No criminal charges filed over Astroworld disaster
No criminal charges are to be filed over the Astroworld festival tragedy.
Ten concertgoers, aged between nine and 27, died following a crowd surge during Travis Scott’s headline set at NRG Park in Houston, Texas in November 2021. The 50,000-cap festival was promoted by Live Nation and Austin-based Scoremore.
However, Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg announced yesterday (29 June) that a grand jury has issued six no-bills related to the deaths, meaning that no criminal charges will be filed.
Jurors declined to charge Scott (real name Jaques Webster II), festival manager Brent Silberstein, John Junell of Live Nation, security planners Shawna Boardman and Seyth Boardman of Contemporary Services Corporation, and Emily Ockenden, formerly of event production company BWG, after reviewing all the evidence.
“It is tragic that 10 innocent people were killed while trying to enjoy an evening of music and entertainment, something many of us do routinely and without a second thought to our safety,” says Ogg. “But a tragedy isn’t always a crime, and not every death is a homicide.”
The decision has no bearing on the pending civil lawsuits relating to Astroworld
Ogg adds that the decision will have no bearing on the many pending civil lawsuits relating to the case.
Almost 5,000 people have claimed they were injured in the disaster, which unfolded on 5 November 2021, with lawsuits filed in each of the 24 district courts in Harris County. Nearly every claim alleges negligence such as “failures of safety and security rules, crowd control and emergency response measures, and failures to provide adequate security, supervision, training and care”.
Last year, the go-ahead was given for hundreds of the lawsuits to be formally consolidated into a single case. The first wrongful death lawsuit settlements were reportedly reached last autumn.
It is Harris County DA policy to have a grand jury review cases involving serious and fatal incidents that may or may not involve criminal activity. The grand jury presentation by prosecutors this week was followed 19 months of work by the Houston Police Department.
“I want to commend the dedication of each investigator and prosecutor who worked on this case for doing the kind of work any of us would want if the victims in this disaster were our loved ones,” adds Ogg.
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‘It’s never business as usual at Montreux’
Montreux Jazz Festival (MJF) chief Mathieu Jaton has discussed the next stage of the event’s evolution as it prepares to break from the norm in 2024.
The reigning top festival (Ligger’s Favourite Festival) at ILMC’s Arthur Awards, MJF’s 2023 edition launches today with sets by Simply Red and Tom Odell at the 4,000-cap Auditorium Stravinski and Jimi Jules and Rufus Du Sol in the 2,000-cap Montreux Jazz Lab.
The 57th festival will follow the same format as last year’s post Covid return, maintaining the Lake House space that was introduced in 2022 to showcase emerging jazz talent. But changes are already afoot for 2024 as MJF’s 2m2c (Montreux Music and Convention Centre Congress Centre) venue will be out of commission due to redevelopment work. As a result, plans are afoot for a new 5,000-cap stage on the lake.
“It is never business as usual at Montreux,” laughs MJF CEO Jaton. “It was very clear when we came back in ’22 that we were going to bring in a lot of changes to transform the festival and take it into the future. And ’24 will be another challenge because we have to move the festival from the Congress Centre as [redevelopment] work will be starting just after the festival this summer.
“We have to find a new and brilliant ID for ’24 and ’25, so that’s going to be a major challenge. And then June ’26 is the 60th anniversary, so we have some nice years in front of us.”
“The perception of the Montreux brand is getting greater and greater”
Other performers at the Swiss festival, which runs until 15 July on the shores of Lake Geneva, will include Bob Dylan, Lionel Richie, Lil Nas X, Iggy Pop, Norah Jones, Sam Smith, Seal and Nile Rodgers.
“We’ve been elected as the best European festival this year for the second time and the perception of the Montreux brand is getting greater and greater,” Jaton tells IQ. “The format of Montreux is different from other open-air festivals, for sure, and we have a mix of programming that stays close to our DNA. When you put it all together at the end it is quite successful. Now, we’re just hoping for good weather!”
Jaton says ticket sales have moved at a faster pace than last year, when the festival attracted 250,000 people (approximately 100,000 for paid concerts and 150,000 for its 450 free events).
More sets will be livestreamed than ever before, with over 40 performances from the Auditorium Stravinski and Jazz Lab to be available to watch free of charge on the MJF website and YouTube channel as part of the festival and the Montreux Jazz Artists Foundation’s mission to make music accessible to all.
