Brockwell Park festivals to go ahead as planned after court ruling
The upcoming gig series in the south London park appeared in doubt after a court ruled in favour of a local campaign group
A series of upcoming festivals in south London’s Brockwell Park will go ahead as planned despite a recent court ruling.
Over the weekend, a local campaign group won a legal battle against the festival’s organisers, Brockwell Live, with a court ruling that the events didn’t have the correct planning permission.
Local resident Rebekah Shaman, leader of the Protect Brockwell Park campaign group, claimed that festivals can only use public parks for 28 days per year without gaining additional planning permission, and that the parks would be used for up to 37 days in 2025.
Now, Brockwell Live have confirmed that “all events in the series will go ahead as planned” in a post on social media.
Their statement said: “Friday’s High Court ruling dealt with a particular point of law and whether an administrative process had been carried out correctly. We wish to make it clear that no event will be cancelled as a result of the High Court’s decision.
“We take our stewardship of Brockwell Park seriously,” they added. “As we prepare to deliver these much-loved, culturally significant events, we remain fully committed to its care, upkeep, and long-term wellbeing.
“With setup nearly complete, we look forward to opening the gates and welcoming festival goers later this week.”
On Instagram, Protect Brockwell Park said: “We regret that legal action became necessary. The applicants and Lambeth Council created a binary situation with no room for compromise, and built in risks and delay by submitting inappropriately late applications, as has happened in previous years.”
They added: “We have been trying to engage with Lambeth and Brockwell Live since last October. Their use of last minute tactics in previous years has let huge events damage and close off our park without proper scrutiny. We have repeatedly urged the Council to secure a full planning permission for all the events, together with proper impact assessments.
“Looking ahead, we hope the Council will now choose to act lawfully and fairly, in line with their responsibility to hold the park on trust for the local community.”