Hosting Handbook

Venues host (most of) the Programme at Greenbelt and are the place where contributors and Greenbelters get to share the joy of the festival through talks, music and much more. Venue Hosts have a key role in making that happen.

Key Points:

• If there is a change to the programme, contact the Programming Office urgently and Event Control who can help publicise the change.
• Be polite and helpful to all contributors, even when telling them they have overrun and must stop! Most Greenbelters come to the festival to see and hear the contributors and we want to make the experience the best for everyone. 
• Welcome contributors make sure that they are comfortable and have the things they need – check with the Programming Office if there are any questions.
• Contributors have been given every opportunity to advise Greenbelt of their technical needs, and Greenbelt will have advised if their technical need will be provided. 
• If a contributor requests something that they have not previously requested or been advised that is available, please do not make any promises. Call in this request to the programming office via Channel 4 on the radio, who will advise if there is a possibility of this being provided. Our Host Tech team may also be able to help with this.
• Your contributor will have been given a Greenbelt water bottle in the Green Room on arrival, we are not able to provide water in every venue. (Refreshments for volunteers are available from the Volunteers Lounges. The closest one to us is Volunteer Lounge 2, behind No Fly Zone)
• In previous years some venues have had ‘comperes’. This year only The Glade Stage, and the Canopy and have Comperes. In your venue you will be responsible for helping the audience get in, passing on key Greenbelt messages and introducing the contributor(s). There are some key events when you may have someone to introduce or handle Q&A, especially for contributors that we might be expecting awkward questions for.
• Greenbelt aims to keep everyone up to date on all the latest information. This will usually be done by the Venue Host, who will be required to make announcements from the stage. The Host Team Leaders will keep you informed of any key messages that need to be delivered.

How to make an introduction 

Greenbelt describes itself on its website as ‘somewhere that welcomes absolutely anyone and everyone. Particularly those of us who sometimes feel like we don’t belong anywhere else.’

Our job as hosts is to be the embodiment of that, the face of the festival the people who welcome everyone. We hold the responsibility to welcome and introduce our guests/ artists/speakers to our Greenbelt audience. 

Greenbelt audiences are like no other they are often extremely committed both to the festival and to the people they have come to see, they are wonderful, passionate, and diverse. They are not always seasoned ‘festival’ people, some have been coming for years and some are brand new this year. Our job is to welcome all. 

So here are a few guidelines – forgive us if you know all this. 

Identity

Firstly some notes about identity. 

Try not to make any assumptions about people’s gender. You can’t tell someone’s gender or if they identify as non-binary simply by looking at them. 

If you’re not sure what pronouns someone uses, ask. Greenbelt has asked all our contributors this year which pronoun they would like us to use- so you will find this in the venue guide notes- but if in doubt ASK. Different non-binary people may use different pronouns. Many non-binary people use “they” while others use “he” or “she,” but they might have another form they wish you to use- a gender neutral or gender inclusive pronoun. Some languages, such as English, do not have a gender neutral or third gender pronoun available, and this is a source of frustration to the transgender and gender queer communities.

Asking whether someone should be referred to as “he,” “she,” “they,” or another pronoun may feel awkward at first, but is one of the simplest and most important ways to show respect for someone’s identity. Just to note although you will occasionally hear the term “preferred pronouns,” it’s not always the best term to use because it implies that a person’s gender is just a preference. So, try not to say, ‘what’s your preferred pronoun?’ but rather, ‘what pronoun should I use to introduce you?’ 

Non-Binary Defined

Most people – including most transgender people – are either male or female. But some people don’t neatly fit into the categories of “man” or “woman,” or “male” or “female.” For example, some people have a gender that blends elements of being a man or a woman, or a gender that is different than either male or female. Some people don’t identify with any gender. Some people’s gender changes over time. People whose gender is not male, or female use many different terms to describe themselves, with non-binary being one of the most common. Other terms include genderqueer, agender, bigender, and more. None of these terms mean exactly the same thing – but all speak to an experience of gender that is not simply male or female.