Jaton also gave an update on efforts to strengthen the Montreux Jazz Festival brand worldwide, with spin-offs in Miami, Abu Dhabi and Ibiza all in the offing.
“Fingers crossed… there could be six Montreux Jazz Festivals internationally in 2024”
“We have a complete ecosystem of the festival, which is of course the festival itself in Montreux, but also the Montreux Jazz Artist Foundation,” he explains. “We also have Multimedia Ventures and Montreux Jazz International, which is developing MJF Cafes and the festival around the world.
“We have three international festivals historically, in Tokyo, China and Rio. China and Rio are taking place in October. And we’re planning to open Montreux Jazz Festival in Miami in March ’24; Montreuz Jazz Festival in Abu Dhabi in March ’24 and Montreux Jazz Festival in Ibiza in autumn ’24.
“Fingers crossed, but if it works there could be six Montreux Jazz Festivals internationally in ’24. And it’s not a copy and paste format, it’s bringing the DNA of Montreux to each of those countries, using the rules of each of these countries.”
MJF was the subject of the recent documentary mini-series, They All Came Out To Montreux, which premiered in the UK earlier this month on BBC Four and BBC iPlayer. The three-part doc details the history of the event and its legendary founder Claude Nobs, who died in January 2013 following a skiing accident. Jaton speaks about Nobs’ enduring legacy here.
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Mad Cool promoters prepare new central site
Organisers of Mad Cool Festival are busily finalising preparations on their brand new site for this year’s edition, in an effort to make the event more accessible for fans.
The festival’s management have secured use of a location south of Madrid city centre in the Villaverde District, which is at the centre of long-term plans for development as a cultural hub for the capital city. The three-day festival kicks off next Thursday, 6 July.
Mad Cool’s promoters have inked a pact with Madrid City Council to help transform the Villaverde site, which benefits from extensive public transport connections – a move which will also help meet the festival’s sustainability goals.
“Our main goal is to create a creative and environmentally friendly space of cultural development in Europe, to transform the area into a cultural hub for people who are environmentally conscious as well as lovers of art and music,” says Mad Cool director Javier Arnáiz. “The new site will increase tourism in the area whilst promoting the creation of new jobs in the area.
The proximity of the venue to the city centre is vital to strengthen the ties with the community and to ensure that everyone can enjoy the experience.
“This new location will be more accessible for festival goers, thanks to the extensive transportation network which also facilitates a more responsible and sustainable mobility. The venue capacity is 70,000 pax per day. We have built, everything from the ground, with great infrastructures that are totally prepared for any [inclement] weather, such as the absorption of rain.”
The relocation of the festival, closer to the centre of Madrid, has been embraced by fans, with general access tickets for the Saturday sold out while other passes can still be purchased via Mad Cool’s official channels. Organisers anticipate a large international audience for the event, alongside local residents and buyers from elsewhere in Spain.
In its new Villaverde home. Mad Cool will boast eight stages “with an incredible sound and space to enjoy the three days full of good vibes, music, sun… in the center of Madrid,” notes Arnáiz.
He continues, “Madrid is now one of the essential stops [for] national and international tours. Our line-up consists of 101 bands including huge names such as The Black Keys, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Lizzo, Mumford and Sons, Queens of the Stone Age, Ava Max, Sam Smith, The 1975, Nova Twins, Robbie Williams, Lil Nas X, Kaleo, Morgan, Franz Ferdinand, Tash Sultana, Paolo Nutini, Rina Sawayama, Jamie XX, Primal Scream, Machine Gun Kelly, among others.”
Having established itself as a summer destination for people in the music industry to meet and mingle, Arnáiz adds, “Our goal has always been to create an event and space capable of hosting major music stars, where the venue and its services would be one of the festival’s headliners, and where the audience – all the audience – would feel at home. People are really perceiving it this way, and the festival’s growth and establishment are happening very quickly. The proximity of the venue to the city centre is vital to strengthen the ties with the community and to ensure that everyone can enjoy the experience.”
Tickets for Mad Cool 2023 can be purchased here, with prices starting at €85 + booking fee.
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Danielle Buckley to depart Emirates Stadium
Danielle Buckley will be departing Arsenal Football Club this month, post delivery of three back-to-back Arctic Monkeys concerts at Emirates Stadium.
