SMT Online was invited to attend the behind-closed-doors Showsec pre-event staff briefing held in the – as yet unopened – Premier Bar at 5.30 pm (for which each supervisor was given their own checklist).
Important comments were made by Joe Milner (Showsec’s head of security for the Maiden gig), supervisor Sam Hodkin (who, by the way, has just passed his education in the Showsec Management Development Academy with flying colours) and Tony Preston in front of 17 other key staff involved with the event (among them Sarah Cropley, Gareth Slight and Richard Davey who were going to be looking after the main show floor space).
Hodkin mentioned the fact that all staff had to be particularly alert as this was the first concert back for some time (there tends to be a tailing off in the summer, with most bands booking-in between September and Christmas).
There was also a warning on the potential for walk-up sales of tickets, which can sometimes create crowd congestion and irritation among punters if they (a) aren’t served quickly and (b) tickets sell out before they reach for the credit card or hard currency.
The ‘first-to-the-barrier’ winners were each to be given a green wristband and assigned a designated area in which to queue inside the main foyer ahead of everyone else.
That said, events like this are now moving away from ‘wrist-banding’ towards a situation whereby fans who leave the floor area for a comfort break or whatever are asked to collect a ticket from designated stewards (as they’ll have handed their original to a steward on entry). They then gain re-entry with that ticket, and collect one at the end of the evening (not the one they bought, though) as a souvenir. “This is a much faster way of doing things,” insisted Showsec’s Midlands regional manager Richard Church, “and allows for a freer flow of people.”
Hodkin told the assembled staff to be ready for egress (that’s to say fans leaving the venue) at just before 11.00 pm when the curfew on the venue kicks in as far as no more live music for the night is concerned.
Two students on placement assignments were there to see how the Showsec team operated in a real life scenario.
Variety of backstage/area access passes
Having mentioned the need for staff members to “look out” for said individuals, the well spoken and obviously highly thought of young supervisor ventured that “merchandising and bar areas have done fantastically well on this tour”. Your Editor can vouch for that, having spent close on GB pound 100 on Tour T-shirts alone.
Hodkin also discussed catering arrangements on the concourse, noting that Showsec staff in these areas were duty bound to direct any hungry Heavy Metal fans towards all available concession areas by way of avoiding bottlenecks.
What came to light in particular during this briefing was the number of passes issued in relation to different areas of the venue. There were seven different passes in total, each depicting Eddie and the famous Iron Maiden logo. The blue pass, for instance, allowed backstage area access but no such privileges in terms of entry to Iron Maiden’s dressing room. This also carried the legend ‘AAA… Nearly’
There were also special passes for photographic journalists – who, out of interest, were only allowed to shoot pictures during the first three Maiden numbers and not permitted to use flash photography – and green badges for everyone allowed to get their hands on the Front of House mixing desk.
Further to the photography restrictions, no paying punter was allowed to audio or video record proceedings, but then again that policy has been standard practice for some time now. It would later be communicated to any member of the public deemed to be breaking the rules.
It’s a policy that doesn’t seem to stop ‘The Smartphone Brigade’ from taking their own video/pictures and posting them to Facebook or YouTube… Not every band is behind the ‘New Wave of Social Media’, and indeed YouTube has started to block some such content.
Checking the tickets: vitally important
One of the most important security functions at events like this one is, of course, ticket checking.
One attempted scam often tried at gigs these days is devious to say the least. People will enter with their own ticket which is duly scanned. They’ll then try and pass that ticket back over the barriers to someone else who’ll subsequently attempt to enter the arena with the same ‘brief’ (as they’re called north of the border).
As well as asking his colleagues to be mindful of this, Sam Hodkin also touched on the fact that special effects – including smoke and strobe lighting – would be deployed (it wouldn’t be a Maiden gig without them, folks) and that “good customer service is expected at all times”.
For the foyer area and on the doors there were to be “random and visual searches only” (with pass-outs for smokers allowed only through the foyer). There was a requirement to lock down the nine lanes of entrance barriers, and make sure all ticket scanners were on charge prior to crowd ingress.
