As the sun starts to shed the clouds and gloom of its winter attire and Britain starts getting its yearly dose of summer fever it’s the ideal time to start planning this year’s festivals and parties.
Friday the 8th May 2015 marks the anniversary of VE day and what better time to take to the streets and celebrate in remembrance of this historical occasion. Then later in the year on the first Sunday of June, nationwide people get together as part of The Big Lunch. If you are planning such an event in your local area, it’s important that you are properly prepared. In light of this; we’ve developed a list of tips to help you organise a fun, safe and successful street party.
#1 Start Planning Early
If you are planning a street party and you need the road closed to increase space and safety make sure to start taking steps early to avoid any last minute stress. Whilst there are no laws or fees in the way of you completing this process, it is dependent on the efficiency and diligence of your local council. Whilst they should not make the process overly complicated for you and certainly shouldn’t try to charge you anything, they will need to know at least a couple weeks in advance of any planned road closures. This is so they can notify emergency services and begin the process that goes into a road closure.
#2 Will You Need A License?
Speak to your local authority, informing them that you intend to hold a street party to find out if any forms of permissions are required i.e. road closures, event licences, music licences or, on the off chance you have someone who is selling drinks; an alcohol licence.
#3 Insurance
We, like you, hope your event goes off without a single hitch. There are circumstances where insurance may be a requirement; for example if you want to close your road; or if the local authority tells you that you need to have it. You additionally may want insurance for peace of mind. A policy to cover you and your fellow organisers for any accidents that might occur. If you’re looking to take out street party insurance, we have been providing this policy for many years and we have specifically designed it to provide you with comprehensive and competitive cover.
#4 Ascertain Attendance
The quicker you can be certain of how many people are going to be in attendance, the better you can cater to their needs, so try to ensure potential attendees RSVP quickly. A surprise increase in attendees could lead to difficulties when it comes to any insurance policies or event licences which you may have in place.
#5 Don’t Do It All Yourself
One of the greatest aspects of a street party is the way that it brings a community together. We believe it’s a good idea that you don’t take on the entire project by yourself; speak with fellow residents and neighbours to see if they’d like to help out in any way. Delegation can be key to the success of your event and you’ll find that most people may be happy to help, it’s also a great chance to get to know each other. You might be surprised by what skills and talents the people around you possess.
#6 Make It Fun For Everyone
When it comes to entertainment we all have very different tastes so try to offer a variety of activities; food, music, games etc so that it suits as many of them as possible. Remember your guests are a beautiful bunch coming from different backgrounds and you want to at least try to provide something for all of them. Young or old, veggie or carnivore, every religion and every taste, they are all your neighbours and they all deserve to leave with a smile on their face.
#7 Enjoy Yourselves
When that big day finally comes around we hope that all the planning and preparation put in pays off and you and all those invited have a day to remember. Events like a street party or a big lunch are such a great way to foster community and closeness within your neighbourhood, so make some new friends and have a great day with old ones.
We wish you all the best for your event. If you need any more information on planning or organising your event you can visit either the street party website or the big lunch http://www.thebiglunch.com/ website, both contain a wealth of resources and good information.