Keeping our events safe

Medical Cover

A medical team will be available on site as follows:

Events 1 and 4: from Thursday to Monday
Events 2 and 3: from Friday to Sunday

The medical service is provided by UK Medical & Event Services who provide 24 hour support until the end of the event has been called.

UK Medical & Event Services are CQC-registered First Aid, Medical and Ambulance services.

New Player Briefing

A New Player Briefing will be run at every event by our referee team. It will be held at 5pm on Friday:

at the bar at Weston Park
at the Teepee Glade at Paccar Scout Camp

The New Player Briefing covers the basics of Curious Pastimes, including:

common calls you’ll hear in the game,
a brief overview of the rules, and
an introduction to the different teams that help run the game.

Please come along if you’re a new player, or if want a refresher on the game or rules.

Young Player Briefing

We hold Young Players Briefings at every event. It will be held at 6pm on Friday at the Bar.

The briefing covers:

the activities and encounters for Young People to get involved in over the weekend,
expectations for managing your young people at our events, and
where to go if you have a problem

Young Players at Curious Pastimes sets out the full details and expectations for young people and their responsible adults at our events.

CP Parents (Unofficial) Facebook group is a place for parents/guardians to connect and for general discussions about Young Players at Curious Pastimes.

Fire Safety

These are the expectations for managing fires across the site when you are attending our events.

In the Out of Character Area

Camp fires are not permitted anywhere in the Out of Character camping area.

Camping stoves and similar devices for cooking are allowed.

If you are using a camping stove with a gas bottle, please check the gas is connected properly to the stove/cooker before use.
Please disconnect or turn off any gas supply when the stove is not being used.
Camping stoves should not be used inside tents, close to canopies or to the walls of tents unless designed for this purpose

In the Game Area

Ground fires are not permitted at either of our sites. All fires must be raised off the ground and on a stable, heat resistant surface.

Fires, fire pits and camping stoves should not be used inside tents, close to canopies or to the walls of tents, unless specifically designed for this purpose.

Extinguished fires and BBQs, including those which appear to be cold, should not be taken into enclosed tent areas, due to the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.

Fires should be monitored at all times and should be extinguished before being left unsupervised.

Where possible, fires should be extinguished with water before being left overnight.
Any unignited fuel should be removed from the fire, if you have the means to do so safely.
Spreading embers out in the container will allow them to cool quicker.

Ashes should only be disposed of in waste containers when you are entirely sure they are cold. Ashes must not be poured on the ground under any circumstances.

Candles

The use of candles is permitted.
Lit candles should be kept away from the side of tents
Lit candles should be on a stable and inflammable surface.

Encountering an Out of Control Fire

If you encounter an out of control fire, please make a member of staff aware immediately.

Fire extinguishers are provided to every faction. Please only use these if you know how to do so safely.

Weapons Safety

All weapons, shields and armour must be checked by a Weapons Checker before use to ensure they are safe.

Weapons checking will take place in camps before Time-In on Friday, and again before any skirmishes or battles. If you miss these checks, please make sure your weapons are checked by an approved referee before using them in the game.

Stab Safe Weapons

Only weapons specifically designed as stabbing weapons, with a collapsible tip, can be used in a stabbing lotion.

Once safety checked, any stab-safe weapons but display a white tag, provided by the weapons checker if you don’t already have one.

Damaged or Unsafe Weapons

If an item is deemed to be unsafe or damaged, it is considered to have ‘failed’ a weapons check.

Failed weapons, arrows or armour will be marked with a red tag

These items must not be used in the game under any circumstances
These items should be stored in an out of character area, where possible, for the remainder of the game.

All Traders' weapons will be checked by our Weapons Safety team before they can be sold at our events. We do our best to check these in advance of the gates opening.

Bow Safety

There are two things you will need to be able to use bows or crossbows at Curious Pastimes:

A Bow Safety Licence
A Safe Bow Licence

Anyone who wishes to use a bow or crossbow of any description at Curious Pastimes must first take part in a Bow Safety Training session. When you have successfully completed your bow safety training, you will be issued with your licences (in the form of a lammie).