The concourse briefing read: “Check disabled seating is secure… Ensure staff members are trained in use of call buttons… Staff to be seen as being proactive at any available opportunity… Staff to check their areas before crowd ingress, and be in position for a concourse hold… Staff to be fully aware of relocating procedure…”
Codes were in place for the internal radio systems in terms of both emergencies and when identifying individuals in the crowd. For example, ‘Jack’ was the radio code for any missing male child, and ‘Jill’ – funnily enough – the code for any female child who happened to have been separated from their parent or guardian.
Venue policy at the Capital FM Arena is that no-one under 14 years of age is allowed on the show floor without an accompanying adult.
IC1 was the description used for a white male, IC2 for anyone originating from the Mediterranean or Hispanic regions, IC5 for Chinese or Japanese people, etc, etc.
As you would expect, Hodkin made a point of stating Security Industry Authority licences had to be displayed at all times – “in a lanyard attached to the left shoulder” – by those wearing them. Only licence holders would have the legal power to eject people from the venue should they have misbehaved in any way or have been deemed to cause a danger to others (by dint of being drunk and disorderly, for example).
On the First Aid front, the St John’s Ambulance crew had established a special triage area just in case there was anyone in need of immediate medical attention. Post-event reports on this area and all others would be fed back to Hodkin for analysis.
Showsec’s manager for the backstage area, Tony Preston, was next to deliver a briefing and it was he who explained the various passes produced for the evening. Apparently, Kerrang! Magazine had called to say they would be sending someone along whose mission it was to try and breach backstage security – by employing ‘suggested hypnotism’ on security and safety personnel – and then ‘invade’ the stage. There was no such encroachment.
Words of wisdom from the head of security
The team briefing session was then concluded by Joe Milner. He mentioned the fact that, like many bands, Maiden’s cohort (aside from drummer Nicko McBrain and vocalist Bruce Dickinson we’re talking about guitarists Adrian Smith, Dave Murray and Janick Gers as well as bass player Steve ‘arry Harris) like to finish a gig by throwing plectrums/drum sticks, etc into the crowd for some lucky fans to have a cracking souvenir that money can’t buy.
“Be aware that this might cause surges in the crowd,” said Milner. “Before that, though, look after the pace of entry to the show floor. Do not declare an area ‘Green’ [safe and secure] if it’s not. As Sam has said, this is the first gig back for a lot of people on the team after a break so make sure everyone’s aware of what they’re supposed to be doing and when.”
On the night there were two main Control Rooms in use. The CCTV Control Room – the real ‘hub’ for the building management at the Capital FM Arena – is located in the basement. The other is the fulcrum for all radio communications, etc, and operates only when events are in play. There are three radio channels: one for security, one for general FM and another for the medics.
Sam Oldham – deputy general manager for the venue’s own in-house team, and who has now been a part of that team for the last four years – explained: “The on-site CCTV system is all-digital and tied-in to the fire system. If there’s an incident, specific cameras are programmed to immediately monitor exit points. There are over 70 cameras in all, including a mixture of PTZ and dome models.”
All of the CCTV operators have to hold the basic security licence as well as the CCTV operator licence, while images captured are stored for the required 31 days.
View from the client side
The management team and staff at the National Ice Centre and Capital FM Arena in Nottingham have enjoyed “many successes” and “faced many challenges” during 2010-2011.
“The business has been confronted by a number of pressures,” said Geoff Huckstep, the venue’s CEO, “with public skating, smaller-scale conferences and secondary spending in bars, catering areas and merchandise all suffering from the prevailing economic climate.”
However, in the last 12 months a mixture of acts have taken to the stage graced most recently by Iron Maiden, including Whitney Houston, Justin Beiber, Lady Gaga, Michael Buble, Rod Stewart and Rihanna. On top of that, comedy shows played to sell-out audiences drawn to the venue by the likes of Peter Kay and Tim Minchin.
