New safety rules

[noel]

But then if anything did go wrong involving mis-counted runners, you would straight-forwardly be found negligent (and possibly not covered by insurance?).

Yes, that's the frustrating bit. I bought a job lot of race numbers earlier this year. My races typically get about 50 runners. I don't want to throw away £30 worth of race numbers over something that seems to be a bit of overkill (sorry committee). However, I acknowledge the point and the potential dangers this guidance is attempting to avoid. I will therefore take steps to ensure the number of runners is clear to the various people involved in organising any races I'm in charge of.