You don’t have to understand what it means for someone to be non-binary to respect them. Some people haven’t heard a lot about non-binary genders or have trouble understanding them, and that’s okay. But identities that some people don’t understand still deserve respect.

Non-binary people are nothing new. Non-binary people aren’t confused about their gender identity or following a new fad. Some, but not all, non-binary people undergo medical procedures to make their bodies more congruent with their gender identity. 

Most transgender people are not non-binary. While some transgender people are non-binary, most transgender people have a gender identity that is either male or female and should be treated like any other man or woman.

Being non-binary is not the same thing as being intersex. Intersex people have anatomy or genes that don’t fit typical definitions of male and female. Most intersex people identify as either men or women. Non-binary people are usually not intersex: they’re usually born with bodies that may fit typical definitions of male and female, but their innate gender identity is something other than male or female.

How to say hello to your crowd/ audience

When greeting or making first ‘contact’ with those in your venue please do not use “Ladies and Gentlemen”. Find something that feels comfortable to you, The London Underground recently changed all its announcements that used to start, Ladies and Gentlemen to ‘Everyone’. But you could try, ‘friends’ or ‘greenbelters’ or my favourite, ‘hello lovely people who have found their way into (insert name of venue) tonight. Or ‘welcome, hello fabulous (insert name of venue) folks’. 

You could try Y’all– but if you aren’t from the Southern States of the USA you might sound odd. Practice with your family or friends and see what works for you! 

I know some people use ‘ guys’ but that is still gendered so try not to.

If you are in a venue where things are recorded, don’t stress we will cover how to do this well in training.

Making an Introduction

Always check before making an introduction if there is anything in particular the person wants you to say, or not say. Always say what a privilege/joy/honour/great opportunity/blessing etc etc it is to have the person/act at the Festival. Remember that the festival is curated with great care and the person/act has been chosen and sought out for a reason, if you can’t work out what that is, please ask your Team leaders ahead of time and we will get you more details. 

Remember you might be being recorded and will be at the start of this input out in the world wide web speaking as Greenbelt.

Hosting a Q&A 

Remember that on hosting a Q&A and identifying people to ask a question you shouldn’t assume. So, don’t say. ‘The lady at the back in the pink sweater has a question’ because you don’t know they are happy to be identified that way. Instead use ‘person’ or ‘Greenbelter’. 

Remember too that Greenbelt is a festival that promotes justice, your job is to ensure a fair representation of voices. To that end, be mindful of the balance of questions, aim to hear from a variety of voices, even if that means prioritising those who raise their hands after others or asking if there are people who haven’t spoken yet to speak.

Phrases like, ‘is there anyone with an opposing view who might like to ask a question?’  or ‘is there any younger Greenbelter who might like to ask a question? Or ‘just to remind folks that this a time for questions rather than comments, does anyone have a question they would like to ask? 

Use your eyes and wisdom and search out those usually under heard in our society, look for a variety of ethnic and racial heritage, a variety of cognitive and physical abilities, a variety of age and ‘churchpersonship’. 

Your job is to keep the Greenbelt artist, and the Greenbelt audience ‘safe’ while also allowing deep debate and conversation between those with contradictory convictions. If at any time you feel things are getting unsafe stop the conversation. You can take a note of the contact details of people and promise them you will refer them to the Greenbelt Staff through Phil or Jude and someone will get in touch with them. 

As volunteers at a festival we all hold some responsibility for Health & Safety and for ensuring that the venue runs safely for all to enjoy. To this end we are partly responsible for identifying and managing risks. As part of Greenbelt’s legal responsibilities and licence conditions, a risk assessment will have been prepared prior to the festival and as the Venue Host you must help manage risks in the venue. Help is available on this from the Safety Team who were involved in preparing the Assessments.

