Welcome to Bolton, the perfect place for your next outdoor event
We pride ourselves in creating and supporting some of the country’s best loved events as well as grass-roots community activity – all of which put Bolton on the ‘map’ at local, national and international level, enhancing the cultural offer and adding to our appeal as a great place to live, work, visit and invest. We offer a great range of outdoor locations for event organisers, from bustling town centres and award-winning parks and green spaces.
If you or your organisation is looking to hold an outdoor event in Bolton, we’d love to hear from you. An outline of responsibilities, timescales and the process is below.
In general terms, event organisers have a duty to, plan and exercise overall control of the event to ensure that all reasonable precautions are taken to maintain the safety and security of people involved with or affected by the event throughout its duration (including preparation and clearance). Obtain all necessary licenses, authorisation and permission prior to the event. Assess the suitability of the venue. Plan the event layout to minimise risk and vulnerability and prepare a site plan. Establish emergency routes/rendezvous points as appropriate. Consult as necessary with key stakeholders, such as landowners, the Council, emergency services, public transport, neighbouring businesses, and residents. Demonstrate they have adequate resources, including funding, to plan and deliver the event.
Before going any further we advise that you read through all of the information given on this webpage and visit all the suggested links to relevant legislation and good practise guidelines. Once you have considered everything that is involved please register your interest as below.
Small scale events
We require at least 3 months notice for small scale events. For such events (attracting up to 499 people) we will advise if the event organiser will be required to organise a joint agency meeting and attend a Safety Advisory Group (SAG) to share more information about the event. Small scale events will still need to adhere to some of the same timescales as larger events as shown in the table below. A license may still be required for small scale events. Event organisers must consider all of this in their planning and be aware that costs may apply.
Large scale events
For events classed as medium to major (attracting 500 people or more) the Safety Advisory Group (SAG) will provide contact details of local agencies (such as the police, ambulance service, highways etc) with whom you should consult at a joint agency meeting (JAM).
You should hold at least one JAM where representatives of these agencies are in attendance.*** Further JAMs are likely to be required for new events or where the agencies require further information.***
The following are our minimum recommended timescales that should be followed for large scale events and some timescales are applicable to small scale events as well.
| Timescale* | Action |
|---|---|
| 6 months to event | Register an interest to be submitted |
| 6 to 3 months to event |
Joint agency meeting – hold initial meeting*** Begin producing event documentation such as Event Management Plan and Risk Assessments License applications** – Please see licensing section below Road closures** – if you are applying for permission to close a public highway, you must apply a minimum of 12 weeks before your event Further joint agency meetings to be arranged*** Event management plan – draft copy to be submitted to SAG |
| 4 to 6 weeks prior to event |
Further joint agency meetings to be arranged*** Safety advisory group – event organiser to attend SAG and present their event |
*These timescales are indicative only, **Costs apply. ***It is strongly recommended that at least 4 weeks notice is given.
Martyn's Law
The Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025, also known as Martyn’s Law, received Royal Assent on Thursday 3 April 2025. This Act delivers the Government’s manifesto commitment to strengthen the security of public premises and events.