KEEPING AUDIENCES SAFE

As a grassroots live music venue and small independent business, we are committed to keeping our audiences safe. Our Crime Prevention Policy was published several years ago and is widely acknowledged within the licensed trade locally to be an excellent example of good practice.

We also work in partnership with the following organisations:

Shrewsbury

Shrewsbury Business Improvement District
Shrewsbury Pubwatch
Shrewsbury Street Pastors

Southwater

Telford Pubwatch
Telford Street Pastors

Below you’ll find some of the key areas we’ve considered to help you stay safe at our venues:

During busy periods you’ll notice one of our team wearing a high-viz jacket with the words, ‘Welfare Officer’ written on it.

The Welfare Officer is an additional member of the team whose primary purpose is to provide a point of contact for any audience members with safety concerns.

In a similar way to which Street Pastors fill the gap between police and medical practitioners, the Welfare Officer fills the gap between venue security and the operations team, someone free to focus on audience safety.

If you suspect a crime has been committed you MUST contact the Police as soon as possible. If no crime is reported, it is unlikely the incident will be investigated. Please help us to keep everyone safe by following recommended guidance. Sharing an experience on Social Media without informing the venue or the police will not secure a conviction.

We have a state of the art CCTV system installed inside and outside of Albert’s Shed. CCTV footage is always provided to the police to aid investigations.

At Albert’s Shed Southwater we have installed advanced ID scanner technology to bolster security and safety at the venue, loaned by West Mercia Police. You will need to provide a valid form of ID such as a passport or driving licence to gain entry on Friday & Saturday evening from 8pm.

During busy periods, you might experience a longer than usual wait in a queue. We’ve increased the number of security staff to speed up this process, but our priority is the safety of our audiences.

We search both men and women, so please comply with requests from our security personnel so we can keep the queue moving as quickly as possible.

Searches will include the use of a hand-held metal detector.

Although audience members are entirely within their rights to refuse a search, as a condition of entry to our venues, we are also within our rights to refuse entry on the grounds of refusal to be searched. We hope the majority of our audience members will understand and support this.

Also please note, for your security, our staff are equipped with body cameras. Footage is used for the sole purpose of preventing and identifying criminal activity.

During peak times, you’ll find:

• A search table at the entrance with one security operative conducting searches including contents of pockets, wallets, tobacco pouches, filter packets, etc.
• A second security operative conducting ID checks and bag searches.
• A third security operative is positioned at the inner doors preventing anyone from taking glasses outside. This door supervisor recommends customers consume their drink before going outside to smoke. If they insist on leaving their drink, the door supervisor places a cover on top of the glass or bottle and observes the drinks to the best of their ability whilst carrying out their duties.

Additionally, all venue staff are trained to recognise suspicious behaviour and in how to deal with a suspected spiking incident.

Thank you for supporting Grassroots Music!