Agenda item

To provide an update on the progress made by partners on the implementation of the recommendations made by Baroness Casey following the UEFA Euros 2020 England v Italy football match at Wembley.

Councillor Krupa Sheth (Cabinet Member for Environment, Infrastructure and Climate Action) introduced the item. The Committee were updated on how the Council and its partners had worked to implement the recommendations of Baroness Casey following the events of the Euro 2020 men’s football final.

Moving forward to speak to the report, Chris Whyte (Operational Director) updated the Committee that the summation of the Casey Review had been not to repeat the events which had occurred at Euro 2020, and the Council had been successful in achieving that aim in the last year.

The Committee was then invited to raise questions on the information provided, which focussed on a number of key areas, as highlighted below:

·             In relation to the recommendations from Baroness Casey’s report, it was asked if there were any plans to have e-ticketing at Wembley and if so, how would phone signal be updated around the stadium. It was updated that this was primarily a question for the stadium staff, though there were plans to increase the phone signal around the stadium area.

·             Reflecting that different audiences such as boxing, football and concertgoers presented different challenges, it was asked if this had been addressed in event day planning going forward. The Committee were updated that resources were supplied in a different way, depending on the type of event. This was dependent on the likelihood of antisocial behaviour occurring at an event. Mostly, football events were now treated the same, irrespective of the size of the teams playing at the stadium. This risk was analysed in tandem with being fair to businesses, and allowing them to trade on event days. 

·             In terms of identifying risks posed by different football teams’ fans on event days, it was updated that the Council were heavily reliant on the risk profiles supplied by the Police.

·             The issue of dispersal after concerts was raised as an issue at recent concerts, and this was acknowledged of being due to transport and traffic issues. 

·             Residents in the Wembley area had expressed concern that security coverage had not been equal across the borough, as well as an issue of concert attendees not dispersing as quickly as football fans. It was noted that there were four key partners on event days: the Council, Quintain, the Football Association and the Metropolitan Police. The Council had been working to establish a broader network to address any security gaps which may have occurred. 

·             It was noted that information and timings around events and concerts should be made more readily available for residents in the area going forward.

·             In terms of deterrent around parking, it was asked if fines were large enough to stop people parking illegally. It was noted that the level of parking fines were set by the statutes, which did mean that the Council were unable to alter them. The deployment of Council staff on the ground was funded by Wembley Stadium.

·             It was raised that ward Councillors and residents had noticed traffic hotspots building up on event days, it was asked what was being done around signage to notify residents of changes to traffic. It was acknowledged that the competition of event day traffic versus commuter traffic led to high traffic areas in some cases. The Committee were updated that the Stadium were looking to increase digital signage around the area, and modernise the signage used.

·             Further to this, it was noted that it would be helpful to receive information on event days from the Football Association regarding road closures and changes, so this could be passed on to residents. 

·             The Committee acknowledged the improvement in clean up after events, and it was asked what steps were being taken to ensure that this was maintained going forward. The Committee were updated that the Council had ensured after the Casey Review implementation that a well motivated and resourced team would be able to continue this work.

·             It was asked if the new event management plan had taken into account the role of delivery drivers providing alcohol around the stadium, and it was noted that this was minimal, though where this did happen the Council did not have legal powers to prevent this from happening.

·             In conclusion, it was asked what the future arrangements would be for events at Wembley Stadium. It was updated that reviews of safety and security arrangements would be ongoing with all partners, who would meet on a regular basis. The stadium also hosted a residents and businesses forum, to receive feedback from the local community.  

As a result of the discussions, the following Recommendations and Information Requests were made by the Committee, noted below:

Recommendations:

i)                 There should be a clear and robust relationship between the council and FA, SSE Arena and Wembley Stadium:

·             to share event information about events in advance to local partners including the council and police.

·             to engage with residents.

·             to look at signage to aid route planning/traffic management

·             to uphold enforcement agreements.

ii)               For the council and any other partners involved to consult with local councillors, residents and key partners to gather information on traffic management arrangements to review how effectively they are responding to congestion hotspots identified by councillors, residents and partners.

iii)              Look at North End Road (identified by a committee member as pinch point) to identify the effects events have in terms of traffic, dispersal of people and anti-social behaviour (please refer to recommendation 2) to amend traffic management arrangements to alleviate the impact in these hotspots.

iv)             All relevant partners (including landowners, housing associations etc) should be brought together to review current security provision in the Wembley events area including identification of responsibilities and jurisdictions to rectify gaps.

v)               Review the abuse/use of parking permits on event days.

Information requests

i)                Cllr Sheth agreed a procedure for councillors and officers on the ground to escalate anti-social behaviour concerns on event days. Confirm the procedures in place and circulate to the committee.

ii)               Request feedback from FA regarding their engagement with residents. To include data (numbers, frequency, spread/areas, who had been consulted) on engagement levels and headline findings and how feedback had been incorporated into practice and procedures going forward.

iii)       Request list of resident associations, which currently attend the liaison committee. Provide this information to all relevant councillors and include them in the committee’s work

Improvement recommendations

For the FA, Wembley Stadium and Arena to promote public transport for events particularly concerts.