At any festival, fire is always a very specific area of risk especially with the use of candles and such like. The Venue Host is responsible with the stewards on site for checking fire safety is always fully considered including keeping fire exits visible and unobstructed and overseeing the venue capacity limits (stewards will manage this in most venues with capacities). Noise management is important to ensure noise levels are not dangerous for volunteers and festivalgoers.  Noise levels will be checked by the noise team throughout the weekend.  They are there to help you and provide advice.

Your venue will have been subject to a risk assessment as part of the overall site risk assessment process. There will not be the venue specific risk assessments.  Members of the safety team will risk assess the structures, visit and inspect the venues and set capacities in venues that need them.  Each contributor booked by the Programming Team, will have submitted a risk assessment which will highlight to the Safety Team any hazardous issues. They will ensure these have been addressed and the Safety Team will attend if they still have any concerns.

In the Venue Folder is a safety checklist. Use it to check your venue each day, ticking each item as Yes, No or Not applicable.  If there is anything that needs resolving, write it down on the back of the form and contact whoever is most appropriate to sort it out.  If help or advice is needed contact the Safety Team.

The first Host in each venue, each day should check the venue to ensure nothing is missing and there are no signs of anything being tampered with. Review the venue – are there any hazards that were not foreseen? If so, please inform the Safety Team (either directly, or bring it to the Venue Host Briefing on Thursday) before your venue opens.

Before the Festival starts, a member of the Safety Team will visit or will have visited your venue to ensure that there are no unexpected hazards or issues. This is part of the overall site checklist, so don’t worry if you have not seen them.

Remain vigilant and always look out for further hazards that may develop over the weekend. Make sure contributors comply with agreements (e.g. no use of candles/smoke machines etc, unless previously agreed and method and scope of use to be as per approval).

There will always be one of the Safety Team available to give advice, they can be contacted on radio, via Control or through Front Desk (Channel 1).  If you have any questions or are in doubt, please ask – the Safety Team is there to support you.

The stability of the tented structures often depends on the side panels.  If you want to take down a side panel to get better ventilation or change an entrance, please request this with Production (via Control – Channel 1).

Please note the following:

• Fire Exits must be easily openable and free from obstruction.
• Fire Exit Signs must be visible and where appropriate remain illuminated.
• Fire Extinguishers must be kept in the correct location (never used to prop open doors) and visible.
• Fire Blankets must be positioned/hung in the correct manner so that the pull cord is easily accessible.
• Hangings (banners, drapes etc.), must be correctly fire rated or treated with Fire Retardant. If you are unsure, please contact the Safety Team.

The Host has responsibilities within the evacuation procedure and hence it’s crucial that you’re fully aware of your role.  In the event of an emergency (unless a FOM or the Fire Crew are in attendance) the Host is responsible for stopping any performance, facilitating a swift and safe evacuation and ensuring Event Control have been notified. (See the Section – “Initiating Emergency Actions”)

Following an evacuation, the Host must be aware of the strict procedures regarding who is authorised to give the all-clear and allow re-entry to the venue. You must only allow people back in when given the go ahead by the Greenbelt Fire team.

Whether evacuated for a fire or any other reason Event Control must be informed and told when the venue is open again.

Smoking and vaping are not allowed in any enclosed venue.

The Venue Host and their team must ensure that all rubbish is collected and disposed of at the end of each performance. In the case of venues that are continuously open, this task must be carried out on a regular basis to avoid creating a fire hazard.   

Use of Candles and Tea lights

Before candles are used in your venue details of what is planned will have been sent via the Programming Team to the Safety Team to get their approval pre-festival.  They will be added to a list that the Fire Safety Team will monitor on site.

Extreme care is always required when using candles or anything hot enough to cause a fire at a festival. As Venue Host, you (and any deputies) need to ensure that contributors in the venue stay within the general or specific usage that has been agreed by the Safety Team.

