Crystal Palace Park left with Lightopia mess as company enters administration

A park has been left with “upturned unicorns and pixies” scattered across its grounds, after a company organising an event in the park entered administration.

Crystal Palace Park has equipment and decorations from its Lightopia event over the Christmas period strewn across its grounds and car park.

The mess comes as Companies House shows that Outreach Creative Limited, the company behind the event, has gone into administration.

The installations from the event, which include light-up animal models and Christmas decorations, were set to be removed on January 12, after the event closed to the public on January 2. The event opened to the public on November 17, 2022.

A Crystal Palace resident said that boxes used to store light structures for the event had been left in one of the park’s car parks.

Parkgoer Darren Hayman said on Twitter that he had seen “upturned unicorns and pixies” strewn across the park yesterday.

The Crystal Palace Park Trust said in a statement on its website that the Begbies Traynor Group had been appointed as an administrator for Outreach Creative Limited by court.

The spokeswoman said that the original date for the decorations to be removed had been extended due to recent events.

A spokesman for the Crystal Palace Park Trust said: “The Trust was dismayed to learn that Outreach Creative was going into administration immediately prior to the fulfilment of their responsibilities to vacate the park and complete necessary site reinstatement.

“We are urgently seeking to mitigate any impact that this unfortunate and unexpected set of events has on the park and its users.

“We are working to quickly facilitate the removal of the remaining equipment and commence site reinstatement, and the Trust is prepared to contract directly if Outreach Creative cannot complete these undertakings in the immediate future.

“Administration is a legal process, and there are steps that must be observed, but we are committed to completing these tasks as quickly as possible.”

The Crystal Palace Park Trust said it would update users on its website about the park as new information becomes available.

Bromley council was contacted for comment, but had not provided a response at the time of publication.

Pictured top: Equipment for Lightopia shown scattered across the car park of Crystal Palace Park (Picture: Tara O’Connor)