Showsec’s Manchester office implemented a detailed crowd management and security operation for Manchester City FC’s victory parade on Monday 14 May 2012.
Over 100,000 Manchester City fans flocked to the centre of town to celebrate the team being crowned Premier League Champions for the first time since 1968.
The event and venue security specialist worked to a tight timeframe, planning two separate parades while waiting to see who would win this year’s trophy. Manchester City clinched the title with a dramatic 3-2 win over Queens Park Rangers, thus denying bitter rivals Manchester United one of the ultimate prizes in football.
Showsec area manager Mark Wilcock said: “Planning an event of this size would usually require up to six months. In this case we had two weeks, finalising the plans once the winners were announced. We’ve worked on the victory parade for many years so were able to confidently execute a full security operation within the timeframe.”
Partnership approach to crowd safety
Working closely with all stakeholders including the police, fire safety teams, ambulance crews, local retailers and Manchester City Council, Showsec provided on-route crowd management, security for VIP areas and close protection.
Road closures were also in place for the parade, which began at Albert Square and stretched across a 1.8 mile radius through the city centre ending at Corporation Street.
Wilcock and Showsec’s operation executives Tom Bailey and Tim Chambers led a team of 350 staff including 250 Security Industry Authority-licensed professionals and 50 supervisors.
“For this particular event we created a bubble,” explained Bailey, “which is essentially a shield of protective staff keeping an eye on the crowd. The team walked alongside and encompassed the VIP bus to prevent anyone breaking through the barriers, and provided additional protection for the Manchester City players aboard the bus as well as members of the general public.”
As the bus continued along the parade route, more Showsec staff were deployed in key locations and joined the bubble to keep the bus and the spectators safe.
Contolled zone in Albert Square
At the non-ticketed event, Showsec executed a controlled zone in Albert Square with a ‘no alcohol’ policy. Consistent liaison with licensed premises prior to the event was required to ensure the policy was supported.
Bailey continued: “Albert Square has a capacity of 10,000 people so we secured all entrances with lanes. This helped us control the number of people entering the site and ensured safe and fluid crowd flow. We counted people coming in and out to ensure capacity was not exceeded, and also implemented bag searches where necessary to ensure no alcohol made it on site.”
He added: “The key aim for us throughout the parade was to ensure that everyone on site remained safe and enjoyed the celebrations. It’s been 44 years since Manchester City FC has won a top flight trophy in a top flight league so customer care was a core part of our service as life-long fans, families and children joined in the celebrations.”
Mark Wilcock concluded: “The staff were excellent. They carried out their duties effectively and efficiently, clearly using the information they had been given in their briefings. The quality of work carried out, along with the excellent behaviour shown by the fans, ensured another successful home coming parade in the city.”
Showsec kick-starts the summer with BBC Radio 1
Showsec celebrated the start of its 2012 summer festival season, delivering security and crowd management for ‘BBC Radio 1 Starts the Summer’ live in Torbay, Devon last Saturday (19 May 2012).
The free ticketed event attracted a young demographic of 8,000 16-20 year olds who had been allocated tickets through their colleges across the South West region to see Radio 1 DJs including Fearne Cotton, Annie Mac and Example perform on stage.
Showsec’s Wales and South West office provided 80 security professionals for the event, project managed by Wales area manager Martin Lewis who liaised with BBC Radio 1’s management to ensure effective crowd management solutions were executed in line with the event’s unique requirements.
The event marked Showsec’s 12th year of working with Radio 1 organisers to provide security planning, crowd management and customer care for live music events which match with the high standards of the BBC brand.
First green field event of 2012
Showsec’s Richard Church, head of security for the event, commented: “Radio 1’s Summer Dance Party is Showsec’s first green field event of the year. The high standards indicate our improved capabilities for the busy summer ahead.”
Church continued: “Given the young audience of the event, our team shared strict briefing guidelines to ensure our procedures reflected the large 16-20 age profile. Particular vigilance regarding ID checks and awareness of the potential misuse of alcohol was an important part of the operation. Our Duty of Care has been towards the young audience attending without adult supervision.”
The event was particularly exciting for visitors as the Olympic Torch made an appearance on stage later in the evening for the first day of its historic UK tour.
In conclusion, Church told Info4Security: “Showsec has worked with BBC Radio 1 for many years and our team has liaised extensively with its management to deliver a security operation consistent with Showsec’s experience and reputation for delivering a high level of service at BBC Radio 1 events.”