If you are organising a fairground or funfair for a corporate family fun day, a wedding or anniversary, a birthday, a sports club event, or other activity, you know that choosing the best rides and attractions is of utmost importance. You have to choose your rides, stalls, games, and attractions with care and with everyone's enjoyment in mind. The good news is, you have plenty of options – you can go traditional with classic carousels and Ferris wheels, or you can go a bit more modern with bungee trampolines and even VR games. But there is another serious consideration when you are planning a fairground or funfair event: everyone’s safety, but most particularly the children’s safety. So how can you keep everyone safe at your fairground or funfair event? Here’s what you should bear in mind - and check out our funfair safety guides for more tips!
Why safety is important
Everyone loves going to the fair, and this is especially true for children who want nothing more than to go on their favourite rides, play games (and perhaps win a prize or two), and eat sweet and greasy things their mums and dads probably don’t let them normally enjoy. But while funfairs will always have their charm, you still need to make sure that everyone is safe when they are at your fairground event.
Modern funfairs and fairgrounds can feature rides that are big, powerful, and can accommodate a lot of passengers. They feature combinations of acceleration and height, and they have quick and multiple changes in terms of direction – and this means that they have to be thoroughly checked for safety. Rides have to be designed and manufactured, as well as reviewed and assessed through safety checks prior to being used.
These ride inspections have to be performed by professionals who have the right knowledge and qualifications. The ADIPS, or Amusement Devices Inspection Procedures Scheme, maintains a list of examiners, all of whom have been checked and inducted into the scheme to make sure they fit particular criteria.
What you can do to improve safety
Although inspections can be carried out and performed by qualified specialists before you can take advantage of funfair rides and attractions, it also pays to take some measures on your own so you can improve everyone’s safety as well.
When choosing a fairground operator and specialist in fairground rides for hire, make sure they are a member of a trade authority or association such as the SGGB (Showman's Guild of Great Britain) or BALPPA (British Association of Leisure Parks, Piers, and Attractions). This means that they will have all rides checked and tested and will have a certificate for this as well.
Take a close look at the rides and machines. You can inspect the machines yourself simply by doing a surface check. For instance, do they look clean, solid, and tidy? Do they seem well-maintained? Are they properly stored? If the machine doesn’t look good on the surface, it may not perform well, either.
The attendants provided by the fairground service should be well-turned out, too. Do they seem to know their job and are doing it efficiently? Are they doing thorough checks of restraints?
If there are safety warnings, heed them well. Exclusion zones and fences are there for a reason, so post notices and keep an eye on children who may get close to these zones and fences.
Read our guide on keeping children safe at fairgrounds for more information!
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