Campaigners launch legal challenge against council over Brockwell Park events
Campaigners fighting to protect Brockwell Park from large-scale events have launched a legal challenge against a council.
Protect Brockwell Park issued Lambeth council with a letter before action on April 9.
A Lambeth council spokesman said: “The council has received a pre-action protocol letter in relation to a judicial review claim for Brockwell Park, and are currently considering this.”
The challenge comes after the local authority granted a series of live events at the park with a certificate of lawful development in March.
This means that commercial events would be able to take place in Brockwell Park without planning permission.
The campaign group has hit out against the decision, describing the council’s planning procedures as “unlawful”.
Protect Brockwell Park first launched a petition last summer demanding an end to the events which they describe as “unsustainable”.
They claim the park has suffered from repeated damage due to major events which they say is caught in a cycle of “fencing off” and “damage”.
Issues they highlight include HGVs driving across the grass, compacting soil and disrupting wildlife as well as polluting generators running around the clock.
The petition attracted more than 3,000 signatures.
Since then campaigners have been crowdfunding to support their cause.
On its crowd funding page, the group said: “We have repeatedly raised our concerns with Lambeth Council, but our voices have fallen on deaf ears.
“Lambeth has ignored petitions that have garnered thousands of signatures, local residents’ distress, and the adverse ecological impact on the park over the years.
“The council has also failed to properly follow correct procedures and properly consult with local residents.”
The crowd funding effort has seen more than £30,000 donated to cover legal costs.
Pictured top: Brockwell Park in June 2024 (Picture: Supplied by Lambeth Liberal Democrats)
These events are not all run by profiteering music companies! Me, my freinds and our neighbours who live close to Brockwell Park enjoy going to council-run large scale festivals at Brockwell Park, each year, like Lambeth Country Fair. They bring the community together , are free entry, bringh more jobs to the area, give a fun environmenty outdoors to listen to music in the sun, as opposed to being holed up indoors all years long, and offer musicians a new venue and larger audiences to perform to. Usually protesters of these sort of things are selfish, wingey old people that care more so about the noise and local taffic than they do about local wildlife! Thats likely the real reason! Me and my fellow freindly neighbours of the park, will be writing to the council stating that we support their decision to hold the events – It’s a magnificent thing all in all!