Details for new Victoria Park festival LIDO

13 November, 2024 | Local action

We now know that there will be another festival in Victoria Park in June of 2025 called LIDO. I have had an information briefing from, and meeting with, the organisers and Council officers managing the contract. I have found out a few key pieces of information and raised some issues with them for them to address in the months before the festival takes place.

Key event information:

  • Major event dates (max capacity of 32,000 people; these are the days that major ticketed events will take place): Friday 6th, Saturday 7th, Friday 13th, Saturday 14th and Sunday 15th of June.
  • Community event dates (max capacity of 2,000 people; these are the free to access community events which use the festival infrastructure, similar to the In The Neighbourhood for All Points East): Monday 9th-Thursday 12th June.
  • Site build: Friday 23rd May-Thursday 5th June
  • Site tear down: Monday 16th – Monday 23rd June

Comparing LIDO with All Points East:

  • There will be 38 days between infrastructure being taken down for LIDO and starting to be built again for All Points East.
  • All Points East major event dates have a maximum capacity of 45,000 people, so this is a fractionally smaller event.
  • The site area for LIDO is also fractionally smaller, and the biggest stage at LIDO will be the same size as the second-biggest stage for All Points East. The organisers told me that the location of the stage should mean that the noise levels experienced by residents may be more muffled than the noise levels from the main stage of All Points East.
  • The two events will be organised by the same events company which organises All Points East, called AEG Presents. This means that all the noise management, waste management, transport planning, public safety, coordination with police and emergency services will be the same as for All Points East.
  • UPDATE: I have now had an answer from the team regarding the community ballot for tickets. They confirm that there will be two separate community AEG resident ticket draws in 2025; one resident ticket draw for LIDO Festival with a minimum of 250 tickets / 125 pairs of tickets per event day, and one resident ticket draw for All Points East, with a minimum of 250 tickets / 125 pairs of tickets per event day. The two ticket draws will be independent of each other and there will be no crossover. Eligible residents will be able to apply to both ticket draws. The LIDO ticket draw leaflet is scheduled to be sent to eligible residents the week commencing 24 March with an application deadline of 5pm on 25 April. The All Points East ticket draw leaflet is scheduled to be sent to eligible residents the week commencing 2 June with an application deadline of 5pm on 4 July. Please note that these dates are currently indicative and dependent on print and distribution timelines.

Other key information:

  • Local residents will receive an information leaflet ahead of the event letting you know how to contact the organisers for any reason. There will be a community email address and phone lines monitored throughout the festival.
  • The Council is also working to ensure our own Environmental Health officers are available to conduct noise complaints visits during the festival, although their availability has not yet been confirmed.
  • Security of the event is a priority and, as such, very thorough searches are conducted of all visitors to the site ahead of the events.
  • After feedback from locals after the festival in 2024, I have raised the issue of Lime bikes being parked badly along Roman Road. I have asked the team to consider options to prevent this problem in their transport plans for both All Points East and LIDO for the coming years.

Why is there another festival?

When the current Mayor of Tower Hamlets was elected in May 2022, he made it clear that he wanted to make commercial use of the borough’s assets to maximise their earning potential. One target was to increase commercial activity in Victoria Park. Despite heavy local opposition from residents and Councillors, the Mayor pushed ahead a change in the Major Events policy for Victoria Park in late 2023 to increase the number of Major Event days per year and change the thresholds of numbers of attendees to allow more events to take place without needing to classified as a major event.

This policy change has meant that there is now scope for a second major music festival to take place in Victoria Park in the summer. I have made it very clear in the past that I do not think it is appropriate for a festival of this size to take place in the park. I would like to see these events take place in a place which is not in such high demand as Victoria Park, given the high density of people living in the area. And I would also like them to take place during term-time so that the park is available for locals during their holidays.

Despite this, I am convinced that the organisers and the council officers managing the contract are committed to doing everything possible to work with locals, reduce disruption and take onboard feedback about their performance.

 

Category: Local action