REGIMENTAL LEVEL EVENTS

Not all ACWS events need necessarily to be 'whole Society' events. Regiments are entitled to organise their own events if there is no Society event for that weekend/bank holiday. Regiments are entitled also to invite other units from within ACWS to join them, if appropriate, and if they wish.

Regiments are encouraged to improve their training and Living History skills by this means, and to 'spread the word' about ACWS, in the hope that a small event will be the 'sprat to catch the mackerel' of the larger event for the whole Society.

Units should use their members to make contact with suitable events and locations, and regimental leaders/organisers should make contact, in a professional and courteous way, with those in charge of the target event or location, and see if suitable arrangements can be made. Units or groups of units should target local fetes, carnivals, Rotary or other similar organisations, school fetes, local councils (town/parish, borough or county), museums, country houses, parks, or the like. Ideally a modest fee should be charged. The 'going rate' for a simple Living History display would be between £50 and £250. The more you do, the more you would expect to get paid.

Anything involving a small battle or firing display ought to be worth between £250 and £500, at 2011 prices. These figures assume access to "convenient" toilets, provision of wood for fire(s), waste disposal, free parking and fresh "potable" water supply are all provided, free of charge by the event sponsor - ie whoever is hosting you.

Things to do

Remember -

1. Always tell the Events Director and Treasurer well in advance, as soon as you know, so that you (a) go in the events diary to avoid clashes and for co-ordination reasons and (b) get put on the events register for public liability insurance cover reasons.


2. Ideally you should have a written contract with the organisation where you are going to perform. Please contact the Events Director for advice on this (ACWS has a simple, one page contract suitable for the events contract).


3. Always tell the local police what you are up to, even if no gunpowder is involved. Re-enactors with guns need the local police to know that they have permission from ABC to do whatever it is at XYZ location on that date.
   Refer to ACWS rules and regulations for H&S requirements and preparing Risk Assessments.


4. Anything else that you want e.g. artillery, pyrotechnics or horses, costs a lot more, and needs to be negotiated additionally and separately.


5. If gunpowder is to be used, then appropriate security arrangements would have to be provided for its transportation, storage and guarding, in approved containers, and application made to the relevant local police force at least 3 months prior to the event. The senior re-enactor responsible for the gunpowder needs to have an Acquire and Keep License AND get a similar license specific for the event location and date. No event licence = its unlawful to use explosives at that site = use no gunpowder there !

Fundamental Principles

All events run under ACWS insurances and rules should make a profit or break even, unless prior approval for a 'loss leader' has been given by the Board. Where there is a 'regimental type' event, where attendances limited or restricted, if it is organised by ACWS then existing registration fee template should suffice. For such events organised by a unit or group of units, including 22nd of Foot, the Cavalry and any other ACW regiment (where ACWS insurances, rules, regulations policies and procedures are used) then there are options for the different models available:-

1. Full sponsored model. The regiment gets the income from the sponsor direct. Regiment makes a donation of, say 15% to 20% towards insurance costs and an extra donation to cover the costs of any ACWS gunpowder used. So a fee of £500 would result in £100 to ACWS, a fee of £250 would mean £50 to ACWS.


2. Part sponsorship model. Regiment gets no or limited income from sponsor direct ie not enough to trigger the % payment in 1 above. A registration fee of, say, £3 per member present if no firing or £6 if gunpowder used is to be paid to ACWS. The unit 'hosting' the event is responsible for making sure the money is paid to the Treasurer immediately after the event. The money can come from a sponsor's fee or a registration fee. The balance of the sponsor's fee goes to the organising regiment(s).


3. No income model. No income from the sponsor/event location owner so a registration fee of either £3 or £6 is levied, and the proceeds go to ACWS. Regiments don't have to charge members - they might have regimental funds which could be used to pay the capitation fee to ACWS. These sums of money are required to cover the provision of ACWS insurance cover and any other services used. The minimum insurance charge per event is £25.


4. Promotional/recruiting events. Where promoting ACWS or pure recruiting is involved without any camping or re-enacting these (if approved by Events Director) are covered by Society insurances but are not recharged to participants. These are "no registration fee" events.

NB. ACWS is prepared to adopt a flexible policy and receive what is appropriate for a particular event - the above are guidelines. The income from an event must also cover all centrally supplied materials or services e.g. gunpowder, transport, pyrotechnics, cannon etc. etc.

Remember - YOU represent our Society, so get it right and do it safely. Follow the rules and the guidance notes. Always recce the site, and make sure you have clear agreement with your sponsor. One senior, responsible person needs to be in overall charge of organising and setting up the event and sponsor liaison. Need advice? Just ask. The Events Team and any other Society officer will be more than happy to help you, as far as they can.

And tell the Army Commander if you are going to have one of these 'regimentals' as soon as you start thinking about it / planning it !

2nd Draft. PC. 15.02.11