Organised events in the reserve

On Saturday, we heard from several sources that there was a tent pitched in Kestrel Field. As camping is not allowed on Council land, Clive went to take a look and reported:

It looks like there is an organised marked course around the reserve; orienteering? I’ve seen lots of people running round, many said hello as they ran past. All finished now, tent gone. I think it was a recording point.

Because it’s not obvious that event organisers need authorisation to hold events on Wiltshire Council land, Kevin Oliver, who is the Council’s authorising officer for such events, has asked us to post the following:

All events held on Wiltshire Council land must be authorised and approved. Therefore, event organisers must consult, in the first instance, with Kevin Oliver, the Land Authorising Officer (AO) at kevin.oliver@wiltshire.gov.uk.  The AO will be able to offer advice in the development of the event management, safety plan and risk assessments.

In certain circumstances, the AO may invite event organisers to meet to discuss specific proposals in more detail. The AO will provide general guidance about how to approach planning and management safely while leaving scope for flexibility to take account of the exact nature and size of the event.

It is the responsibility of the organisers to ensure that safety regulations apply to all events however large or small, including charity, and volunteer events.

If you have authorisation, it will ensure that your event and its participants are safe, and it will avoid the possibility of a clash with other events taking place at the same time.

Thanks.