Before You Inflate: The PTA's Plain-English Guide to Event Insurance

It's the Thursday night before the summer fair. The gazebos are in someone's garage, the tombola prizes are sorted into vaguely equal piles, and the bouncy castle bloke has texted to say he'll be there at eight. Somewhere in the committee inbox is a PDF called 'PL cert 2026' and nobody is entirely sure what it covers. That's the moment this article is for.

Insurance is not the sexy end of PTA life. It never will be. But a ten-minute read of the paperwork now can save a committee a very long, very awkward spring. Here's the plain-English version — what to check, what to ask, and what to keep in a folder so you're not doing detective work at 9pm on a Saturday.

Start with the schedule, not the certificate

Most PTA committees have a public liability policy, often arranged through a membership body or a broker. The certificate is the one-page summary everyone files and forgets. The schedule is the bit that actually tells you what you've bought: who is insured, what activities are included, what the limit is, and — crucially — what has been excluded.

Read the 'persons insured' line first. Is it the PTA by name? The committee? The school? If the PTA is an unincorporated association, the policy should name it properly. If the school's own insurance is being relied on, ask the school business manager to confirm in writing that PTA-run events are included and what conditions apply. 'I think it's fine' is not a condition.

Then look at the limit of indemnity. Many policies sit at £5 million or £10 million. That sounds enormous, and it is, but the limit is not the only thing that matters. A high limit with a long list of exclusions is less useful than a sensible limit with the right activities covered.

Public liability: the big umbrella with a few holes

Public liability covers claims from third parties — someone outside the PTA — for injury or damage to property during your event. It is not personal accident insurance for volunteers, and it is not a magic wand. If a parent trips over a stray stake, that's the kind of thing it's there for. If a committee member's laptop is stolen from the kitchen, that's probably a different policy or a different conversation.

Check whether the schedule covers the activities you're actually running. Face painting, a barbecue, a bouncy castle, a raffle, a bar, a dog show — each one can carry its own conditions. Some policies exclude motorised vehicles, bouncy castles, or anything involving height. Some require you to use insured suppliers. Some won't cover cash handling. None of this is a reason to panic; it's a reason to look.

The bouncy castle bit everyone skips

Infl atables deserve their own paragraph because they are the classic PTA insurance trap. Many school and PTA policies exclude bouncy castles, or cover them only when the hirer provides their own insurance and a current inspection certificate. So the question is not 'are we covered?' but 'who is covering what?'

A reputable inflatable supplier should have public liability insurance — ask for the certificate and check the date — and their equipment should carry a PIPA test tag (the Inflatable Play Equipment Inspection scheme) or an ADIPS certificate where relevant. They should provide a risk assessment and method statement, set up the castle themselves, anchor it properly, and stay or return to supervise. Ask about wind speed limits. Most operators will stop operating in high winds, and you want that in writing rather than discovered on the day.

Your job is to keep the castle on soft ground, away from fences and trees, with an adult supervising and a clear rule about shoes, glasses and acrobatics. If the supplier's insurance covers the inflatable and your policy covers the wider event, you've got a sensible split. If neither covers it, you haven't got a castle — you've got a very expensive airbag.

Food, raffles and the other stalls that need a second look

Food stalls are usually fine if you're sensible, but they need a bit of thought. Anyone preparing or serving food should know about allergens — the 14 major ones, not just nuts — and have a simple allergen sheet on the table. If you're using a caterer or a food truck, ask for their food hygiene certificate and public liability insurance. If you're doing it yourselves, keep hot food hot, cold food cold, and don't let the same person handle cash and sandwiches without a wash in between.

Raffles have their own quiet rules. A simple raffle at a school fair, with tickets sold and drawn on the day, is often treated as an incidental lottery — but the moment you start selling tickets in advance, online, or to people outside the event, you may need to look at small society lottery registration with your local authority. Check before you print the tickets, not after.

Drivers, keys and the school minibus

Volunteer drivers are another gap people fall into. A parent's ordinary car insurance often does not cover them for transporting other people's children as part of an organised group activity. If you're arranging lifts, ask drivers to check their own policy and confirm in writing that they're covered. If you're using a school minibus, the rules are stricter: the driver usually needs D1 entitlement on their licence, and the school will have its own expectations about training and checks. Don't assume the school's insurance covers a volunteer's Sunday afternoon trip.

Build a boring evidence file (it's the best kind)

None of this needs to be complicated. A single shared folder — online or a physical ring binder — with a tab for each event is enough. In it, keep:

• the policy schedule and certificate for the year
• supplier public liability certificates and PIPA or ADIPS certificates
• risk assessments for the event and for any inflatable or activity provider
• food hygiene certificates and allergen sheets
• lottery registration or written confirmation that it isn't needed
• driver confirmations and minibus paperwork
• a signed volunteer briefing sheet
• an incident log, even if it stays empty

That folder is not bureaucracy for its own sake. If something goes wrong, it lets you answer the insurer's questions without a committee-wide memory test. It also makes handover to next year's committee a lot less painful.

If something goes wrong

Record what happened, who was involved, and what was done. Take photos if appropriate. Don't admit liability or promise to pay for anything on the spot — be kind, get contact details, and pass it to the insurer. Most policies require you to notify them promptly, so have the claims phone number saved somewhere sensible. A small incident handled calmly and documented properly rarely becomes a committee crisis. A small incident handled by a group chat at midnight sometimes does.

Five questions to ask before you book anyone

1. Can I see your public liability certificate, and does it cover this activity?
2. What risk assessment and method statement will you provide?
3. Who sets up, supervises and takes down the equipment?
4. What are your weather and wind-speed rules?
5. Who do I call if something goes wrong on the day?

Insurance is not about expecting disaster. It's about being able to say, hand on heart, that the committee thought about it. Read the schedule once, ask the dull questions, keep the folder tidy, and then go and enjoy the fair. The castle will inflate, the cakes will sell, and the paperwork will stay exactly where it belongs — in the background.