Theatre - How safe are you???

Putting on a Play or a Show????? – How safe are you?

Now, I am a man, who is steeped in theatre, and as a chairman of a theatre group myself, I know that the pressures that people can come under in what is only supposed to be their hobby. I write this article with two hats on….one as a theatre practitioner and the other as an H&S professional. Now, don’t get me wrong, the purpose of this piece, is not to scare everyone - or indeed to get everyone rushing out to do massive amounts of work (although that could be the case….)

Readers of the Daily Mail will know that there is a perceived ‘Health & Safety’ culture in the UK – that basically revolves around organisations and local authorities saying – ‘Thou Shall Not’! In some instances, though not all, this is fully justified – as there have been countless cases whereby people have been seriously injured.

So, what does H&S mean to me? Well, ask yourself these questions…..

• Do I take part in amateur theatre – as a director, stage manager, producer, chairman or committee member?
• Do I have members / actors / performers that take part in this with me?
• Does the society have a constitution (if you have a bank account then you should have one)?
• Does the society have its own building?
• Do you hire venues and/ or equipment?
• Does the society include vulnerable persons – such as children?

If the answer to any of these questions is yes – and I am sure that most could answer ‘yes’ to more than one, then I am afraid that the laws of the land do apply to you. The sharp amongst you would say, well the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 (and subsequent regulations) refers to ‘employees’ and we don’t employ anyone….however, in the context of amateur theatre, when you part take in such an activity, the HSE looks upon those persons as ‘at work’.

I can almost smell the seething and angst that is emanating from you reading this article – nothing makes the blood boil more than reading about this sort of stuff….stuff that will get in the way of your love and passion for performing / building sets / directing / messing about with the lights etc!! I couldn’t agree more, and I feel your frustration – but it isn’t all doom and gloom…..in fact, things are pretty simple. There isn’t a massive amount to do, but you have to tackle them - you cannot just ignore them, that would be silly. I would wager that most amateur theatre groups are a very sensible lot – who don’t do too many daft things, and go about their business in a cautious and safe manner. If this is the case – you are well on your way to being sorted in this area….if you are not (not that I would get many people to admit to being reckless), then read on anyway…..

So, what is it that you need to do??? Well, there are some options….the law says that companies with more than 5 employees should have a written H&S policy and undertake risk assessments. From my previous comment, you could argue that we don’t pay anyone – therefore we have no employees – but remember that this is a situation whereby, if the worst should happen, that the law sees it in a different way. At the very least companies / societies should look to having some sort of written policy in relation to H&S and risk management. This doesn’t need to be extensive – nor does it need to cost you a fortune to do it!! A policy should include a statement of intent - showing that you are serious about your members, your patrons and others, safety & welfare; responsibilities – so who does what within your society; and organisation, so how you manage the whole process.

The majority of work that societies need to undertake – which should be ongoing, is to assess the risks for your society. Written risk assessments, caution and objectivity are good benchmarks – and putting pen to paper on these matters can be a very prudent measure. In order to carry out risk assessments – you first must look at the hazards and the types of activities that you are undertaking. As a for instance, each production should have some form of risk assessment completed. This should be objective and list clearly all the regular and significant activities that could go on….such as erecting scenery, staging, rigging, rehearsal spaces, working at height (with lighting and sound), Fire, Manual Handling, painting, working in the dark, working with electricity, working with children etc.

The object of completing a risk assessment is to identify the hazards, which persons will be at risk, note what precautions (controls) you are undertaking already, and note new & further precautions that you need to take. From this some form of method statement can be produced – a guide if you like. This might seem a lot of work, but there are some positives here – many of the things listed will be the same for most productions – however, there may be a production that involves some further technical shenanigans that you would need to consider – so reviewing your risk assessments for each production is a very good practice – as it ensures that you look at things freshly and with an objective eye. One specific piece of guidance for theatre buildings – is that you need, if you haven’t already done so, to carry out (or get one carried out for you) a Fire Risk Assessment. Fire certificates are no longer issued (in most cases) and therefore an FRA should be completed if you own your building.


I hope that I haven’t made you too miserable and spoiled your reading of DAWN, but please remember this – when you go on stage or to a rehearsal, is would be nice to think that you would return home triumphant at your artistic achievements but also that you were safe, and injury free.