Buckley joined the 60,000-cap North London venue in 2022, leading as senior manager – event programming, after a five-year stint as head of business development at London Stadium.
Glastonbury 2023 headliners Arctic Monkeys played three sold-out shows at the Emirates from 16-18 June, promoted by SJM Concerts.
“I have really enjoyed my time at Arsenal and I am proud to have played my part over the last year,” says Buckley. “Contracting and announcing Arctic Monkeys within a week of joining was a great experience and an environment I thrive in and love.
“I move on to explore new opportunities, focus on new events and the next steps in my career”
“Being responsible not only for the commercial delivery, but also project managing those events from start to finish, has been a real highlight. I move on to explore new opportunities, focus on new events and the next steps in my career and I wish Arsenal all the very best going forward.”
The ILMC member and IQ New Bosses alumnus began her music industry career in 2009 at Derek Block Artistes Agency, moving on to the Leighton Pope Organisation and then London 2012, for which she coordinated the headline talent for the Olympic and Paralympic opening and closing ceremonies.
She was subsequently hired by Wembley Stadium, where she worked her way up to partnership development manager – music and new events, and helped bring numerous concerts to the national stadium, notably programming Ed Sheeran’s first events in stadia in 2015, ahead of being headhunted by London Stadium in 2017.
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Venues: Our Cultural Hubs
After attending ILMC 35 and reflecting on conversations I and the rest of the team had with other venues, it became clear that UK venues are experiencing a post-pandemic surge in customer feedback. As a result, we have had to amend our approach to delivering outstanding customer experience.
Our arenas have the benefit of an in-house Business Intelligence team as part of the NEC Group that can track trends in customer behaviour and the changing needs that continue to challenge venues like ours.
Due to the pandemic and a resurgence in press coverage of Martyn’s Law and the Manchester Arena Inquiry, there has been more anxiety around attending crowded events. Additional information, increased safety measures, and empathetic staff are needed to reassure visitors. Whilst legislation is not expected to be fully implemented until late 2025/early 2026, we have already been implementing the recommendations from the Inquiry and the measures expected to be included in Martyn’s Law.
We have also tracked an increase in audience mobility issues and accessibility requirements. Since returning to business after the pandemic, mobility needs for some customers have changed significantly. Due to the number of rescheduled shows and the length of time since those shows went on sale, many customers weren’t aware they would need more support when first booking their tickets, whether that be changing needs or concerns requiring the need to be in specific accessible locations in the venue.
Our team have tracked a change in the language of those who communicate with us. There is far more emotive wording in feedback from customers, particularly related to spend.
Customers are also more vocal and quicker to escalate their feedback to senior figures in the business rather than following the established customer service channels.
Post-pandemic, customers are eager to make up for lost time with events becoming a special occasion, which is a positive position for us all, and has been reflected through strong ticket sales and spend-per-head despite the pressure on disposable income. However, the current cost-of-living crisis poses challenges for both customers and businesses. As prices increase, the cost of visiting venues also rises. As a result, there is a greater focus on providing value for money to customers. So, how do we overcome these challenges?
“On the ground, support is more important than ever to provide customer reassurance and enhance their experience”
During the onset of the pandemic, we adopted an NEC Group-level approach called Venue Protect. This incorporated measures that provided safe and secure environments for customers, visitors, staff, contractors, and partners, plus a comprehensive communications suite of assets providing clear, effective communications for all stakeholders to ensure compliance with our Venue Protect measures.
Post-pandemic now includes safety and security measures, a revised bag policy, and visitor wellbeing initiatives such
as the Ask for Angela and Ask For Clive initiatives. In addition, our customer hierarchy of needs has evolved. Our focus is on two fundamental areas: B2B customers and B2C visitors. Internally, we continue to have a strong focus on feedback. This shapes communications to customers, staff training and recognition, measuring new initiatives, identifying areas for improvement, and supports where we need to focus investment in our facilities.
On the ground, support is more important than ever to provide customer reassurance and enhance their experience. More dedicated staff now work in the disabled areas, and we have increased our visitor management team to help with queue management, customer reassurance, and crowd safety outside the venue. We introduced Mental Health First Aiders before the pandemic, with one gig seeing 100 service users in one night. We now have 20 trained group staff with more due.
