Before any event crew sets foot on-site in Cumbria, the employer running that event has a legal duty to make sure staff are trained in fire safety and first aid. That duty comes from the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, and it applies whether you're staging a three-day festival near Penrith or a one-off charity walk in Kendal. This guide covers what fire marshal and first aid training your event staff actually need, where organisers fall short, and how to sort it before the summer season.
Under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, employers must provide whatever information, instruction, training, and supervision is necessary to keep employees safe at work. For outdoor events, that includes making sure enough staff are trained as fire marshals to manage evacuation routes, fire points, and the safe use of extinguishers.
The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 reinforces this for any premises or event space where a "responsible person" has control. At an outdoor event, that responsible person is usually the organiser or employer. They must carry out a fire risk assessment and appoint competent people to help put fire safety measures in place. Fire marshals are those competent people.
There is no fixed ratio written into law for how many fire marshals you need per attendee. Your fire risk assessment should determine the number based on layout, capacity, and the specific hazards on site. A marquee event with cooking stalls and LPG cylinders is a very different situation to an open-air running event.
Under the Health and Safety (First-Aid) Regulations 1981, employers must provide adequate and appropriate first aid equipment, facilities, and personnel. For outdoor events, "adequate" depends on the number of workers, the nature of the work, and how remote the site is.
Many Cumbrian event venues are rural. If your event is 30 minutes from the nearest A&E, your first aid provision needs to reflect that. HSE guidance makes clear that employers should consider the distance from emergency medical services when deciding how many first aiders to have on site.
A small team of five or six crew members at a village fête might manage with an appointed person and a well-stocked first aid kit. A crew of 20 or more at a lakeside festival will need at least one qualified first aider, ideally holding a current First Aid at Work certificate valid for three years.
Three gaps come up repeatedly when event crews are put together quickly for the summer season.
Relying on expired certificates. Fire marshal and first aid qualifications do not last forever. First Aid at Work certificates are valid for three years. Fire marshal training should be refreshed annually or when site conditions change. If your returning crew last trained two summers ago, check their certificates before assuming they're current.
Treating fire marshals and first aiders as the same role. They are separate competencies. A fire marshal knows evacuation procedures and extinguisher use. A first aider can treat injuries and manage a casualty until paramedics arrive. Some staff may hold both qualifications, but you need to plan for both roles being covered even if someone is dealing with an incident.
Forgetting temporary and volunteer staff. The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 covers employees, but HSE guidance extends the duty of care to volunteers and temporary workers on your site. If you're bringing in casual staff for a weekend event, they need a briefing at minimum. You still need enough trained fire marshals and first aiders among your core team.
If a crew member's fire marshal or first aid certificate has lapsed, they do not count toward your legally required trained personnel. Check every certificate before the event, not on the day.
CFST runs fire marshal training and First Aid at Work courses from Penrith, with group bookings available at your own premises across Cumbria. Both courses are CPD accredited, and certificates are issued on the day.
For event organisers pulling together seasonal crews, a group booking makes sense. You get everyone trained in one session, on the same standard, with the same certificate dates. Tracking renewals next year becomes straightforward.
Fire marshal training is a half-day course covering evacuation procedures, fire extinguisher types, and the role of a fire marshal on site. First Aid at Work is a three-day course covering everything from CPR to managing fractures, burns, and medical emergencies. Both are practical and hands-on, not just classroom theory.
Book your places on the next available Penrith course at cumbriafiresafetytraining.co.uk/up-coming-courses, or call to arrange a group session at your venue before the event season starts.
There is no fixed legal ratio. The number of fire marshals should be determined by your event's fire risk assessment, taking into account the site layout, capacity, types of fire hazard present, and evacuation routes. Larger or more complex events will need more trained fire marshals on duty.
HSE guidance extends the duty of care to anyone working on your site, including volunteers. Volunteers themselves may not need to hold certificates, but the event organiser must make sure enough trained fire marshals and first aiders are on the crew to cover the whole site and all personnel.
There is no single expiry date set by law, but best practice is to refresh fire marshal training annually or whenever the working environment changes significantly. For seasonal event staff, this means checking certificates before each summer season and rebooking training where needed.
CPD accredited fire safety and first aid training delivered online or at your premises anywhere in Cumbria.
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