Hi everyone,
We have some important news about the National Running Show in Birmingham 2021.
As you may be aware, the government has given permission for exhibitions to resume from 1st October 2020. In order to deliver exhibitions safely, the government and the Association of Event Organisers (AEO) have collaboratively developed something called the All Secure Standard (ASS) which provides a framework for our events to resume in a covid-secure way. In order to comply with the guidelines in the ASS, we need to change our hall layout which means moving to a new hall at the NEC.
Unfortunately, as the NEC has so many large-scale events taking place that weekend, this has meant that we need to delay the event by 4 weeks to February 27-28th 2021 and move to halls 6 & 7. We are confident that this is the right thing to do for the safety of all stakeholders.
If you have a ticket to attend and are no longer able to attend then please contact the See Tickets box office team.
If you are an exhibitor, partner or sponsor then a member of our team should have made contact with you, but if you would like further information or assistance then please don’t hesitate to contact us.
If you have any questions, not covered above then please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
You can find a copy of our Covid-19 Safety Plan below.
We look forward to seeing you in February.
Raccoon Events Covid-19 Safety Plan
As organisers of The National Running Show, customer and visitor safety remains our number one priority. This document outlines the procedures we are putting in place to ensure that the 2021 event is safe for everyone.
As members of the Association of Event Organisers (AEO) we are committed to upholding the strictest of procedures around Health and Safety and are kept well informed (daily) on updates to rules and regulations around Covid-19 procedures. We also work closely with the Association of Event Venues (AEV), Events Supplier and Services Association (ESSA) and numerous other stakeholders. Raccoon Events will adhere to the All Secure Standard, that has been outlined by the government and the aforementioned organisations for all of it’s events.
How will we get thousands of runners to attend the event and remain safe?
- Staggered entry times and bubble grouping – we will be limiting the people in the hall at any one time by staggering entry times
- Visitor dwell time – the average time visitors usually spend within the show is 3 hours and we are confident we will be able to accommodate this dwell time of all visitors. We will also help visitors to plan their time better in advance, so that they get the most of their time.
- Show opening times – if necessary, we will look to extend the opening times of the show to accommodate all visitors.
- Social distancing and use of masks – throughout the hall we will manage the floorplan to enable and encourage social distancing through different theatre layouts, wider aisles, use of technology etc. The wearing of face masks will depend on government guidelines at the time of the event.
The current measures we are taking
Below is a summary of the measures we are currently following to create a successful and safe show for everyone. Please note these measures may well be relaxed over the coming months with further updates from the government:
- New date and floorplan: To comply with current guidelines, we have taken the decision to move halls so that we can create wider aisles and additional feature area. As the NEC is extremely busy at this time, we have needed to move our show dates back by 4 weeks to Saturday 27 and Sunday 28 February at accommodate this.
- Box office: Our box office processes will change to ensure that all ticketing to the event is digital. All contact details will be confirmed before the event to enable contact tracing. Clear communication and advice will be given to all ticket holders to ensure that they know how to get to the venue safely and what procedures they need to follow when they arrive to minimise queuing.
- Features: All event features at the event will adhere to social distancing and safety standards including bigger theatres, distanced seating and screening around the hall if necessary.
- Cleaning: There will be a visible, enhanced cleaning regime with be an increased focus on key touch points, including restrooms, food and beverage areas and help points.
- Catering: There will be a number of catering points around the show which will all adhere to the safety guidelines, with distanced queuing, high cleanliness standard, hand sanitiser stations and disposable catering equipment.
- Food sampling at the show: Exhibitors will be able to offer food sampling, however this will need to be pre-agreed with our operations team to ensure best practice covid-safe processes are adhered to.
- Stand cleaning: Exhibitors will be encouraged to clean their stands regularly throughout the event.
- Sanitising stations: UK Government advice is to wash your hands regularly via the provision of hand washing facilities. To supplement this, hand sanitiser stations will be positioned at key locations throughout the event.
- Face masks: We will ask that all visitors and exhibitors will need to wear a mask unless exempt, throughout the event. This measure will be monitored and may change in line with government regulations by the time the event happens in February.
- Signage: There will be increased signage to remind all attendees at the event to follow the current safety guidelines.
- Pre event communication: There will be a schedule of emails, social media posts and onsite reminders to all visitors and exhibitors of the safety measures in place.