Peter Jones shares his thoughts on how corporate, fundraising or awards dinners might look under the current social distancing proposals.

Your annual dinner for 1,000 is now going to look something like this in the new world we find ourselves in.

Sorry, can’t allow 1,000 pax in due to social distancing.  We might be allowed 350 pax maximum.  However you still have to book and pay for a space designed for 1,000.

Only 3 ½ guests allowed per table of 10. Not sure how ½ a guest is supposed to work, maybe he or she rotates between tables.

Then there is the additional security to oversee the event to ensure you stick to the rules.

• firstly your temperature being taken on arrival
• and then how many people can be on the escalators coming up to the ballroom
• then at the entrance doors to the ballroom so that not everyone walks through at the same time.
• at the toilets (say no more, we all hope they haven’t eaten a dodgy beef vindaloo!!)
• and the best part of them all – controlling access to the dance floor.

Whilst I could handle some social distancing with the way I dance, I suppose the close cheek to cheek is out. Maybe it’s the return of the Nutbush and Time Warp as they can be done 1.5 metres apart.

And this is just the start of a long list of elements that we event organisers, venue managers and our clients are going to have to consider if we want to hold these type of events.

With the cost of the AV, minimum spend, food and beverage service and all this additional security it will go on and on.

The question we will need to start asking ourselves is will it be worth it from a guest experience and are clients prepared to pay for it?

I’m not so sure it will be and it might get to the point where we need to say – Don’t do it unless you can do it properly.

Will be interesting to hear what others think!