Safer Party Labels

  • Partnership
    • Party + is managed by Modus Vivendi, an NGO leading the harm reduction programs in Belgium´s French Community. Since 1995, part of its activities aim to implements, coordinates, defines standards and evaluates harm reduction projects related to synthetic drugs use (drop-in center, drug checking, health interventions at events, the “Quality Nights” Label for clubs). Modus Vivendi is also member of the EMCDDA’s subfocal point.

      The Steering Committee of Party+ is composed by the four initial Labels and Charters’ Managers. These Labels and Charters are:

      BELGIUM: www.qualitynights.be
      FRANCE: www.fetez-clairs.org
      SPAIN: www.qdefesta.cat
      SWITZERLAND: www.safer-clubbing.ch
  • Context
    • When partying, young people take or are exposed to a multitude of risks: consumption of legal and illegal substances, unprotected and\or unwanted sexual relations, risks to hearing, violence, problems related to road safety, public nuisances… These risks can lead to health problems, crisis situations and possible HIV and HCV contaminations.

      Our first experiences in the past have shown that establishing a quality label or a charter for clubs and events help to reduce these risks, by improving nightlife settings and implementing health services in a sustainable way: accessibility to health promotion material and information, to free fresh water, to condoms and earplugs, training of the club staff…

      Licences’ laws exist and increased the quality of events and clubs during the last decade in most European countries. But, even for countries with a comprehensive licence law, a Label is a complementary and sustainable solution. Because these labels and charters are developing integrated approaches with all the nightlife stakeholders, promoting community empowerment and setting up actions for a responsible party’s culture. They give the possibility to work together with the nightlife scene, as clubs and bars, in a way of cooperation.
  • Objectives
    • The main objectives of the Party+ network are:
      1. To improve safer nightlife settings among the member cities/regions of Party+ :
      • To further develop the existing Party + Labels and Charters ;
      • To improve common identity and visibility by using logo, website and presentation leaflets ;
      • To organize 3 practice sharing seminars involving local stakeholders including health professionals, local decision makers and club owners (or responsible person) from cities and regions developing safer party Labels.

      2. To improve safer nightlife settings by promoting and supporting the implementation of safer party Labels in other European cities and countries :
      • To identify existing labels and interested cities ;
      • To produce a guideline for safer nightlife Label managers including contents on needs assessment, partnership building, strategy, implementation, communication and evaluation ;
      • To develop experts’ visits and training sessions to support European stakeholders in implementing a local safer nightlife Label ;
      • To integrate identified and new Labels in Party+ in order to sustain the projects.

      3. To enhance and sustain safer party Labels by empowering nightlife community:
      • To produce a information tool targeting clubbers and more specifically tourist clubbers ;
      • To support the distribution of harm reduction leaflets from the different countries so that tourist clubbers can find health information in their native language.
  • Methodology and Time table
    • Productions and deliverables
      - A Party+ network presentation
      - A short guide called “10 things you should know for implementing a safer nightlife Label”
      - A quality standard for safer nightlife Label
      - A website: www.partyplus.eu- A newsletter

      Events and meetings
      - Steering committee meetings
      - Seminars
      - Info sessions
      - Expert visits

      Timetable

      2011
      February: Steering Committee 1 (in Brussels)
      March: First draft of the short guide to implement a safer nightlife Label
      April: First Expert visit (in Cyprus)
      May: Edition of “10 things you should know for implementing a safer nightlife Label”
      May: Party+ Seminar 1 (in Bologna)
      May: Info session 1 during the “Safer Nightlife conference” (in Bologna)
      July: Party+ Newsletter 1
      September: launch of the Party+ website
      December: Party+ Newsletter 2
      December: First version of the “Quality standard for safer nightlife Label”All year long: expert visits

