Crewing

Introduction

This page tells you what we expect of our crew, what you can expect of us - and what to do if there is a problem or an emergency. We have to explicitly avoid making any kind of legal contract so this is not intended to be a legally binding contract of employment, it is just to let you know what you will be doing at events.

All crew should make sure they have read and understood these guidelines - even if you have been crewing for years.

Enjoy yourself

The first rule of crewing is to enjoy yourself. Volunteers are an essential part of Profound Decisions, the events simply couldn’t happen without you. It is really important to us that your volunteer experience is enjoyable and rewarding not just because we depend on our crew for so much but because the only ethical basis on which a commercial company can run events using a volunteer crew is if the crew enjoy the events too.

Please remember that you come to events to enjoy yourself. As the people who do all the work to put the event on, you have more right than anyone else to enjoy it! If you're not enjoying what you are doing then talk to us and we will try to change something.

Work hard

The second rule is work hard. Crewing is a lot of fun, but it is also hard work. Some members of the site set-up and take-down team play during the event, but most crew teams are active from before time-in until after time-out every day. Please discuss with your team leader at what times you need to be available to crew; depending on your precise role, you may have an opportunity to play a character during some of the event.

When you are working at an event, please take care and don't work beyond your personal limits; this is a holiday, you are here to enjoy the event, not hospitalize yourself. It is incumbent on you to ensure you take regular breaks and make sure you eat and drink regularly.

Behaviour

When you talk to players, remember that you will be seen as a representative of Profound Decisions, so be as polite and positive as you can. You are not required to deal with problems or put up with complaints, so if a player brings an issue to you, then you should immediately escalate the issue directly to Matt or Alison Pennington without delay.

Likewise, our players are required to be polite and courteous to our crew. If players are rude to you, then please report the matter to Matt. We expect you to behave in a respectful manner towards other crew. If you have any problems then talk to Matt or the head of crew welfare.

Hot Weather Advice

If the weather is particularly hot, you must ensure that you stay hydrated by drinking plenty of water throughout the day. You should also wear sunscreen, to protect yourself from burning, and you should also ensure that you take in enough salt with your food in order to replace that which is lost through sweating. If you start to feel ill, you should seek advice from First Aid.

Problems

Your department head should normally be your first contact in the event that you have any issues. If, for whatever reason, you would like to speak with somebody else, then any of the Crew Welfare team will be happy to assist.

If you (or anyone else) develops a medical or health problem, then you should contact the duty First Aid medic for assistance and guidance. A supply of sundry medicines is available from Crew Welfare, including paracetamol, ibuprofen, sunscreen and antihistamines.

Emergencies

Any emergency should be reported as quickly as possible by radio to the appropriate team leader or their nominated deputy. If you do not have a radio, please either head swiftly to GOD or locate the nearest radio user by shouting the word "Radio" loudly and clearly, as appropriate. If you are a radio user and hear this call then please stop what you are doing and move to the emergency location to provide assistance.

If you are summoning help via radio, you need to ensure that the nature and location of the emergency is clearly communicated, and to remain available on that radio channel until aid arrives.

You should not call 999 for a emergency, the decision to call the emergency services will be made by the relevant team leader or their nominated deputy. The only exception to this rule is if an emergency is so immediately serious that any delay to summoning the emergency services would place the casualt(ies) at greater risk.

Medical

Profound Decisions employ a professional team of first-aid providers to cover our events. In the event of a medical emergency you should summon an emergency medic from their First Aid post near GOD. If any participant asks for your assistance in obtaining first-aid then please take the time to escort them to the first-aid post, or fetch the first-aid team to them if they cannot move.

Fire

In the event of a fire emergency, then you should summon help from site-crew. Do not place yourself at personal risk; tents and sets are expendable, you are not. Do what you safely can to limit the spread of the fire, and move nearby people to safety, but do not attempt to fight the fire yourself.

Security

In the event of a security emergency, you should summon security assistance from the site security team. Do not attempt to deal with a security situation yourself, at most you should act to ensure that any situation is contained.

Major Incident Response

A major incident is an emergency which requires a large-scale coordinated response from crew. In the event a major incident is declared, the game will be suspended or abandoned in order to deal with whatever large-scale emergency in progress. All radio users should switch to the general site radio channel (Channel 1), make their immediate area safe, and await instructions.

Radio communications are critical during major incidents. Please take particular care to minimize unnecessary communication, and ensure that all messages are clear and concise.

Instructions will be issued by radio by the team coordinating the emergency response: either first aid or security, depending on the nature of the incident. This may include direction to make announcements to players and crew in your immediate vicinity, to evacuate a particular area of the field, or to muster at a particular location to receive further instructions.

What to Bring

Here is a quick guide on what can be helpful to bring to site with you. It is in no way exhaustive or prescriptive.

• Tent, tent pegs, mallet
• Sleeping bag, blanket and pillow (you will want more than a 1/2 season sleeping bag, it can get extremely cold overnight early in the year where temperatures below zero are not unheard of)
• Camping mat / camp bed
• Work-clothes & waterproof layer (suitable for operating for extended periods in potentially unpleasant weather)
• Spare warm layers and spare socks (ideally in a waterproof bag/dry bag in case of disasters, check out waterproof socks such as Sealskins)
• Strong Footwear (sturdy, waterproof work boots with good ankle support are very strongly recommended)
• Work gloves (if you are a member of the site team you should bring some work-gloves to protect your hands)
• Costume, weapons, props (if you are playing a character of your own at any point)
• Orc Mask (if you use one and own your own)
• Torch/lantern/head torch/spare batteries
• Wash kit & toiletries
• Personal medication & sanitary products (if required)
• Lipsalve + moisturiser (the weather can do a number on your skin)
• Water bottle/thermos/mug
• Phone and phone charger (because crew welfare has power)
• A pen knife/multitool
• Bottle opener
• Emergency cash