The guidance from the Safety Team is that candles need to be on a level, non-flammable base that will contain any wax run-off, not near any hangings (fireproof or otherwise), attended at all times they are lit and that means to extinguish them are nearby (e.g. extinguisher or bucket of water etc.).   If using a candle stand you will need to ensure that should the stand get knocked over the candle will not come into contact with anything considered to be flammable i.e. the side wall to a tent/marquee – drapes – furnishings – posters etc. Extra care must be taken if using night/tea lights. The surface must be of a non-combustible material i.e. metal tray – marble – stone etc. Never place on wood or plastic

Maximum Capacities

Not all venues will have fixed capacities and the Safety Team will be focusing on optimising venue use.  If set, the capacity of a venue, i.e. the number of people allowed in a venue at any one time, is calculated by our Safety Team. This calculation takes into account several factors including the use, amount of floor space available to people inside the venue and the number and width of the fire exits. Please ensure you are aware of the capacity of your venue if it has one.  If anything changes in the venue that may affect the calculation, please contact the Safety Team, who are the only people who can advise of a change. If your venue is one of the stewarded venues (or the Zone Co-ordinators tell you that an event will be stewarded) do not start letting people in until the stewards are there.

Greenbelt, as part of its licence requirement and duty of care to employees (and volunteers), must ensure noise is managed in two ways:

• That we do not breach the noise levels set down by the council in our licence
• That Noise at Work guidance is followed to ensure safety of staff and volunteers on site.

To make sure that we do not breach our licence we have a Noise team (part of the Safety Team) who spend the weekend measuring noise levels on and off site.  The Noise team have to work very closely with the local Environmental Health Officers who patrol to check that Greenbelt is not breaching its licence. If a Noise Team member asks you to turn the volume down or reposition yourself away from a speaker, please do it – the festival is at risk if you do not.

Noise levels – Licence conditions

We have a limit of decibels that we are allowed to reach, and the council sets down the condition that we should measure these levels at regular intervals. Therefore, the combined noise from drums, PAs, mainstage music etc. on the festival site is measured by the Noise Team every 15 minutes. To ensure we stay within our licence please keep the programme in your venue running to time and finished as per the programme.

As Venue Host (unless there is a Stage Manager) you are responsible for ensuring this is enforced.  If you need any assistance in this or advice contact the Noise Team via Event Control.

Noise Problems On site

If there are noise issues within programmed venues, please contact the Programming Office and Control.  Someone from the Programming office or Noise Team will come and check it out and liaise with Production on the appropriate next steps.

Noise levels – Health & Safety of employees/volunteers

The law changed a couple of years ago and it specifically relates to the entertainment industry. In some venues ear defenders must be worn.  The Council can be checking we are complying with the law.  The law says the event organisers must designate areas over a certain decibel reading will be voluntary ear protection zones, where ear protection is provided and people on duty are advised to use them, and mandatory ear protection zones where the ear protection must be worn and action must be taken to reduce the exposure of those on duty.  The Noise Team will be advising on the zones and actions that can be taken to reduce exposure without spoiling people’s experience of Greenbelt.

If someone vomits in your venue, or just outside, call Control (on Channel 1) and let them know the location. We will have clean up kits and a few volunteers trained to use them to clear up.

Do what you can to keep people away from the affected area to prevent anyone slipping over or spreading it. If you have absorbent material, such as paper towels, to cover it to make it less unpleasant and to stop it spreading, please do so, however the kits have more efficient absorbent material.

It is very important that an accurate record of all accidents is kept, whether involving workers or members of the public, so that we can;

• treat anybody that needs it
• spot trends and improve problem areas
• have details should any future liability arise

If an accident occurs in your venue please ensure that you provide the details to Event Control (via Channel 1) on the radio, even if the injured party does not require further first aid or medical assistance. 

Please complete a Safe Festival Campaign Reporting Card for all accidents, incidents and near misses. Copies of the form are held in your Venue Folder.

