flames and attendees at the beer festival were unable to escape because there were no/insufficient exits, no fire/emergency plan etc. I think AK has put his finger on it when he says H&S means different things to different people and perhaps there is no point in worrying about it! I do agree that some of the HSE’s comments give the impression of them having become “defensive” – which is a great pity. In my area – that of liability insurance – there is a seamless connection that starts with hazard recognition, runs through risk assessment and management, into the accident scenario, perhaps criminal prosecution and then into civil action for compensation. It’s all health and safety to me! Phil

=pete48] If you then go on to read the comments by the event organiser he clearly feels that he has insufficient H&S expertise or access to it in order to meet the organisational aspects of H&S for the event. That is the real reason for the cancellation and the HSE are quite right to counter the implication that H&S law is stopping this event.

As suspected before opening the link it is 'a lack of volunteers'. Bit of background info, i worked on that festival for about 2 years before it moved to Delapre Abbey in Northampton, it was previously on a island between a river and canal and that was more work as one small bridge to get all the equipment and beer over. Suppose if not enough volunteers it will take longer to set up and take down, not enough people to serve the beer but more importantly not enough people to steward the event. In 2 weeks time the Liverpool Beer Festival starts which i will be working at, they've asked me to be the H & S person but that would entail me taking the week off work which i am unable to do BUT there will be one person operating in that role (and i am available to help when i'm there working) to do all the checks needed as per the CAMRA Beer Festival H & S rules & regs (as well as the RC Cathedral rules, regs and fire safety - in conjunction with the cathedral security staff who are excellent). There is a Head Steward and pairs of stewards to cover the whole event (one team have a break at one time). So probably about 12-15 people needed for that, then to sell the beer, hand out the glasses and sell the tokens you're looking at maybe 30-40 others volunteers. We have only just about covered the Saturday night that we were struggling with, would have still been fine but less or shorter breaks would have been taken. So, they are genuinely concerned with lack of volunteers that would mean they would have serious problems coping with all the work required not only on set up/take down but to be able to cover all the jobs involved, so yes Health & Safety is one of the reasons it has been cancelled by the sounds of it along with not enough people to serve the beer etc... Just a matter of needing x amount of people as an absolute minimum to run an event, if they could afford to pay them no doubt people would then 'volunteer...'