The popular and inclusive festival, the Mighty Hoopla, will be held on Saturday and Sunday, and once over preparation work will start for the free community event, the Lambeth Country Show which will be in Brockwell Park the following weekend.
Heavy rain last weekend saw the free children’s festival on Wednesday, Brockwell Bounce, have to be cancelled. Instead a new event during the upcoming school summer holidays is currently being organised for elsewhere, and details will be announced soon.
There has been far less rain this week which has helped ensure the Mighty Hoopla can go ahead and the council remains optimistic that the same will apply for the Lambeth Country Show. That decision will be subject to ongoing review.
The council has approved extra measures for the events area at Brockwell Park to ensure visitor safety, and to protect areas that had become muddy on the downpours from damage ahead of the weekend. Specialist matting with a thin layer of woodchip on top is being used to achieve this. The technique has been used at a number of other large events, including Radio 1’s Big Weekender in Luton.
The rest of Brockwell Park remains open as usual throughout.
The 50th edition of the free Lambeth Country Show annually attracts more than 120,000 people, and running it in partnership with the event organiser secures its future and has saved the council £700,000. This year that partnership also generated more than £100,000 for community investment.
Lambeth Council has worked hard to keep Lambeth Country Show as a free community event, despite the severe budget pressures, because the Lambeth Country Show is a brilliant opportunity for the borough’s communities to come together for a safe, inclusive and fun celebration.
There is an agreement that any repairs needed to the park will be paid for by the event’s organiser, not Lambeth Council.
The site is being assessed daily, and the council’s parks team is working with an independent grass and landscaping expert firm to ensure the park is restored to its best condition as quickly as possible.
To find out more about the Lambeth Country Show visit www.lambethcountryshow.co.uk and follow twitter.com/lblcountryshow.