Business agility and clear, reassuring communications are key, and through this and our focus on giving our customers an outstanding customer experience at our venues, reassuringly we have maintained our pre-pandemic customer feed- back scores. Technology will play an increasingly important role with our customers, providing instant customer service updates, a frictionless customer journey, the ability to promote forthcoming shows, and opportunities for customers to upgrade their event experience.
We continue to face the headwinds of the wider economy, but with robust customer experience measures in place, we can meet our customer needs.
Guy Dunstan is the managing director ticketing & arenas at Birmingham-based NEC Group, UK
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Promoters address Rammstein cancellation calls
Promoters have responded to calls to cancel Rammstein’s European tour, amid the flurry of sexual misconduct accusations made against the group’s frontman Till Lindemann.
The German metal band’s stadium tour has been marred by claims that multiple women were recruited to have sex with Lindemann, 60, at Rammstein shows. The selected women are said to have been given access to a so-called “Row Zero” – a restricted area directly in front of the stage.
Berlin police confirmed earlier this month that they were investigating Lindemann “relating to sexual offences and the distribution of narcotics” – allegations the singer’s legal team have dismissed as “without exception untrue”.
The wave of complaints came after a woman from Northern Ireland went public with her belief that she had been drugged by Lindemann at an afterparty in Vilnius, Lithuania on 22 May. However, the case is not being pursued after a subsequent investigation found “no objective factual evidence” that would prove she had been subjected to physical or mental coercion.
Nevertheless, DW reports that close to 100,000 people have signed a petition demanding the cancellation of Rammstein’s three sold-out concerts at Berlin’s Olympic Stadium on 15-16 and 18 July. Around 150 protesters gathered outside the band’s gig in Bern, Switzerland, in mid June and a further protest has been organised ahead of their July shows at the Stadspark in Groningen, the Netherlands.
“There is no legal basis for a concert cancellation”
Gadget ABC, which promoted the group’s 17-18 June concerts in Bern, responded to an open letter from Swiss citizens’ movement JUSO Switzerland and Campax calling for the events to be called off.
“Such allegations of sexualised violence must be taken seriously,” said JUSO president Nicola Siegrist. “The organisers have to do the only right thing and cancel the concerts.”
In its response, published ahead of the dates and signed by Gadget’s Christof Huber, Eric Kramer, Oliver Rosa, Cyrill Stadler and Stefan Wyss, the company said it “disassociates itself from any form of violence and abuse and takes the current allegations very seriously”. It added that the current public discussion “raises very important questions” that promoters must engage with.
“The allegations levelled against the band are serious,” it continued. “Gadget does not want to participate in prejudice. We have no knowledge of that band or a band member has been proven to have committed a criminal offence. Against this background there is no legal basis for a concert cancellation vis-à-vis our contractual partner. A breach of contract would have consequences that would not be compatible with our sense of responsibility towards our employees, suppliers and partners.”
Regarding the “so-called ‘Row Zero'”, Gadget stressed that no guests beyond “security services, photographers, etc,” would be permitted to enter the zone.
“We have a structural problem in the concert scene that is now finally being talked about”
Groningen City Council also announced that promoter Greenhouse Talent had confirmed there will be no “Row Zero” for fans to stand, nor an afterparty, for the group’s upcoming shows in the Dutch city.
German trade association BDKV recently added its support to the Alliance against Sexism in the wake of the allegations. The Alliance against Sexism coalition is led by family minister Lisa Paus, who has proposed changes for the music business including protective areas for women at concerts and the use of “awareness teams” to regularly check what is happening backstage.
“Without prejudging the specific case, the way I perceive the discussion, we have a structural problem in the concert scene that is now finally being talked about,” Paus told Bild am Sonntag.
The Rammstein Stadium Tour, which is due to wrap up in Belgium later this summer, resumes in Padova, Italy this Saturday (1 July). It will then stop in Groningen, Budapest, Berlin, Paris, Vienna and Chorzow, before concluding with three nights at Brussels’ King Baudouin Stadium from 3-5 August.
In an Instagram post to fans earlier this month, the band asked not to be prejudged.
“The accusations have hit us all very hard and we take them extremely seriously,” read the statement. “To our fans we say: It is important to us that you feel comfortable and safe at our shows – in front of and behind the stage. We condemn any kind of assault and ask you: Do not participate in prejudgments of any kind toward those who have made accusations. They have a right to their point of view. But we, the band, also have a right — not to be prejudged either.”
