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Guidelines for Organ Owners

If you have any queries, or changes to your listing in the Organ Availability Register, contact the

Public Liability Insurance

Please ensure that you have sufficient liability insurance to cover your instrument(s) and note that some events insist on £5 million cover! See the FOPS Insurance page for details.

PPLPRS Licence

Please ensure that you have a PPL/PRS Mechanical Organ Licence. You require a 'Mobile businesses and limited uses tariff (ML)' and you can download an information document HERE. However, if you have been booked for a public event, in most cases the organisers will have a PRS licence that covers you, but there is always an event where you will not be covered, so it is recommended that you purchase one.

Also the PPL/PRS have been approaching organ operators when out at venues to check for a valid licence. Even if you "only play for charity" they say you still require a licence, so it's better to be safe and purchase one.

Risk Assessment

It is sometimes necessary to have a risk assessment, especially for local council events. An example of a risk assessment entry is shown below:

Basically, you have to think of anything that could cause a risk. For example the front flaps of the organ could be an obstacle to pedestrians, but as this is an integral part of the organ all you can do is make sure that it is a 'high visibility' component, or place a fence around the front of the organ so that the public are unable to reach it (then the fence becomes a risk!).

You can download a risk assessment template (in MS Word format) HERE. Just fill in the blank cells with anything you can think of that may be a risk. You will have to 'Save As' when you have added your entries, because it will be in a 'Read Only' format when downloaded.

Or you can download a 'generic' risk assessment in PDF, there is one for a Vehicle mounted organ and one for a Trailer mounted. Please ensure that you implement the actions shown on the forms!

Method Statement

Another document required may be a "Method Statement" which describes the procedures you follow when setting up and pulling down at the venue. You can download a 'generic' Method Statement in PDF for a trailer mounted organ here, but it could be adapted for a vehicle mounted also.

PAT Certificate

If you require a mains electric hookup from the venue organisers (not your own generator), a Portable Appliance Test or "PAT" certificate may be requested. You will have to find a qualified electical engineer to test the electrics on your instrument to issue a certificate if required. Information about PAT Testing.