Sussex security guard on drugs, crowd control and abuse

The guard, who wished to remain anonymous, has worked at many different festivals across Sussex.

He spoke exclusively to The Argus about the prevalence of drugs at events, the issue of pay and how that affects staff morality and some of the abuse that he and his colleagues often receive.

Unsurprisingly for those who often attend festivals and gigs, he said people attempt to take in alcohol and drugs “all the time”. The most common of these substances, for Brighton at least, is ketamine, he said.

“Along with cocaine, they’re the big two, and MDMA comes quite a distant third," he said. 

“It depends on what kind of event you go to. If it’s a rave, then MDMA will be higher but especially among students ketamine is the ‘go-to’ because it’s cheap.”

He also said that nitrous oxide, more commonly known as laughing gas, is also prevalent at events he has worked.

“At one festival, we had people round the fence line throwing canisters over to their mates - we were in the middle trying to jump and catch them," he said.

“It does feel like you’re the bad guys, stopping people from having their fun, but then you look at the end of the festival and you’ve had people go to the medical tent who can’t walk.”

He said on an average day at a gig, about two people would need to be taken to hospital due to issues involving drug use.

“I have dragged three or four people to the medical tent because there were so many people going down who couldn’t walk themselves over there,” he said.

“They use a bit too much because it’s nice summer weather, not drinking enough water and drinking too much alcohol, and then one thing leads to another.”

Festivals and other events are often very strict with searches for alcohol and drugs but some still go to gigs not thinking that they will have their illicit items seized.

He said: “You’ll always get the one or two people who don’t realise their stuff will be searched and they leave it blatantly in the open like in their wallet or in their pockets in some cases.

“It’s the very fun places where people try to hide them. Socks, in the crotch area. I had someone put it in the inseam of a hat. He took it off - I didn’t even ask him but he took his hat off.

“I’ve had someone try and smuggle Viagra before as well - that was a weird one.”

The security guard said one festivalgoer had tried to smuggle in Viagra

When items like alcohol or drugs are seized by security they are handed to a supervisor and later collected by police.

However, the security guard said: “If people aren’t being very truthful, some stuff might go missing and that’s a massive issue in the security industry but is being dealt with.”

He suggests that part of the reason some are tempted to take some seized items for themselves is the poor pay that some security companies offer.

“There is a lot of rigorous supervision of people on entry gates but you’re expecting people who are being paid £9.50 an hour in the worst cases to be 100 per cent truthful," he said.

“That is the prevailing issue in security - the wages.”

He said pay, or the lack thereof, can also lead to some security guards accepting bribes.

He said: “If someone comes up to you and offers you £200 to let them and their mates in, in your mind some might think about that little extra bit of cash on top of that salary.

“I’ve had people try and bribe me before. People come up on the fence line going ‘how much for me to get in?’”

The work of a security guard extends beyond seizing items at entry and letting people in, of course. Depending on training, they may also be enlisted to keep an eye on the crowd at gigs to step in before fights erupt or crushes begin.

“Pushing is always a big one in events,” he said.

“Pushing in queues, pushing in crowds - all you need is that one person who takes it a bit too far and it is like a powder keg. It’s about getting in there before anyone actually throws a punch.”

He said security firms will use “spotters” who are scattered throughout the crowd and whose job is to look out for flare-ups or potential hazards. These spotters will go through behavioural detection courses and crowd management courses to be fully trained to deal with serious issues before they arise.

The security guard shone a light on the amount of abuse that he and his colleagues receive during their shifts.

He said: “Every shift I deal with abuse. It’s quite easy for me to block it out because you know they don’t know who you are and they don’t know anything about you. They’re just angry that they can’t get in because they’ve had 12 pints before they’ve come up to you.

“It’s difficult for a lot of other people sometimes, especially if you’ve had a bad day and then all of a sudden you have someone shouting at you or physically abusing you for no reason.”

He said he is “lucky” at the place he works to only face physical abuse about once a month.

“That will be more in the way of having to physically eject someone - that starts getting a bit to blows,” he said.

“If you go down to the seafront, I’d say that would go down to once a week, maybe even once a shift or more. It depends on the clientele coming in.”

The security guard said that those working at venues along the seafront could face physical abuse every shift

Another member of staff that the security guard looks up to said that having a friendly approach to guests is very important in avoiding flare-ups later in the night.

“For every bad video you see of a bouncer throwing people out of McDonald’s, you don’t see the hundreds of really respectable ones who just stand on the door and help people out," he said.

“The number of times I’ve seen people snap out of it because they remember it was you that was nice to them. That’s a big thing a lot of people need to start grasping.

“We are human - we might not seem it at times but we are all just doing a job and trying to have a good time and keep people safe so don’t make it more difficult.”

In advice to festivalgoers this summer, the security guard urged people to be cautious and make sure to look after themselves and others.

“People might be in the sun for ten hours and you know they’re not doing anything to help protect themselves.

“All it ever takes is a horrible combination of sun, no water and drugs, and then someone’s not having a good evening or rest of the week or anything.

“There are 365 days in a year so don’t make this the one where you have a problem - just enjoy it.”