Whist we have enjoyed the new challenges and opportunities offered by virtual events, everyone here at Story Events was utterly overjoyed to hear the news that we should be returning to live events this summer. We know from personal experience that being apart from our colleagues, as we work from our over-utilised kitchen tables, has starved us of that creative interaction and team spirit that our agency and many other companies thrives on.
However, for us and our loyal clients, the long wait will soon be over; and we anticipate a huge interest in live summer events, as we all seek the huge benefits to be gained from live in-person interactions, whether it be a conference, summer party or residential off-site.
When thinking about your summer events there are two key dates announced in the unlocking plan:
Monday 17th May
From this date indoor events for up to 1,000 people will be permitted, or 50% capacity, with up to 4,000 permitted at outdoor events. Up to 10,000 may be permitted in seated outdoor environments, such as stadiums.
Most restrictions on meeting people outdoors, up to a limit of 30, will be also lifted on this date. At this point, theatres, concert halls and hospitality venues will be allowed to reopen, as well as fans being allowed to return to stadiums (Wimbledon and the Euros should have some cheering fans back!)
Monday 21st June
Not only is this great news for the sun worshipers at Stonehenge, who will be able to safely gather there in huge numbers, but the longest day should be the end of the longest wait.
From this day the Government aims to remove all legal limits on social contact, on weddings, and on other live events, opening everything up to and including nightclubs and enabling large events such as theatre performances without the above limits.
In order to secure the above deadlines, the Government will be undertaking several pilot events, starting in April, to test the potential impact of this lockdown easing.
Whilst there remains some uncertainty around these dates (which will be “based on the data”), we are very confident that corporate events will be permitted in normal (or near-normal) formats by the end of June, which opens up a huge opportunity for conferences and celebrations, both in July and September.
Here at Story we have been working very closely with our sister company, Venue Search London, to develop our little black book of the very best summer venues and ideas, both in London and beyond, with great outdoor spaces for alfresco drinks and activities; and we just can’t wait to share them with you! So please call us on 0207 870 9303 or drop us an email to start planning your summer events.