Family events like Cirque du Soleil, Michaael Flatley’s Lord of the Dance and the Doctor Who show featuring the Daleks and the Cybermen have also come to town.
During the period covered by the latest Annual Report there has been much success for the Arena, with significant increases in both annual and single event hospitality sales, the naming rights partnership with Capital FM firmed up and staff absences decreasing to just over 3% (almost 1% lower than the average UK industry rate).
Everything that happens in the Capital Arena is focused on generating profits that will assist Great Britain to produce the best national and international standard skaters.
Huckstep came to work at the venue back in October 2001 following a highly successful career as CEO at the London Irish and London Wasps – two of the country’s top professional rugby teams.
Prior to these appointments, Huckstep – who holds a Master of Arts degree in Strategic Leisure Management gained at Brunel University – was CEO at Bisham Abbey National Sports Centre, a post he held for eight years.
It’s fair to say that his astute dealings in relation to commercial opportunities – combined with a strict hands-on management approach at the Capital FM Arena – have achieved outstanding results in all areas of the business.
In fact, he has delivered years of consecutive growth (including a 40% increase in event ticket sales during 2005-2006 and much sponsorship support from valued and key partner organisations).
“Making sure the business is profitable is all about appointing the right people for the right roles,” explained Huckstep, who went on to outline the significance of the venue management team’s close working relationship with Showsec.
Describing the partnership approach
“As a business, we’re a wholly-owned subsidiary of Nottingham City Council,” continued Huckstep. “They’re very much into achieving best value, solid relationships with suppliers and set structures that work well. Over the last decade we’ve put the security and safety contract out to tender twice and, on both occasions, Showsec won the day. The relationship between the two parties has really grown.”
Huckstep – the current chairman of the National Arenas Association – pointed to the fact that he feels there are lots of aggressive companies wanting to do business with him when it comes to event management, but he’ll not deviate from the path he wishes to follow.
“They’ve been here with their sharpened pencils, and only really want to deal on price. We deal in people. It’s vitally important to have the right quality of staff in place.”
He added: “Good customer service from our chosen partner will lead to people coming back. Showsec’s staff are very much members of the team here. We don’t view the organisation as our contractor. The very fact that other companies send their staff to Showsec for training speaks volumes.”
The CEO referred to “an extremely good relationship” with Nottinghamshire Police. In fact, the Capital FM Arena is one of only a handful of venues with a Dispersal Order in place for its immediate environment, which means that unwanted ticket touts and bootleg merchandise vendors can be moved on. “In fact, we’re the most licensed venue in the city,” enthused Huckstep.
Moving on to Security Industry Authority licensing and regulation and whether or not that has brought about genuine improvements from the client’s perspective, Huckstep thought for a moment before offering his response.
“When the Security Industry Authority came into being every venue had to up its game, Brian. I was a little sceptical at first, but now look on regulation very positively indeed. I can see the benefits brought about by the additional training, and a general improvement in the level of respect for event security staff from the public at large.”
At this point, it was time to stop working and settle down for some classic Maiden…
The show’s over, folks… Time to head home
As the final salvos of Running Free came to a halt, the venue lights shone bright again, ‘Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life’ ventured from the in-house PA and stage set ‘breakdown’ began, with roadies working their socks off as always.
That dismantling process was fascinating enough, but then it was time to watch the marshalling operation aimed at making sure all the Maiden fans left the venue in a safe and orderly fashion.
The Showsec event stewards and supervisors controlled egress so well, moving forward in timely rows to ensure there were no issues.
In truth, the only danger we could see looking down from Suite 28 was the potential trip hazard presented by the thousands of plastic pint glasses piled up on the floor, but they were summarily shunted out of harm’s way by industrial-sized brooms and plonked into recycling bins.
According to the upcoming gig list none other than Sir Cliff Richard is due at the Capital FM Arena in the next few weeks. Somehow, I can’t see his audience being much trouble for the security team. More Mums than metallers, methinks…
SMT Online would like to thank Geoff Huckstep, Mark Harding, Joe Milner and Richard Church for their invaluable assistance during the preparation of this two-part feature