As expected, Lambeth Council has given the go ahead for this year’s Brockwell Live festival programme in the London borough’s Brockwell Park. That’s despite many more people opposing than supporting the annual events during a public consultation, and one of the councillors for the ward that covers the park insisting that “the local community don’t feel like they’ve been heard”.
Supporters of Brockwell Live insist that the economic, cultural and social benefits of the festivals outweigh the negative impact they may have on the park. That was also the position taken by planning officials ahead of last night’s meeting of Lambeth Council’s planning committee. The officials recommended that members of the committee give the festivals the go ahead, which they did unanimously.
Welcoming that decision, organisers of the festivals say they are “pleased with the outcome, which recognises the cultural and social value of the Brockwell Live series, alongside the significant economic contribution it makes to Lambeth and Greater London, particularly at a time when night-time and creative economies across the country face increasing pressure”.
During a public consultation about the plans for Brockwell Live 2026, officials received nearly four hundred objections - more than three times the 128 people who expressed support. Local resident groups like Protect Brockwell Park, Friends Of Brockwell Park and The Brixton Society also voiced strong concerns.
According to the BBC, during yesterday’s council meeting Jonathan Hanreck from Protect Brockwell Park said any decision to allow the festivals to go ahead “rests on assumptions rather than evidence”, while Michael Taylor from Friends Of Brockwell Park said “it is irrational to conclude that there is only limited temporary harm in the delicate heritage balance” when major events are staged in the park.
Councillor Paul Valentine, who represents the ward of Herne Hill and Loughborough Junction - which includes the park - also revealed that he had received 55 emails opposing the festivals and none in support.
All of which means, despite the council approving the festivals, plenty of local opposition remains. Aware of that, the statement put out by the Brockwell Live organisers insists that their “commitment to delivering the events responsibly and with care for the park and its neighbours continues beyond this decision”.
To that end, “we will remain in active dialogue with the community and will share further updates in the coming months on the new schemes underway to support and enhance the park’s biodiversity”.
The increase in commercial ticketed festivals being staged in London’s parks over the years has prompted various local resident groups to protest. They usually argue that these events prevent local residents, many of whom don’t have private gardens, from using vital outdoor amenities during key summer months.
They also put local infrastructure under pressure as people travel to any one festival, and can cause damage to the parks - especially if it rains during an event - which often results in public access being cut off for longer while those damages are dealt with.
At the same time, lots of Londoners also like the fact they have a diverse mix of festivals to choose from in the capital each summer, all of which can be easily accessed using public transport, and without having to trek out in the country or sleep in a tent.
It’s the job of local councils to balance the pros and the cons of allowing these festivals to go ahead, and to decide if the protestors are being tedious NIMBYs or are in fact raising legitimate concerns. In the end, councils have tended to skew more towards approving the festivals, though protestors might argue that’s because cash strapped local authorities are easily wooed by the financial and economic benefits.
The protests around Brockwell Live became particularly high profile last year after the aforementioned Protect Brockwell Park successfully crowdfunded the money to take Lambeth Council to court. That was based on the fact the council previously used powers under the Town And Country Planning Act to green light the Brockwell Park festivals without undertaking a full planning permission process.
The residents group successfully argued in court that the council had incorrectly utilised those powers. Although the council disagreed, it ultimately conceded that plans for Brockwell Live 2026 would go through the full planning process. That’s the process that was completed last night, with the five festivals that make up Brockwell Live all getting the go ahead.