Greenbelt operates a Free-Flowing Venue Policy now. This means, unless specifically stated, festivalgoers are free to enter and leave venues as they desire, and we do not clear the venues between sessions.

An assessment will have been made at a discussion between the Programming Team, Venue Hosts Team Leaders and the Village Team Leaders before the festival starts. Any decision to clear the venue will be communicated to relevant teams before the event. 

If there are concerns just before or during an event the Venue Host (Host) and the Venue Steward Team Leader at the venue should agree that the venue needs to be cleared when one or more of the following criteria is met. This should be communicated immediately to Control and the Host team leaders and if there is any doubt a decision can be made then by the Duty Ops Manager (DM) in consultation with Programming.

The criteria are:

• If what appears to be two popular events, follow one another closely in the same venue. (This will have been identified pre-festival and indicated in your venue Folder)
• If there is a need by the artist to have a clear space to get in or get out. (This will have been identified pre-festival and indicated in your venue Folder)
• If a venue becomes too hot or not enough ventilation to cool it down between events.
• If there is a lot of equipment in the venue and no-one available as security to keep an eye on it.
• Other emergency extenuating circumstances decided by the Duty Manager.

In this unusual circumstance, it would be preferable to make the decision prior to an event starting when an announcement can be made to warn those in the venue that it will be cleared before the next event. The Hosts/Stewards should then inform any latecomers that the venue is being cleared at the end of the current event.

If it becomes apparent during an event for safety reasons that the venue will need to be cleared once that event is finished and the Host, Stage Manager and Village Team Leader (Venue Stewards) agree then it should be announced quickly and clearly at the end of the event with an apology that it is unavoidable.

Venue Hosts are asked to keep a record of when they have had to clear venues and why so that the process and criteria can be reviewed after the festival. All other venues should run their programmes without clearing between acts/events, except in emergency or other extenuating circumstances.

ETHANE Messaging

When messaging about an incident to Control, you are likely to be asked to change to a different channel to give the details.

We are now using the ETHANE protocol, and you will be guided through the information required using the table below.

Access All Area (AAA) ID badges have been distributed to a small number of staff, contractors and team leaders. Please allow these people swift entry into your venue as they will have a good reason to require access.

Festival Trustees need to be able to access venues (even busy ones) so that they can experience the festival content and be best placed to help guide and direct for the future. So, please ensure that if a lanyard badge says TRUSTEE on it, they are to be permitted access into the venue.

We are constantly trying to improve the accessibility of the festival and Venue Hosts play an important role in ensuring that we keep venues and events as accessible as possible. This involves considering the layout, avoiding trip hazards, providing good sight lines, assisting persons with specific needs and so forth.

What do we mean by disability?

The popular perception that people with disabilities (disabled people) always use wheelchairs is inaccurate. Disabilities include:

• Sight impairments including blindness
• Hearing impairments and Deaf people
• Physical / mobility impairments
• Asperger’s or other Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Autistic Spectrum Conditions (ASC)
• Learning disabilities
• Mental ill health
• Medical conditions

What does the Disability Discrimination Act mean for Greenbelt venues?

Where a physical feature makes it impossible or unreasonably difficult for disabled customers to make use of a service offered to the public, service providers (which includes Greenbelt) have to take measures, where reasonable, to

• Remove the feature, or
• Alter it so that it no longer has that effect, or
• Provide a reasonable means of avoiding the feature, or
• Provide a reasonable alternative method of making the service available to disabled people.

Physical features are defined as ”anything on the premises arising from a building’s design or construction or the approach to, exit from or access to such a building; fixtures, fittings, furnishings, equipment or materials and any other physical element or quality of land in the premises – whether temporary or permanent”.

