Management Agreement – Cannock
Outdoor Wedding Receptions
Management Agreement between Forestry
Commission and the Cannock Outdoor Wedding
Receptions provider.
Introduction
General
Cannock outdoor wedding receptions describes the product that we require and is not a
brand name.
This document sets out the management regulations for the establishment, day to day
operation and review of Cannock outdoor wedding receptions. These management
regulations along with the key performance indicators (KPIs) form part of the Licence
and will be used to monitor the Forestry Commission (FC) expectations.
These regulations describe more fully than the Licence, the practical day to day
operating principles, procedures and policies required for the effective day to day
provision of Cannock Outdoor Wedding Receptions. Furthermore, these management
regulations will form the basis of a standardised review process which is detailed in the
Key Performance Indicator document.
These management regulations will be reviewed regularly and may be adapted or
amended with consent of the licensee.
Cannock Chase Forest
Cannock Chase Forest is situated within the county of Staffordshire and is approximately
20 miles north of Birmingham. Cannock Chase is an AONB and is 26 square miles in size
attracting around 2.3 million day visits per year. The Forestry Commission manages
4571 hectares (>40% of the total) of woodland and open space within the AONB.
The Forestry Commission also manages a high quality visitor attraction called Birches
Valley forest centre. The Forest centre hosts around 350,000 visitors each year with
many people enjoying the recreational facilities which include adventurous play,
orienteering, off road cycling and walking trails.
The site hosts a number of third party businesses including café, cycle centre, Go Ape
high wires courses and Segways.
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Birches Valley has developed further as a visitor attraction offering a wide variety of
activities and events including Forest Live concert programme and Christmas tree Sales.
Located around 1 mile from the Birches Valley Forest Centre there is a large lightly
wooded open space known locally as “Tackeroo”. This site is used for a variety of
activities such as organised sporting events, camping, theatre, and private functions.
The site benefits from having hard standing for parking and drinking water provisions,
allowing large events to take place without impacting visitors to the nearby Forest
Centre. This is the site that is being made available for this Cannock Outdoor Weddings
opportunity.
If any additional sites are developed and / or become available (within a 30 minute drive
of the site) during this license period, then the Licensee will have the first option to
operate the site under the terms of this agreement.
Cannock Outdoor Wedding Receptions Offer
Cannock outdoor wedding receptions should be operated on the basis of the following
criteria and ethos.
Bookings and confirmation of dates
The Licensee will be responsible for the following
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Taking booking directly from customers to hold outdoor ‘party’ or ‘festival style’
wedding receptions and similar celebrations
Bookings shall not be confirmed with the customer until availability of the venue
on that date has been confirmed by the FC site contact.
Booking confirmation with the FC will require a deposit. The deposit will be the
Site fee for a one day event or the first day’s Site fee for a multi-day event.
Deposits must be received at least six weeks before the event is due to take
place.
Late bookings (less than six weeks before the event is due to take place) may not be
considered.
The deposit will not be refunded if the event is cancelled due to extreme severe weather
or due to the actions of the FC (e.g. emergency forestry operations as a result of severe
weather or disease control) or that the site is deemed dangerous by the FC.
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The deposit will not be refunded in full if the Licensee or their client cancel the event:
i. Six weeks or more in advance - half the deposit will be refunded
ii. Less than six weeks before the event - the whole deposit shall be kept by the
FC
Enquiries received by the Forestry Commission from private individuals regarding
outdoor woodland wedding celebrations or similar celebrations will be referred to the
Licensee.
Licences and documentation
The Licensee will be responsible for the following
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Applying for, the cost of, and the compliance with any required licences or permits
will be the responsibility of the Licensee.
Obtaining any planning or other necessary consents.
Providing the FC site contact with a full written proposal of the event including
maps at least six weeks before the event takes place.
Collating and making available to the FC site contact a pack of health and safety
documentation from all subcontractors and suppliers and risk assessments/
method statements for set up/ take down and the event, including an emergency
evacuation plan.
Collating and making available to the FC site contact documentation from caterers
and bar suppliers including local authority registration, HACCP, risk assessments
and public liability insurance, gas and electricity safety certificates
Insurance
The Licensee will be responsible for the following
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Public and Employers liability insurance of a minimum £5 million.
Events insurance of an amount suitable to cover cancellation of the whole event
including refunding the client, and contractors as required, and paying the
deposit/ fees to the FC detailed in this permission.
Engaging contractors and suppliers who hold a minimum of £5 million Public
Liability insurance
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Infrastructure, contractors and staff
The Licensee will be responsible for the following
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Provide all necessary temporary infrastructure including power and water as
necessary.
All infrastructure and equipment (including but not limited to marquees, toilets,
catering unit) must be visually well presented an in a well maintained, clean and
tidy order.
All infrastructure and equipment (including but not limited to marquees, toilets,
catering unit) must be specifically constructed or professionally adapted for
purpose.
Provide all event staff including but not limited to set up, crew, security and car
parking stewards.
Provide a designated manager as a key point of contact for the FC on site.
