The Association of Event Venues (AEV) has declared the first meeting of the Multi Association Security Awareness group (MASA) a success. Fifteen senior representatives from event industry Associations attended the inaugural meeting on November 4, 2022, with Henry Havis, head of security, ExCeL London, taking the chair. The MASA group is envisaged to meet the need for an effective, unified channel for information from authoritative security sources to the whole event industry, and to provide the industry with consistent, knowledgeable representation in governmental, counter terror and security forums.
MASA’s ambition is to represent the entire event industry, including suppliers, and to enable greater and wider outreach of government guidance, especially around counter terror measures and intelligence. MASA will monitor the flow of information from authoritative agencies like the National Counter Terrorism Security Office (NaCTSO), the Home Office and Home Secretary, and cascade updates to its members. MASA will also work with associations to provide consistent and up-to-date security sections tailored to various industry guides, beginning with the AEV eGuide.
MASA will meet quarterly, one month after its representative attends the latest Counter Terrorism Business Information Exchange (CTBIE) meeting, allowing it to evaluate how the latest information affects the event industry and provide specific advice and warnings to all sectors, regions and event types.
Currently, MASA has the support of eight key organisations in the UK live event industry including AEV, Association of Event Organisers (AEO), Event Suppliers and Services Association (ESSA), Association of Independent Festivals (AIF), Association of Festival Organisers (AFO), National Arenas Association (NAA), NOEA (National Outdoor Events Association) and The UK Crowd Management Association (UKCMA).
Rachel Parker, AEV director, said, “The formation of MASA consolidates and strengthens our industry’s response to the risk of terror attacks and other malicious risks. I’m proud that the AEV has been the driving force behind this important initiative. Now the UK event industry has an over-arching security and counter terror information framework, providing a solid foundation for safer events now and in the future.”
Havis, also chair of the AEV Security Working Group, said, “MASA was conceived and created in recognition of our joint responsibility as an industry to bring people together in a place and keep them safe. This multi-association support and engagement will be essential to provide a central conduit for the timely dissemination of consistent security information, evolving legislation, advice, and counter terror updates, to the event industry.”