Things for you to look out for:

Trip Hazards

All access routes within the venue should be kept clear and uncluttered. In particular, be aware of trailing cables to microphones, power supplies etc. Ensure that all guy ropes, pegs, poles, stages and microphone stands etc., are clearly marked and clearly visible/ detectable by someone using an assistance dog / white cane / mobility aid. If you are concerned about the safety of anything, e.g. if several people seem to trip in the same place and you can’t sort it yourself, contact Control or Front Desk (radio Channel 1) straight away and ask them to get a member of the Safety Team to get in contact with you. Please make use of the Handover Sheet in the Venue Folder (Folder) to pass on any initial concerns, so that small problems are not allowed to escalate.

Sightlines

Sightlines are important to everyone and particularly people with visual impairments; wheelchair users; and Deaf people who will need to be able to see the Sign Language Interpreter clearly as well as the speaker / presentation / …

Please be aware that people with Visual Impairments may need differing sightline requirements depending on the nature of the impairment.

Lighting

Please be aware of flickering lights and talk to Front Desk (radio Channel 1) to have them sorted – flickering lights can adversely affect a number of people – people with epilepsy, people with an ASC, people with a visual impairment.

Participation

Please talk to contributors to determine whether there will be any audience participation, and either announce / ask the contributor to announce that involvement is voluntary – many with an ASC have problems with ad-hoc involvement (such as shaking hands / sharing the peace)

Gangways – Minimum Clear Width for Single Wheelchair

The minimum clear passage width for a single wheelchair passage is 32 inches (815 mm) at a point for a maximum depth of 24 inches (610 mm).

Vulnerability and Risk Awareness

People with mobility, sensory or learning disabilities are especially at risk in the event of an emergency requiring evacuation. Try to ensure that you and the stewards have an overall awareness of ‘who is where’ in your venue, while still treating individuals with respect and dignity at all times. Don’t assume that all people can follow your spoken instructions or that they understand the seriousness of what is happening.

Queuing and Priority Access to Venues

If your venue / event has a queue forming, ensure that anyone who clearly has difficulty walking / standing / pushing a wheelchair etc., is not forced to snake endlessly as part of the queue. If they are beyond the likely capacity of the venue advise them early on that they are too late. If they are within the capacity, please allow them into the venue without queuing.

People with disabilities 

Disabled people may have companions with them at Greenbelt who help them get about etc. Whilst the individual may be quite confident and OK in the event on their own, they may have arranged for their companion to find them again at a certain  time. Accordingly, a companion may ask for entry into your venue to meet back up with their associate. Please work with the Venue Stewards in accommodating this. Remember to always speak directly to the disabled person about how they can be assisted, not automatically their companion.

Greenbelt Festival has detailed procedures and protocols for dealing with minor and major incidents, and threats to public security. 

The responsibilities of Venue Hosts are 

1) to make Control aware of any dangers, emergencies, threats or suspect packages and
2) stopping the performance and evacuating the venue if requested, or the safety of Greenbelters demands it. (The Emergency Teams or Festival Operations Managers take charge if they are present).

The Venue Host is also responsible for the security of the venue and its contents, ensuring that out-of-hours it is closed as appropriate and that valuable items are secured.

The night security stewards do make sporadic checks out of hours, but we’d recommend you don’t leave valuable/easily portable items lying around. The night stewards tell us that it is amazing how often marquees are found with one or more of the entrances left partially or fully unsecured, flapping in the night breeze inviting anyone to enter.  If you have trouble closing your venue, please contact Front Desk and they will send a member of Production to secure it.

Please note that the Festival Licence does not allow persons to sleep in any venue.  If you have any specific concerns regarding security, please contact the Venue Hosts Team Leaders.  We do everything that we can to ensure that the Festival is as crime free as possible, but we do need your support and assistance to do this.   Should you become aware of any thefts please inform Event Control.

The HOST has responsibilities within the evacuation procedure and hence it’s crucial that you’re fully aware of your role.  In the event of an emergency the Host is responsible for stopping any performance, facilitating a swift and safe evacuation and ensuring Event Control have been notified. (The Emergency Teams or Festival Operations Managers take charge if they are present)

Work with Stage Managers and Stewards in your venue to make the area safe, evacuate if necessary and contact Event Control.