      2012
      January: Steering Committee 2 (in Barcelona)
      May: Party+ Seminar 2 May: Info session 2
      June: spreading of the leaflet for clubbers and especially party tourists, in relation with the EU Safer Night
      June: Party+ Newsletter 3
      November: EU Party Friemds Night in all clubs and events member of a Party+ Label or Charter
      December: Party+ Newsletter 4
      All year long: expert visits

      2013
      January: Steering Committee 3 (in Paris)
      May: Edition of the “Quality Standard for Safer Nightlife Label”
      May: Party+ Seminar 3
      May: Info session 3
      June: Party+ Newsletter 5
      December: Party+ Newsletter 6All year long: expert visits
  • Participants info
    • If you wish more information about the Labels and Charters or about Party+:

      You can join our Information Sessions:
      The first one took place in May 20th, 2011, in Bologna. The next ones will be organized in May 2012 and May 2013. They are free and open to all interested administrations, policy makers, NGO’s and Club owners.

      If you are interested in developing a Label:
      We offer a service of Expert Visits to help you implementing a Safer Nightlife Label.Party+ sends an expert to your City or Region to meet you and the stakeholders (the administrative and/or political representatives, the health NGOs, some club owners) and explains the Label process. There are experts able to speak German, French, Spanish, Catalan or English.

      According to needs and taking into account the local specificities, based on previous exchanges and on field observations, the expert gives support in starting the implementation process. It could include: needs assessment, partnership building, strategy, implementation, communication and evaluation. You also receive a guideline integrating all these information and a visit report with recommendations. This visit costs 1200 euro and includes the travel, 2 hotel nights and 3 days of work. This price will be adapted according to the demand.

      If you are developing a Label with our support or managing a Label member of Party+:
      You can participate to the annual Party+ Seminars. There will be 3 main Party+ meetings. Each of them will consist of 2 days of meeting:
      In 2011: Party+ Seminar 1, May 19th and 20th, in Bologna
      (Presentation of the network / Workshops on specific topics.)
      In 2012: Party+ Seminar 2, May
      (Integration of new partners / Preparation of the NEW EU Night / Workshops)
      In 2013: Party+ Seminar 3, JuneIntegration of new partners.
      (Workshops on specific topics)

      The participants to the Party+ seminars have to be technical or political representatives, health NGOs or club owners (or responsible person). They should be involved in the development of the Label in their City/Region/Country and must be authorized to share openly about their experiences (good practice and difficulties).

      The fee is 200 euros per person. Travels and accommodation at your own cost. There are facilities for European Eastern Countries, please contact the Party+ Manager.

      How to become a Party+ Network Member?
      To subscribe to the network, it is necessary to be constituted into a local, regional or national label or charter and to respect a common base of criteria:

      1. A participative process, with a health promotion approach, which has to involve:
      -Partygoers at least at the level of consultation ;
      -Parties’ professionals at least at the level of operational participation ;
      -Health partners (NGO’s, institutions) at the level of validation of the “health promotion” contents of the project
      ...which all have to tighten towards a maximal participation.
      This implication must be effective at the levels of conception, realization and evaluation.

      2. In party venues, accessibility to health promotion material and information, according to the needs of the public (examples: leaflets, condoms, ear plugs).

      3. The improvement of the infrastructure and the comfort of party venues to reduce risks such as dehydration, for example by providing access to free fresh water.

      4. The training of the parties’ professionals by meeting the needs of the project and party venues; for example: first-aid interventions, information about drugs and legal frame, non-violent communication, noise pollution...

      If you are managing a Label:
      You can sign our member agreement and ask for joining the Party+ Network.
      It allows you to benefit from:
      - the use of the European Party+ logo ;
      - all our communication tools (referencing on the web site, the flyers, reception of a newsletter...) ;
      - practice and tools exchange sharing with the other members ;
      - tourist information referencing ;
      - international promotion and recognition.
  • Interesting documents
  • Support
    • The Walloon Region (BE)
      The French Community Commission (Cocof) (BE)
      Infodrog (CH)
      Department of Health. Catalonia (ES)
      City of Tarragona (ES)