Staff Manning & Welfare Break Policy
At Live 9 Events, looking after our team is part of running your event well. This policy explains how we staff attractions, when our operators take breaks, and what you can book if you need an attraction to stay open without interruption.
What Counts as a Staffed Attraction
We treat an attraction as staffed in either of these cases:
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The product is marked “Incl. Staff” on your quotation, meaning an operator is included in the hire price; or
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Staff have been added to your quotation as a separate line, such as “Staff – 2 Hours”, “Staff – 4 Hours”, “Staff – 6 Hours” or another stated staffing period.
In both cases the attraction is a staffed item for the agreed staffing period, and the arrangements in this policy apply to it.
Some attractions, including certain Rodeo experiences, Climbing Walls and other specialist equipment, can only be run by a trained operator, so staff may already be part of the standard hire.
Anything not marked “Incl. Staff” and without staff quoted separately is supplied unstaffed. For unstaffed equipment, a responsible adult must be dedicated to that individual piece of equipment for as long as it is in use.
Staffing Periods
A staffing period is the time our team is booked to operate, supervise or manage your equipment. Staff can be booked for 2, 4, 6, 8 or more hours, and where staff come with an attraction, their attendance follows the operating period shown or confirmed on your quotation.
For example, if your quotation shows “Staff – 2 Hours” for an attraction, that attraction is staffed for the agreed 2-hour period.
Please note that booking one member of staff does not automatically mean the attraction will run without a break for the whole staffing period, because our operators are entitled to reasonable welfare and comfort breaks.
Welfare Breaks
Our team will be given proper breaks during their working period, including time to use the toilet, have a drink, eat and rest away from their operating position. For any staffed item with an operating period of more than 2 hours, planned breaks form part of the staffing arrangements.
As a general guide:
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Up to 3 hours: toilet, water and comfort breaks are taken as needed, where this is practical for the attraction.
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4 – 5 hours: up to a 15-minute break roughly every 2 hours, where operationally practical.
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6 hours or more: up to a 15-minute break roughly every 2 hours, with one of those breaks replaced by a 30-minute food break.
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Longer bookings: breaks, rotations and staffing are planned around the total working period and what your event needs.
These timings are flexible. We may move a break to suit visitor demand, queues, the weather, safety needs or how the attraction runs in practice. Wherever we can, we will take breaks in quieter periods so your event is disturbed as little as possible.
Where more than one of our staff is on site, we stagger breaks wherever reasonably practicable. That does not mean every attraction stays open during every break unless break cover has been booked.
If there are moments when you particularly want an attraction to stay open, such as busy periods, performances, presentations or competitions, please tell us in advance so we can plan breaks around them.
Food Breaks
For staffing periods of 6 hours or more, one scheduled break will normally be a 30-minute food or lunch break. When our team is on site for an extended period, please either provide a suitable staff meal or allow enough time for them to get food.
If an attraction cannot be operated safely without its allocated operator, it may close for the food break unless break cover has been booked. If you need it to stay open, we can provide additional staff at extra cost.
Toilet, Water & Comfort Breaks
Whatever staffing period you have booked, our team will always be allowed reasonable toilet, water and comfort breaks. We will take these at suitable moments wherever we reasonably can, bearing in mind the safe running of the attraction and what your event needs. If an attraction cannot safely stay open without its operator, it may need to close briefly while they take a necessary break.
Keeping an Attraction Open: Break Cover
Where one member of staff is allocated to an attraction, it may need to close temporarily while that person takes a welfare, toilet or food break.
If you need the attraction to stay open throughout, additional break-cover staff may need to be booked. Break cover is not included in standard staffing prices or in attractions marked “Incl. Staff” unless your quotation says so.
So a single operator booked for 2, 4, 6, 8 or more hours will not automatically give you uninterrupted operation for that whole time. If you need continuous operation, please say so when you request your quotation or confirm your booking. We will advise on the right break-cover arrangements, and any extra staff are charged at the applicable rate.
Set-Up, Event Time & Pack-Down
Our team’s working day can be longer than the hours your event is open. If staff need to help with or be present for set-up and/or pack-down, that time counts towards their total working period and is taken into account when planning breaks and welfare arrangements.
For example:
This adds up to 8.5 hours of staff attendance, not 4.
When the total working period calls for extra breaks, staff rotation, split shifts, additional personnel or an Event Manager, we will arrange this with you. Where practical, we will schedule breaks during set-up, pack-down or quieter periods so there is little impact on the time your guests are using the attraction.
Event Manager
If your event has 4 or more Live 9 Events staff and runs for more than 4 hours, an Event Manager must be booked.
The Event Manager leads the on-site team: they organise staff rotations and breaks, keep an eye on the attractions and deal with operational matters as they come up. This is particularly useful where there are several staffed attractions, or where set-up, operation and pack-down together make a long working day.
The Event Manager is an additional member of staff. They are not included in standard staffing prices or in the staff that come with an attraction unless your quotation says so, and they are charged separately at the applicable rate.
Split Shifts & Long Days
For longer events we may recommend or require staff rotation or split shifts where that suits the booking better. For example, one person might run an attraction in the morning and another in the afternoon or evening. This can be the right approach when an attraction is needed for a long period but one person staying on it throughout would not be suitable.
Where set-up, event operation and pack-down together make a long working day, we may need additional staff, rotation, split shifts, an Event Manager or other suitable arrangements. Any extra personnel are charged separately at the applicable rate, and wherever reasonably possible we will identify and agree these requirements and costs with you before the event.
Your Responsibilities
You are responsible for making sure enough staffing is booked for the hours you need and the level of continuous operation you want.
We will tell you if your request is likely to need any of the following:
Any additional staffing is quoted and charged at the applicable Live 9 Events rate.
If a product is supplied unstaffed, you must make sure a responsible adult is dedicated to supervising that individual piece of equipment for as long as it is in use.
If uninterrupted operation matters to your event, please tell us when you request your quotation or confirm your booking so we can recommend and provide the right staffing.
If you have any questions about staffing, welfare breaks or continuous operation, please get in touch with Live 9 Events and we will be happy to talk through your event.