Engage competent contractors and suppliers who hold a minimum of £5 million
Public Liability insurance, and have the necessary technical and professional
qualifications and experience.
Engage local contractors where possible and appropriate
The Site
The Licensee will be responsible for ensuring the following
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The outdoor ‘party’ or ‘festival style’ wedding receptions and similar celebration
are staged in the area specified and access to the site is over the specified routes
as shown on appendices 1 & 2 on the attached licence.
Any deviation from the area or access routes is authorised in writing by the FC site
contact.
The Licensee or nominated staff member is on site to supervise set up, with a
particular emphasis on protecting the safety of the public.
Security/ guarding, including overnight security is provided.
All equipment and litter brought onto FC land by the Licensee, participants and
spectators, is cleared to the satisfaction of the FC site contact
Forest warning signs and instructions from FC staff are heeded, that areas where
work is in progress are avoided. The forest is a working environment.
Vehicles owned by the Licensee, his representatives, participants and spectators
only use the access routes and areas specified by the FC site contact.
Any damage occurring is notified to the FC site contact as soon as possible and
within 48 hours or occurrence.
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To gain sole use of the site at the time of the event the Licensee will require a CROW
closure additional administration fee will apply.
The Event
The Licensee will be responsible for ensuring the following
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Outdoor ‘party’ or ‘festival style’ wedding receptions and similar celebrations are
to be private events for invited guests, not open to public or casual attendance.
A maximum of 150 guests or 200 people in total (including staff and contractors)
on site for any one event
The Licensee or nominated staff member, as the Organiser, takes an active part in
the event and is entirely responsible for discipline, safety and overall control of
participants.
Alcohol service or sales at the event is authorised by a Personal Licence Holder
and a ‘Challenge 25’ scheme is in operation.
The area and the route(s) are safe and suitable for the event subject to FC advice
and FC tree inspection.
Public rights of way are not impeded.
Noise and time curfews are adhered to.
Safety
The Licensee will be responsible for ensuring the following
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Use of camp fires, candles, pyrotechnics, fireworks, and any other naked flames
are agreed in advance with the FC site contact. These may be restricted in relation
to the fire risk at the time of the event. Please note fire risk status may change at
short notice.
Sky lanterns are not be allowed under any circumstances.
Assessing and providing adequate first aid facilities.
Advising the FC within 24 hours of the end of the event of any accident to a
participant, spectator, or third party which arises as a result of the exercise of this
Licence.
Extreme Weather
The FC will make all reasonable endeavours to keep Cannock Forest open. However, in
extreme weather conditions (e.g. extremely windy conditions); an outbreak of any
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notifiable disease; other emergency or dangerous situations the FC may need to close
Cannock to the public. This decision will relate to closure of the forest area and will rest
solely with the FC. The FC decision in these instances will be final and does not replace
the need for the licensee to make their own decisions to cancel based on their own risk
assessment. For example it may be that the threshold for cancelation is lower for the
licensee due to the limitations of infrastructure such as marquees .The FC will ensure
that the Licensee is consulted prior to closure where reasonably possible. The Licensee is
advised to obtain in advance the extreme weather closure guidance document available
from the FC site and also the licensee may wish to insure against cancellation due to bad
weather.
Marketing and Promotion
The outdoor wedding receptions product should be branded by the company holding the
licence. The product MUST include the word woodland or forest in the name to ensure
it is relevant and bespoke to the forest environment. The branding will only be used by
the Licensee at events relating to and for the duration of the Licence for Cannock
Outdoor Wedding Receptions.
All outdoor wedding reception sites across England form part of the Forestry
Commission’s outdoor wedding receptions portfolio and will be promoted as such on the
Forestry Commission website.
Application of the brand (both FC and Cannock outdoor wedding receptions local
branding) must be agreed with the FC site contact prior to being used. This is common
across the estate and reflects the importance that the FC attributes to its brands and
identities.
The Licensee will establish a web presence for the event which is agreed with the FC site
contact and consult with the FC regarding use of FC logos.
Promotion and advertising will be the responsibility of the Licensee. Should signage,
leaflets, other marketing ‘tools’ etc appear on site without the knowledge or agreement
of the FC, then the FC reserves the right to remove them without notice to the Licensee
The Licensee shall be able to display and distribute leaflets on site where appropriate
facilities exist, and will be promoted by the FC in marketing and promotion opportunities
as relevant and appropriate.
General
The relevant FC site contact will ensure that all forest district staff are notified of the
licence and the approved area to be used.
The Licensee will ensure that the Forestry Commission Byelaws are observed, except as
expressly authorised by this Agreement. The Bylaws are attached to the Licence at
appendix 6 and any failure to observe the Bylaws may result in termination of the
licence.
In particular the Licensee will ensure:
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there is no smoking or the lighting of fires
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all gates are left in the position as found
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reasonable care is taken to prevent disturbance to wild fauna and flora and to
agricultural livestock
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compliance with any instructions issued by the Forest District Manager or his
authorised representative
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no forest roads are obstructed
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