Welcoming world-class performers, Victoria Park in Tower Hamlets is fast becoming one of the country’s most popular summer music venues.
More and more people are flocking to the park to enjoy this unique music scene. While it’s fantastic that residents can take advantage of the top quality performances, the council and its partners work hard to minimise the disruption.
Cllr Denise Jones, Cabinet Member for Culture and Creative Industries at Tower Hamlets Council said: “The income generated from these events helps to pay for popular free community events such as Paradise Gardens and the Fireworks, also local businesses get a boost during festivals due to increased customers.”
More than nine months of planning goes into each event, and on the day there are well over 100 police and council officers on hand. Their presence is key to making sure that the event runs smoothly and disruption is kept to a minimum.
Along with the council’s arts and events team that works closely with the organisers, licensing, noise monitoring, health and safety, enforcement and the council’s waste management contractors Veolia Environmental Services all play their part. On the day the group meets up every couple of hours to discuss issues and manage the event as it develops.
Police events’ guru Police Sergeant Andy Fittes attends nearly every event in the borough, he said: “Throughout the day the issues change. For the police, the busiest times are at the beginning and end of the event.
“At the beginning we’re there with the drug dogs to carry out searches. We have an on-site custody suite and are able to process everything then and there. When the event finishes we have to deal with around 25,000 people leaving the park at the same time, and that’s a big challenge.”
Each event is different, catering for variety of musical tastes and ages. But one thing is always the same - the main stage is positioned to limit the noise impact for residents, while the smaller stages all face in towards the venue.
The council’s noise monitoring team make sure that noise levels do not breach the organiser’s licensing agreement. They respond to each resident’s complaint, taking hand-held monitors with them to measure the volume. If it breaks the licensing agreement they immediately phone through to the organisers to make sure they turn down the volume.
One thousand free tickets have been up for grabs for Tower Hamlets residents living near to Victoria Park. The council negotiated with festival organisers to donate 100 free tickets for each event day.
Next up on the events calendar is the LED Festival, which takes place over the weekend on 27 and 28 August. This is the last 2010 music festival to take place in Victoria Park.
17 August 2010
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