There is a Curious Pastimes Archery group for anyone who may be interested in joining or if you have any questions about archery at Curious Pastimes

Bow Safety Licence

A Bow Safety Licence will be issued to demonstrate you are safe to use a bow/crossbow at Curious Pastimes. It must be kept on your person (with your character card) when you are using your bow or crossbow.

There is a section on your bow licence where a referee is able to mark if they have witnessed unsafe bow use. If this is marked two times, your licence will be removed and you will need to recomplete the bow safety training.

Our Bow Safety team reserve the right to refuse licences for anyone that they deem to be unsafe with a bow or crossbow.

Safe Bow Licence

The Safe Bow Licence will be issued to demonstrate that your bow or crossbow is safe to be used at Curious Pastimes.

We have a safe poundage limit of 30lbs for bows and crossbows to make sure they is safe to be used as part of combat. We also have a limit of a 28 inch draw for bows. Your bow or crossbow will be tested by our Bow Safety team to make sure it is within our safe parameters.

When your safe bow licence has been issued, you must attach it to your bow to show so that it is visible to referees.

New Bow or Crossbow Licences

If you have not already held a Bow Licence at Curious Pastimes, you must attend one of these sessions.

Bow Safety Training sessions will be held outside Event HQ at the following times:

Thursday - 4:00pm (for events 1 and 4 only)
Friday - 3:00pm
Saturday - 10:00am
Sunday - 10:00am
Monday - 10:00am (E1 and E4 only)

Licence Renewals

We also hold sessions specifically for those who already hold a Licence and need a recertification.

These sessions will be shorter than standard Bow Safety Training sessions, as everyone attending will have held a Bow Licence previously, but will have limited numbers per slot.

These sessions will be held:

Friday - 1:00pm and 2:00pm
Saturday - 10:00am
Sunday - 10:00am
Monday - 10:00am (E1 and E4 only)

A form will be released ahead of every event for you to complete to book yourselves onto one of these sessions. Notifications will be communicated via our blog and social media.

If you pre-book for a session, your licence will be prepared ahead of time and your card will be ready to go on completion of the session. If you have not pre-booked, your card may not be available until the following day.

Lost Bow Licences

If you lose your Bow Safety Licence, you will need to complete a full Bow Safety Session in order to get a replacement.

If you lose your Safe Bow Licence, you can bring the bow to Event HQ during the event to get it re-checked and a new tag printed.

Special Effects and Pyrotechnics

Pyrotechnic special effects will be in use at our events, including at the ritual circle, during skirmishes and battles, and during the wider game.

These effects include:

flashes,
loud bangs, and
smoke effects,

Very loud effects will only be present during battles and skirmishes and will not be used in camp areas. However, due to their nature, they will still be audible across the wider site.

We will not use loud effects late at night.

Anyone using pyrotechnics during a skirmish or battle will be wearing an orange hi-visibility vest.

If you have questions regarding pyrotechnic use, please speak to a member of the SFX Team who can be contacted via the Event Team or Game Team.

We try our absolute best to be considerate of the needs of our players. Due to the nature of our game, it is not possible for the SFX Team to know where you are at any given time. This means that we are unable to give advance warning to individuals immediately before effects are used.

Player Use of Pyrotechnics

All pyrotechnic effects at Curious Pastimes come under the remit of the SFX Team, and may not be used by players without prior permission.

This includes anything that generates light, smoke and/or noise via chemical means that isn’t a standard fire.

Under no circumstances may any player use any pyrotechnic device that generates smoke or loud noise at Curious Pastimes events.

For any items that generate light through chemical means, are added to a fire or generate small levels of noise, you will need authorisation from a member of the SFX team before taking them into the IC area.

Any non-standard use of fire will also need clearing by the SFX team (ideally before the event) for safety purposes. If in doubt, please get in contact and the SFX team will see what can be done.

Demonstrations

We hold a pyrotechnics briefing on Friday at E1 and E4. We will confirm the time and location via our blog and social media. ahead of our events.

These briefings are for anyone that may be feeling nervous or anxious about effects, or would like more information about what to expect.

Please be aware that this briefing will include the use of pyrotechnic effects, including loud bangs, and these may be heard across the wider site.