From setting up tents to arranging entertainment and managing logistics, Phil Burton offers valuable tips for creating a memorable and profitable event for your school
I recently shared my experiences of fundraising with a group of business leaders and one idea really created a lot of interest and requests for how to go about setting it up. The event was our Summer Camp, which really surprised me! So here is the quick guide to setting up the event.
Firstly, in the words of Captain Mainwaring “Don’t Panic”! It really is not as difficult as you think. The idea of hundreds of families in tents on your field with a bouncy castle, music, beer tent and food can be achieved (but don’t expect to get much sleep on the night)!
The first steps
The first steps are to see if people want this – a quick e-form would be more than enough. I would recommend that you do this event in June or early July as the weather is far more likely to be better which will increase your income. Once you have a date you need to apply for a Temporary Events Notice from your local council. This allows you to host several things including playing music and serving alcohol. They cost around £22 and are simple to complete. If you are having other events, you can add these to this notice to keep the costs down.
So, the notice is in – now it’s time to plan the event and what you want. I would recommend the following things:
Beer Tent – see if you can do a deal with a supplier or sale or return, this way it is all profit. We found basic pints and prosecco works well
Bouncy Castle and Slide – find a local company who may even give you them for free. There are risks with these so make sure you have everything in place in terms of insurances and cover etc.
Music – how are you going to do this? We have a large portable music system which is preloaded with songs – I would suggest all the classics with a few party songs to get the kids involved
Other ideas – I have had a falconry display, go carts, fairground rides and even Punch and Judy. Turn to your parents and find out what they do and how they can help
Think about pricing – we have usually charge £20 per tent for 2 adults and 2 kids with an additional £3 for extras. Also work out your food prices, remembering that parents would spend around £25+ on a takeaway. Think about your Risk Assessment – it may take a while for the first one, but it gets easier from there. Don’t forget the toilets – how are you going to arrange this?
Now you know what you are doing you need to advertise to parents. Go big, make this the most spectacular event of the school year that creates some serious #FOMO (who had to look that up?)
On the day of the event give yourself time – I usually spend the afternoon putting up gazebos and getting things ready. I set out the campsite in rows and place water buckets around the site. Parents are then permitted to arrive at 4.30 to pitch up with all cars removed from the field by 18.00. You will need someone to manage the flow of cars onto the site ensuring a strict speed limit is followed.
The team of helpers then usher everyone’s cars off by 18:00 so the fun can begin. It is a casual event, and parents can either join us for a boogie at the front or have a go on the slide whilst enjoying a beverage or two. The main event is at 19.30 depending on what we have. The rest of the evening is spent doing a raffle, selling lollipops and ends with our traditional “Dads v Lads” football game which gets very competitive. As soon as it arrives to 23.00, we ask for quiet on the site – this is always adhered to and usually all you hear is the patter of feet to the toilets.
Wake up time is around 6.00am and we start again – getting the breakfast butties ready for everyone (remember to charge for these). There are usually more sports, bouncing and general laughter. We remind everyone that they must be off the site by 11.00am. Everyone helps to clear the field of any rubbish and the team do a quick clean of the toilets etc before heading home for a well earnt rest.
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