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We recently published our new global five year strategy that sets out the direction for the future.

Secure Event Processes

A secure event is an event that is not accessible to the general public without pre-authorisation, and where resident participants require a level of safeguarding that requires anonymous participation records.

  1. Registration
    1. Regardless of previous parkrun history, all resident participants must be provided with an anonymous prenamed barcode in order to record their participation (including volunteering).
      1. Residents may only use their allocated anonymous barcode in order to record participation.
      2. If a parkrunner is transferred to another secure site, they must be provided with a new anonymous prenamed barcode.
      3. We will not merge participation records whilst a participant remains registered to a secure event.
    2. Each anonymous parkrun profile will be attached to the parkrun.com email address of that event.
    3. It is not possible to edit or amend these parkrun profiles whilst registered to a secure event.
    4. parkrun provides these host venues with a mechanism to register new participants with anonymous parkrun accounts, without requiring or permitting the recording of any personal information.
    5. Barcodes show the anonymous name and the parkrun ID.
    6. Names are generated by parkrun, using the following process:
      1. Random initial, followed by random town name in the country where the facility is located.
      2. At the point of registration, should an allocated pseudonym be deemed inappropriate (for any reason) an alternative can be generated.
    7. When a participant leaves a secure site and wishes to continue parkrunning, they should contact parkrun support directly and request access to their parkrun profile.
      1. As this contains no personal information it can be assigned to an individual outside of the secure site without risk of a data breach.
      2. If the individual has participated at multiple secure sites, the records may be combined into a regular public parkrun profile.
  2. Course design
    1. All secure events must have an assigned ambassador and named event director.
    2. All courses must be 5k and outdoors and approved by a parkrun ambassador.
    3. Starts and finishes must not be downhill.
    4. Courses must not descend steps.
    5. The maximum number of laps that will be approved is 20.
      1. There are various ways of ensuring that the correct number of laps are completed by runners/walkers at the event, for example an elastic band could be collected at the end of each lap, or a numbered card could be attached to clothing and a checklist created which is ticked off by a volunteer each time a participant completes a lap.
    6. Secure events will only be approved where there is at least 60 minutes allocated by the site.
    7. As with regular parkrun events there should not be a cut-off time for finishers, however we understand that in some secure sites logistical limitations may prevent access to open space for more than 60 minutes. In these situations, participants who cannot complete 5k within the allotted time should run or walk for the entire session and be allocated a time of 60 minutes.
    8. It is advisable that courses are located away from perimeter fences due to the risk of contraband being thrown into the grounds.
    9. Unlike regular parkrun events, there may be a need for secure events to limit numbers of participants (e.g. due to course or staffing capacity or restrictions on residents mixing). Therefore, where it is not possible to accommodate all of a site’s residents at the same time or location, we will permit more than one event to take place at the same venue.
      1. These must be distinct parkrun events with different event names.
      2. Each must have their own set of timing and scanning hardware.
      3. Where event startup fees apply, all events on the site can be covered by a single fee payment.
  3. Event Delivery
    1. The following volunteer roles are compulsory at all secure events
      1. Run Director
      2. Timekeeper
      3. Barcode Scanner
      4. Finish Tokens
      5. Tail Walker
      6. Event Day Course Check
    2. Incidents should not be reported directly to parkrun however all incidents should be recorded as required by the host venue and using the venue’s internal processes.
    3. Annually, a summary of incidents that have occurred should be taken into account as part of the risk assessment review.
    4. Devices with GPS recording capability are not permitted to be used by any participants when taking part in a secure parkrun event.
    5. Secure sites themselves may also have additional restrictions on what items may or may not be brought in, and these should be respected at all times.
    6. The event must take place weekly on Saturday mornings. Unlike regular events however, the precise start time does not need to be fixed.
    7. If a site hosts multiple parkrun events, start times can be staggered (e.g. 9am / 10am / 11am) if needed to allow for staffing and / or resident access.
    8. The opportunity for non-residents to participate in secure parkrun events is entirely at the discretion of the host venue.
  4. Milestones
    1. Where a resident participant qualifies for a milestone club a confirmation email will be sent to the event inbox. Milestone t-shirts can be purchased via the participant’s profile.
  5. (not) parkruns
    1. Where an event wishes to log any (not)parkrun participation it may be done via the participant’s profile.
  6. Communication & email accounts
    1. All email communication from parkrun HQ will be to the event’s @parkrun.com Google Workspace email address. We recommend that Run Directors and Event Directors of secure parkrun events have access to this account.
    2. If the organisers are unable to access this account:
      1. parkrun will arrange that emails sent to the event’s address will be forwarded to a single email address designated by the host venue.
      2. This must be a formal work email address associated with the venue itself.
      3. Requests for this must come from an official email address associated with the venue itself and to eventsupport@parkrun.com
    3. Related social media should be in accordance with the secure site’s policies for public sharing of information.
    4. Any press and media related to secure parkrun events must be referred to media@parkrun.com in the first instance.
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