Jump to content

Size of area needed for 300 seated people.


Alex222

Recommended Posts

Hi I am just trying to solve a problem that we have with a live event were we have arround 300 people split in two rooms (the second room with a video link to the first.) and we feel that eferyone should realy be in the same room we will.

 

My question is what M2 would you need for 300 people seated in rows in a room with a flat floor ? ;)

(Health and saftey issues don't need to be coverd they have already been sorted out)

 

Thanks

a

 

Thanks my question answered now after a bit of maths

Link to comment
Share on other sites

H&S certainly does apply as do the terms of the "licence" for the event or venue. If this is a temp event then the licensing officer for your local authority will have guidelines for numbers in areas also involving gangways, disability provision. and emergency exit provision and lighting.

 

I went to a licensed venue that was an aircraft hangar. Big enough for several DC 4s ie HUGE! licence for 100 if the main doors were closed as there was only one other exit, Licence for 4000 if the hangar doors were attended for emergency opening.

 

Area isn't the only thing governing the permitted number!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The area we are looking at as a possibility to hold the event in would be a verry large school hall that can legaly hold 400 (seated or standing) but the 400 that they have done is 400 standind and don't have an idea of how much space srround 300 seats would take up and I am wondering what area I would need for 300 people seated so that I can work out if the 300 people would fit in the hall seated.

The health and saftey issues with the hall are all coverd already.

A

 

edit has been made to clarify points

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The area we are looking at as a possibility to hold the event in would be a verry large school hall that can legaly hold 400 but the 400 stated isn't seated it is standing and I am wondering what area I would need for 300 people seated I can work out if 300 people would fit in the hall seated. The health and saftey issues with the hall are all coverd already.

A

 

can't you see that changing the use of the space changes the H&S implications?

 

no seats in place - very easy for everyone to get out

seats in place - people have to navigate the seats to get to the exit

 

the two are interlinked you can't just state that all the issues are covered - THEY AREN'T!!!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think that you have missunderstood what has been said, Yes the h&s may have been covered for the hall. But by adding chairs, and technically changing the capacity of the venue temporarily it will need new health and safety rules to be put in place.

 

Doing something as you have said isn't as easy as, can I fit 300 people in here and that'll be that? If it was that easy, just put out 300 chairs and hope for the best.

 

It's not the question of 'how many Metres squared do I need for 300 seated people' it's 'how many metres squared do I need for 300 seated people, safely and following H&S guidelines'

 

May sound like a bit of a sod, but I'm sure if your organising the event then you should go down the correct routes, as Jivemaster has said, local authorities will be able to evaluate the venue.

 

Safety first!

 

Aaron.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We can't answer the original question, basically. Talk to the venue, see what they (or their inspectors) say.

 

This is sort of thing is covered in the "yellow book" (aka Technical Standards for Places of Entertainment). Well worth a read, and explains why there's so many things governing it. It's expensive though, so maybe try and borrow one off a suitably equipped friend.

 

By the way, speeling (intentional mistake) from your first post alone. arround > around, eferyone > everyone, neet > need, coverd > covered. You're new, we know but you'll get one much better if you check before you post.

 

 

Edited for relevance

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The licensing department will also have rules governing how many seats in a row between isles, width of isles, seats being rigidly fixed together so they can't be pushed about in a panic, etc. These seem to vary slightly between local authorities so you need to ring them and check.

 

The venue I used to work for was licensed for 400 standing or 250 seated. I'd guess 20-25% of the space was taken up by isles when the seats were in, so you loose a lot of space.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hi, Thanks for the reply's I probably haven't made it clear enough that the legal issues with the venue show that it can be full of chairs or empty with a MAXIMUM capacity of 400 people at any one time.

 

The answer I was wanting that obviously isn't available was I was wondering that although it says 400 people are legally allowed (seated or standing)

I was wondering what size roughly you would need for 300 people seated comfortably. So that we can decide if the venue will meet our requirements or not or if people seated would need to be Squeezed in.

 

The reason the venue has a 400 seated or standing capacity is that it belongs to a school so it was designed around these needs and it has plenty of fire escape's on each side of the venue.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hold on, in your second post in this thread you said 400 isn't seated. What's the answer then?

 

that can legaly hold 400 but the 400 stated isn't seated it is standing
There's the quote

 

 

My mistake sounded right when I wrote it, what I was trying to say was that they have had 400 people in there standing but never 400 or even 300 seated although they can. so I was wondering from people's experience how much space roughly does 300 seats take up.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Right. Clarity's vital here.

 

Depends on the seats used, aisles and the like. A row of armchairs takes up considerably more space than a row of footstools for example. What's the venue? And will it be using its seats? One of us might know it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Depends on the seats used, aisles and the like.

will it be using its seats?

 

We will not be using large seats or anything like armchairs. They will just be the usual bog standard chairs that you would normally see in schools. There will be an isle along either side of the chairs and a smaller with one running down the middle about 3 chairs wide.

 

I am not sure of the halls name that we are using, (it is basicaly an empty shell) I am running the technical side of the event and asking this on behalf of someone else that isn’t a member here. Thought that someone might just have a rough idea of space required.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

OK, well off the top of my head I leave an area 60x100cm per seat when people are using the wider plastic school chairs. So you should be able to work it out from that!

 

I appreciate that it seems tiresome being asked all these questions, but it's easier for us to say "yes, 300 people can be seated comfortably in venue x" than to give out formulas and the like. Especially with Edinburgh being full of places transformed into fringe venues and the like.

 

By the way, isle in this context is spelt aisle!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I really wouldn't worry about it, if the venue has a 'legal' capacity (stated in the licence for the venue) of 400 seated then you will have no problem seating 300 without squeezing them in. As many others have said the capacity given in the licence would allow for the seating with suitably sized gangways and exits to enable everyone to evacuate easily, this does not constitute 'squeezed in'. And as your trying to seat 100 less people than the licence allegedly says you can then there really shouldn't be a problem.

 

Having said that I would advise your 'friend' that they should carefully check the capacity with the licencing authority as it's very unusual to have a standing capacity that is the same as the seated.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.