Hosting Major Events in the Royal Parks May 2015 Hosting Major Events in the Royal Parks

Hosting Major Events in The Royal Parks May 2015 Hosting Major Events in The Royal Parks Introduction Our eight Royal Parks are among As custodians of these unique the most visited attractions in the spaces, The Royal Parks purpose is: UK, with over 77 million visitors “To manage the Royal Parks each year, and can mean different effectively and efficiently, balancing things to different people at the responsibility to conserve and different times. A leisurely stroll enhance the unique environments through the Isabella Plantation in with creative policies to encourage Richmond Park; enjoying London’s access and to increase opportunities largest collection of roses in Queen for enjoyment, education, Mary Gardens in The Regent’s Park; entertainment and healthy or being among the 750,000 recreation.” children exploring the Princess of Wales' Memorial Playground in We have four corporate objectives: Kensington Gardens each year. Other visitors come for the range of 1. To conserve and enhance events that we host: from state sustainably, for the occasions to guided walks; from enjoyment of this and future sporting events to local community generations, our world class days; and from fun runs to natural and built historic celebratory concerts. We seek to environment and our balance the enjoyment and biodiversity; inclusion that events can bring to the communities and visitors we 2. To engage with our visitors, serve locally, nationally and stakeholders and partner internationally, with the provision of organisations, and spaces for quiet enjoyment and understand their views; relaxation and to protect and conserve our parks for future generations. 1 | Page Hosting Major Events in The Royal Parks 3. To manage the parks provide public enjoyment, social efficiently and secure inclusion and health benefits, as investment in the parks' well as contributing to the wider assets and services through London economy. But we recognise an appropriate combination that events can interrupt the daily of government funding, life of our parks that visitors enjoy, commercial income and particularly where areas of the philanthropy; and parks are enclosed for events, or roads or paths are out of use. 4. To be a centre of professional excellence where people We are publishing clear guidelines want to work. and criteria for events that we host and are setting upper limits on the The eight Royal Parks have a long numbers of major events, based on and historic tradition of hosting our current funding model, making events. We host around 30 major us more accountable to the events and hundreds of small communities we serve. events every year, excluding ceremonials, as well as licensing We estimate that we receive around other activities, such as fitness 5,000 enquiries for events every training, horse riding and a range of year. We want to better manage the organised sport activities. The expectations of those seeking to unique settings of our parks are a host events in our parks, as well as major attraction to event organisers establishing from the outset a and there is huge and increasing greater understanding of the demand to host events in our parks. constraints within which event organisers must work, including the We have listened to and respect the importance we place on minimising views of stakeholders, and the the impact of events on the park impact events can have on them. fabric and ecology, park users, local Hosting cultural, social and sporting residents, park operations and activities in the open space can ceremonial activities. 2 | Page Hosting Major Events in The Royal Parks Background As an executive agency of the from our events, including Department for Culture, Media and tendering for our largest events and Sport (DCMS), The Royal Parks working with event organisers to receives an annual Grant-In-Aid improve the customer experience of from Government. In 2008/9, when events we host, thereby increasing we previously reviewed our spend, and maximising our income approach to Major Events, we from a wider range of event income received £19.36m from streams. We have recently revised Government; for 2014/15 our our Event Rate Card and will keep Grant-in-Aid income was £13.3m. this under review during 2015 and During that same period, our overall in future years to ensure that it self-generated income has risen represents best value for money for from £14.57m to £23.3m the different spaces in which events (unaudited). can be held. Our self-generated income derives Events provide a vital source of from a number of sources. Around a income to The Royal Parks, allowing third is from events. But the us to continue to maintain the parks remaining two thirds comes from a to high standards against the range of other income streams, backdrop of declining Government including catering, grants, lottery funding. We also host events to funding, licences, rental income, provide cultural, social and sporting filming and photography. The Royal activities in the open space, to mark Parks Foundation also raises funds ceremonial, unique and one-off for a wide variety of projects, events of a national or historic including through charitable importance and to promote a wider donations. appreciation of the parks to a diverse range of visitors. The We have worked hard in recent hosting of events therefore directly years to get better value for money supports the delivery of our 3 | Page Hosting Major Events in The Royal Parks corporate objectives. Events also visitors. Speaker’s Corner is also a benefit the wider London economy, traditional spot for open-air public in particular the hospitality, tourism speaking, debate and discussion, as and retail sectors, which benefit well as protest and assembly. from spending from those attending events. Regular events include the start and finish of the London Marathon, The Royal Parks has been hosting Hyde Park Winter Wonderland, events for longer than most people Taste of London, Frieze Art Fair, the realise. Events in recent years Royal Parks Foundation Half include Nelson Mandela’s 90th Marathon, Chestnut Sunday and the birthday, the Tour de France, the last night of BBC Proms in Hyde Golden and Diamond Jubilee Park. More recent events include celebrations of Her Majesty the Ride London, in which 80,000 Queen, Live8, Pavarotti in the Park cyclists participated in 2014. And we and the hosting of 11 sporting are also host to hundreds of small competitions across six of our parks events in our parks every year, as part of the London 2012 Olympic many of which are enjoyed by our and Paralympic Games. One of the local communities, from sponsored largest ever events, The Great walks and runs to picnics and school Exhibition, was held in Hyde Park in sports days. 1851, attracting around six million Scope This document covers what we refer The Royal Parks hosts a range of to as “major events,” but recognises ceremonial events every year. These and considers the cumulative include the Changing of the Queen’s impact of all events and activities in Life Guard at Horse Guard Parade our parks. For example, our parks Ground and Changing the Guard at host a number of runs and walks Buckingham Palace. Horse Guards is each year, but many are not classed the setting for The Queen’s Birthday as a major event. Parade to mark Her Majesty the 4 | Page Hosting Major Events in The Royal Parks Queen’s official birthday each June, in doing so, we may include more together with the ceremony of events than previously. This does Beating Retreat. The Mall and not mean that we have increased Horse Guards form the processional the number of major events, simply route for such occasions as the that we want to be able to better State Opening of Parliament and establish from the start the likely State Visits. Royal Gun Salutes take impact on our parks, visitors, local place in Hyde Park and The Green residents, park operations and Park to mark special royal occasions. resources. The Mall and Horse Guards Parade The Royal Parks classes major Ground have become increasingly events as those that meet two or popular venues for other events in more of the following criteria: recent years. It is important that we • Over 4,999 ticketed capacity; continue to respect the historical • Greater than 4,999 event and military importance of these participants; ceremonial events. We have • Free-to-access events where therefore included minimising the crowds are expected to be in impact on ceremonial activities as a excess of 4,999; guiding principle for all events • 7,500 sqm or greater of event (please see park specific criteria for infrastructure; St James’s Park for more • On site more than 3 days, information). including build and de-rig; • Requires multi-agency We have set upper limits on the planning; number of major events we will • Requires road closures host each year, based on our impacting beyond the park current funding model. “Major boundary*; events” can be commercial, • Involves more than one park; charitable or publicly funded. They and cover the whole spectrum from • Requires statutory consent sporting events to concerts. We (for example, Town Planning have sought to more clearly define or falling under the “major events” and recognise that 5 | Page Hosting Major Events in The Royal Parks requirements of the Licensing and always aim to limit these Act 2003). closures to the minimum time necessary for the event and for We recognise the impact road and public safety. path closures have on park users *Some events require road closures that don’t impact beyond the park boundary Our approach to events The Royal Parks’ stewardship of the access for park users.

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