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Arcadia Live hails ‘successful’ debut of Lido Sounds
Austria’s Arcadia Live has reflected on the successful premiere of open-air concert series Lido Sounds.
More than 66,000 fans flocked to Austria’s third-largest city, Linz, between 16 and 18 June to watch performances from 35 artists, across two stages.
International stars Florence + the Machine, Alt-J, Phoenix, Arlo Parks, Interpol, Anna Calvi, Ashnikko and Sleaford Mods topped the bill, with support from German-speaking acts.
FKP Scorpio, parent company of Vienna-based Arcadia Live, hailed Lido Sounds as “an exciting addition to our festival cosmos”.
“I see the potential to firmly establish this event as a prominent highlight in the city’s cultural calendar”
“I am happy that Lido Sounds’ first edition was such a great success and that our concept for a city festival in Linz is working out,” says Folkert Koopmans, CEO of FKP Scorpio. “The team has done a great job and I see the potential to firmly establish this event as a prominent highlight in the city’s cultural calendar.”
Arcadia Live managing director Filip Potocki added: “I see people’s faces and it seems that a lot of people liked it. We got great feedback from the artists. A lot of them couldn’t believe that this was the first time Lido Sounds was happening, because a lot of things already worked so smoothly and were well thought out.”
Potocki says that Arcadia Live will use the coming days and weeks to assess areas of improvement and discuss the future of the festival with city officials.
“The following weeks will decide how Lido Sounds can be constantly integrated into the FKP festival program and establish itself within the European cultural scene,” he adds.
In addition to music, Lido Sounds featured culinary offerings, emerging domestic talents and afterparties at the nearby concert hall Brucknerhaus.
The event’s location, on the left bank of the Danube river (Urfahrmarkt), was easily reachable from neighbouring Germany and the Czech Republic.
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Taylor Swift’s Eras on track to be first $1bn tour
Taylor Swift’s ever-expanding Eras Tour is on target to become the first concert tour in history to gross more than US$1 billion, according to a new report.
The current benchmark was set by Elton John’s Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour, which grossed $887 million from 5.7 million ticket sales from its first 309 shows, and is expected to settle on around $925m upon its conclusion.
The Eras Tour was comfortably the highest-grossing tour of H1 2023, based on Pollstar data. It generated $300.8m in revenue from its first 22 nights on total ticket sales of 1,186,314 and an average ticket price of $253.56. The run currently amounts to 117 shows up to August 2024, with the potential for further dates to be added.
While a number-crunching report by the Wall Street Journal notes that top tickets in the US tend to cost 20% to 30% more than in the rest of the world, the trek still has every chance of breaking through the $1bn barrier.
“What we’re seeing on this particular Taylor tour is almost like a once-in-a-lifetime phenomenon,” International Artist Group EVP and head of global music Jarred Arfa tells the WSJ. “It’s pretty astonishing.”
“For production reasons, she will only come to Amsterdam”
Swift’s recently announced 2024 European leg goes on sale in mid-July, but will not stop off in Belgium. Greenhouse Talent, which is staging Swift’s Amsterdam stadium shows in the Netherlands, addresses the omission, telling Het Laastse Nieuws a Brussels date at King Baudouin Stadium was “not an option” because of noise concerns.
“For production reasons, she will only come to Amsterdam,” says the promoter. “The stage had to be on the short side and that is not possible in Brussels due to noise nuisance for the neighbourhood.”
The Manila Bulletin reports that eight million people have applied for tickets for the 33-year-old’s concerts in Asia, while tickets for the singer’s four Japan shows at the 55,000-cap Tokyo Dome will be allocated by a lottery system. Fans must submit an application for the lottery by 10 July and then wait for the results.
More than four million users attempted to buy pre-sale tickets for her Sydney and Melbourne concerts in Australia earlier this week. The New South Wales and Victorian governments moved to crack down on touting after resale prices in excess of $3,000 were listed, with the latter designating the concerts as “major events,” triggering anti-scalping provisions in state legislation.
Elsewhere, in Brazil, a congresswoman has tabled the “Taylor Swift Act”, which would increase the maximum sentence for ticket touting from two to four years in prison, and fines of up to 100x the original price of the tickets.
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Hideaway festival cancelled due to “cost of living crisis”
Hideaway Festival, a new 20,000-capacity event in the UK, has been cancelled due to “the cost of living crisis”.
