Special Events Personal Services Safety

If you plan to offer personal services at a special event in the Region of Waterloo, you must follow the rules outlined in:

If your event offers only face painting or only henna, you do not need a separate application. Follow the Special Event Guidelines for Henna and Face Painting.

General requirements

Service providers must:

Not eat, drink, or smoke while providing a service
Follow infection prevention and control requirements during service delivery
Keep clean and dirty instruments separate during storage and transport
Ensure hepatitis B vaccination is considered for those providing invasive services (strongly recommended)

Water supply and hand hygiene

You must have a steady supply of safe drinking water.
If municipal water is not available, you may use bottled water.
Each vendor booth should have its own handwashing station in the work area before services begin.

Each handwashing station should have:

Warm running potable water
Liquid soap in a dispenser
Paper towels in a dispenser
A container or bucket to collect wastewater
A safe way to throw out wastewater
A garbage can

Each vendor must also have hand sanitizer in the work area, even if a handwashing station is available. The sanitizer must:

Contain 70% to 90% isopropyl alcohol
Have a Natural Product Number (NPN)
Have an expiry date

Booth setup and cleaning

Each booth or service area must:

Have overhead protection or be fully covered
Be well lit
Be well ventilated
Be protected from conditions that could create a health risk, such as rain or dust

Counters, trays, tables and other surfaces that touch equipment or supplies must be:

Smooth
Non-absorbent
Easy to clean

Service providers must also:

Clean and disinfect surfaces after each client
Use single-use covers when needed and throw them out after each client
Have approved detergents and disinfectants on site
Make sure disinfectants have an Natural Product Number (NPN) or Drug Identification Number (DIN) and are not expired, where applicable
Have high-level disinfectant available on site for blood or body fluid spills

Get more information about cleaning and infection prevention for personal services.

Tools and equipment

All single-use tools and equipment must be thrown out immediately after use. Vendors must bring enough supplies for the services they plan to offer.

Some reusable tools may be cleaned and disinfected at the event, such as:

Tweezers
Combs
Trimmers
Clippers
Weaving needles

A Public Health Inspector must review and approve these items before the event.

For general information about single-use and reusable tools, visit Personal Services, Beauty and Body Art Health Requirements.

Invasive services

Invasive services include:

Microneedling
Ear piercing
Body piercing
Tattooing

Vendors who offer invasive services must:

Have enough non-latex gloves
Use pre-packaged sterile tools and items that go through the skin, such as needles, needle bars, jewelry and forceps
Not sterilize tools or equipment on site
Make sure sterile items are labelled with the sterilization date, or with a lot number and expiry date or purchase date
Not use sterile items if the package is wet or damaged

If vendors use instruments that were cleaned and sterilized before the event, they must also provide:

The name and address of the inspected business that processed the instruments
Copies of the last three spore test results

Used multi-use tools, such as tubes, must be placed in soap and water in a labelled, leak-proof, puncture-resistant container with a lid.

Tattoo needle cartridges must have a backflow preventer, such as a protective membrane.

For general infection prevention rules for personal services, visit Personal Services, Beauty and Body Art Health Requirements.

Sharps and waste disposal

Vendors must:

Have an approved sharps container that is large enough for the event
Have a plan to safely throw out the sharps container, such as through a pharmacy return or biohazardous waste service

Client records and after-care

Service providers must collect and keep the client’s name and contact information.

For invasive procedures, records must also include:

The procedure that was done
The body part where it was done
The name and contact information of the client
The name and contact information of the service provider
Records showing which sterilized instrument was used, if needed
The date of the procedure
The lot numbers and expiry dates of the sterile items used

Service providers must also:

Explain the procedure and possible risks before the service
Give verbal or written after-care instructions after all invasive procedures
Keep records of accidental blood or body fluid exposures
keep records for high-level disinfectants, including the disinfectant name, concentration, date prepared (if needed) and discard date (if needed)

Prohibited services

These services are not allowed at special events:

Ear candling or ear coning
Personal services that use aquatic animals, such as fish pedicures
Scleral tattooing
Implanting eye jewelry under the conjunctiva

Animals

Animals, birds, aquatic species and reptiles are not allowed in areas where personal services are offered. Service animals are allowed.

Special Event Guidelines for Henna and Face Painting

Adapted with permission from Peel Public Health.

You do not need to apply to offer henna or face painting at a special event. However, vendors should still follow these health and safety guidelines.

Henna and face painting products

Use face paint that is non-toxic and safe for use on the face.
Choose face paint that is less likely to cause a reaction and is easy to wash off.
Do not use henna that contains PPD, coal tar dye or hair dye.

Equipment and hand cleaning

At the face painting station, provide:

Safe drinking water
Liquid hand soap
Paper towels

If you cannot set up a handwashing station, use disposable wet wipes or alcohol-based hand sanitizer before and after each client.

The person providing the service must:

Keep their hands clean
Not have open cuts or sores on their hands

You should also provide:

Disposable wet wipes to clean pencil tips between clients
A garbage container in the work area

Applying face paint

Before painting a child’s face, ask the parent or caregiver for permission.

Do not apply face paint:

Too close to the eyes or lips
On anyone with pink eye
On skin with open cuts, sores, or rashes
On skin with other visible skin problems

Before you apply face paint:

Clean your hands
Clean the client’s skin using a single-use alcohol wipe, baby wipe, or face cleanser on a cotton pad

When applying face paint:

Pour out only the amount needed for one person
Use new single-use applicators for each client, such as sponges, cotton swabs, disposable makeup brushes, or applicator sticks
Throw out leftover paint after each client