Make yourself familiar with your exit routes and where they lead to before you open.  Direct the public away from the emergency otherwise they will tend to go out the way they came in.

If trained and it is safe to do so use one of the fire extinguishers in the venue to extinguish small fires, once the immediate area has been evacuated.  

Many stewards are also trained to use extinguishers. 

All extinguishers are red but have a coloured label on them:

• CO2 (black) – electrical.
• Powder (blue) – petrol, solvent, paint.
• Water (red) – paper, fabric.
• Foam (cream) – petrol, oil, paints, gases.

Whether evacuated for a fire or any other reason, or if the fire has been put out locally, Event Control must be informed and told when the venue is open again.

Evacuation Announcements

The following list of suggested announcements is not intended to be a definitive list and any announcement should therefore be tailored to the specific incident concerned.  However, best practice, in the event of an evacuation being necessary, is to ensure that any announcement is clear and concise and is delivered in a calm and authoritative manner.

Any evacuation announcement should be made using any available means whether that is the Public Address (PA) system within a venue or megaphone in an open area.  It is best delivered by someone used to public speaking such as the Compere or Venue Host as appropriate.  Below is a list of suggested announcements: –‐

• In the event of a pending evacuation of a discreet area of the site, the following message might be appropriate: —
  Attention please, attention please. We are investigating a situation.  It may be necessary to evacuate the area. Please await further announcements

• In the event of a full evacuation of an area of the event site, or venue within the site, this is a typical message that may be broadcast: —
  this is a safety message.  In the interests of audience safety, you are required to leave the area/venue immediately. Please leave via the nearest exits

• In the event that the venue/area is unlikely to restart the following message may be broadcast: —
  this is a safety message, due to circumstances beyond our control we are sorry to announce that it will not be possible to proceed with the planned entertainment.  Please follow the instructions issued by the event stewards.

Following an evacuation, the Host must be aware of the strict procedures in regard to who is authorised to give the all-clear and allow re-entry to the venue. You must only allow people back in when given the go ahead by the Greenbelt Fire team.

At the end of each shift, please:-

• Ensure show reports and checklists in the Venue Folder (Folder) are complete
• Fill in the hand over sheet

At the end of the day in your venue, please:-

• Leave the lanyard clipped into the Venue Folder.
• Secure your venue (some venues may need assistance in closing).
• Advise Control that your venue is closed.
• Return your radio to Front Desk.

At the end of the festival the Venue Hosts are responsible for ensuring the venue is cleared up, rubbish disposed of, kit returned. If you cannot do this, find someone who can!

To prevent things going missing after the festival:

• Return your Venue folder to Front Desk
• put all rubbish in bin bags and leave in one corner clearly labelled ‘rubbish to be thrown away’.
• anything that has to go back to the GB office in London, should also be clearly labelled, and taken to Front Desk on site.
• anything that is to be collected by courier should be clearly labelled and addressed and taken to Festival Reception.

Venue Hosts are in a unique position to provide feedback on both the physical/operational side of the festival and the programming. Accordingly, Venue Hosts are encouraged to integrate with wider Greenbelt structures and facilitate communication in all directions. 

Please fill in the Hosts Feedback form in the Folder and also keep a record of how full the venue is each event on the Show Report form, also in the Folder. This year the same form can be used to record feedback from Comperes, Steward Team Leaders and Hosts so make sure they all know where the Venue Folder is.  

If you are the last Host on shift in your Venue at the end of the Festival, please make sure the Folder is returned to Front Desk before you leave.  Specific feedback about venues and venue management can also be emailed to the Hosting Team Leaders.

Feedback is also needed after the festival on general issues so we can make the operation smoother year on year, and on attendance at events to help the programming group plan for next year.