It would have been the first-ever festival to take place at the Crix, a grade two listed building in Essex with 51.5 acres of gardens and parkland.
Bastille, Clean Bandit, James Bay, Texas, Ella Henderson, Lucy Spraggan, Freya Ridings and Jake Bugg were slated to perform at the family-friendly event, scheduled for 4 and 6 August 2023.
The boutique festival was launched by promoter Roy Trickett, a co-founder of Norwich’s Sundown Festival (now owned by ULive). A longtime promoter in the southeast of England, Trickett has also organised concerts at Hylands Park, Sandringham, Broadlands and Gatcombe Park.
He also tried to get Hideaway off the ground during the pandemic in 2020 and 2021.
Trickett also tried to get it off the ground during the pandemic in 2020 and 2021
“We have encountered numerous challenges, including escalating production costs and the prevailing cost of living crisis,” said a spokesperson. “Despite our best efforts, we are unable to meet the costs associated with delivering a top-quality event on such a large scale.”
The spokesperson said that all customers would receive refunds for the event.
The cancellation comes despite organisers announcing on 25 April that its early bird and tier one tickets were sold out, and suggesting other packages were nearly sold out.
Ticket prices for the festival varied but single-day early-bird passes sold for £60. The event offered glamping options and allowed customers to pay in instalments.
Other festivals that will not take place in 2023 include Falls Festival (Australia), Rolling Loud (US), Summerburst (Sweden), Hills of Rock (Bulgaria), InMusic (Croatia), Wireless Germany, Hear Hear (Belgium) and Tempelhof Sounds and Tempelhof Sounds Presents (Germany).
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Increase in spiking reported at Danish festival
Danish heavy metal festival Copenhell says it is “deeply saddened” by a worrying increase in drug spiking at this year’s event.
VIP Booking reports that organisers were made aware of up to 10 people who unknowingly had substances slipped into their drinks in the festival’s large party tent ‘Biergarten’, adding the trend has also been detected across the wider nightlife scene.
Festival booker and director Jeppe Nissen tells Kulturmonitor the event will “take measures to combat” the development moving forward.
“We are deeply saddened by this and urge everyone to contact us directly if they have had any experiences with drugging or possess any information that can help identify the perpetrators,” says Nissen.
The 35,000-cap Copenhell took place in Copenhagen from 14-17 June and featured acts such as Guns N’ Roses, Motley Crue, Def Leppard, Pantera and Slipknot.
“We have not previously recorded any incidents of drugging at Copenhell, and it has not been a problem that we specifically addressed or warned our audience about,” adds Nissen. “But when we see seven to 10 cases, unfortunately, we cannot say that we have done enough in terms of prevention. It is definitely a problem we will address and take measures to combat.”
“We’re delighted to join forces on our mission to stamp out spiking with the Association of Independent Festivals”
Other Danish festivals such as Smukfest are calling for further dialogue on the subject, while trade body Dansk Live has vowed to address the issue.
Elsewhere, the UK’s Association of Independent Festival (AIF) has announced a partnership with LGBT+ anti-abuse charity Galop and anti-spiking charity Stamp Out Spiking to bolster its Safer Spaces Charter.
Stamp Out Spiking was established to tackle increasing incidents of spiking across the UK and worldwide. The charity exists to highlight the dangers of spiking, and offer effective and practical solutions to keep people safe in pubs, clubs, house parties, festivals and beyond.
“We’re delighted to join forces on our mission to stamp out spiking with the Association of Independent Festivals,” says Dawn Dines, CEO and founder of Stamp Out Spiking. “Working together will make such a difference in safeguarding men and women at festivals across the UK. Highlighting how these cowardly crimes are taking place, sharing key information on the typical signs and symptoms, will make it so much more difficult for perpetrators and ultimately safeguard festival goers.”
The partnerships have contributed to new Safer Spaces resources that directly addresses the needs of LGBT+ survivors of abuse, and the broader issue of spiking.
“It’s important for AIF to work towards creating safer and more inclusive spaces for everyone, and work with those who provide specialised support,” says AIF membership & operations coordinator Phoebe Rodwell-Carson. “We hope to build on this with as many festival organisers as possible, supporting them in upholding their duty of care towards music fans and festival staff, whilst ensuring we remain inclusive and open to all.”
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