Festival in Reading given go ahead despite noise complaints

Singer-songwriter Craig David, known for such hits as ‘Fill Me In’ and ‘What’s Your Flavour?’ will be coming to Prospect Park next summer.

The news has been revealed as plans for three separate events over one weekend have been discussed at a Reading Borough Council meeting.

The plans were made by festival company Raver Tots Events Ltd, which hosts the family-friendly Raver Tots and Cafe Mambo Ibiza Classics events for a number of years.

The company recently applied to add Friday to its existing permission to hold events on one Saturday and Sunday.

But the plan for the additional day did not make everyone happy, as the licence for the event to operate faced objections from neighbour Michael Atkinson and others.

Mr Atkinson argued that the noise on the Sunday of the event this year was ‘unbearable’.

He said: “My objection was raised around public nuisance. Earlier this year I had a very bad experience with one of the events. You could not escape the noise.

“It was unbearable. The sound bounces off the houses. Measuring noise at set points doesn’t always work.

“The history of the event leads to concerns. One of the worst parts of the noise was the compère [master of ceremonies] their voices cut through everything which was unbearable.”

The Raver Tots grand return event at Prospect Park in 2021. Credit: Tots Events Ltd

To help address his concerns, the organisers said music will be limited to 62 decibels and that speakers could be directed to face away from surrounding properties to minimise disturbance.

Michael Pickets, the director of Raver Tots offered to give Mr Atkinson a sound monitor for his home.

The organisers also said that they can be contacted if residents have complaints.

READ MORE: New cafe at Prospect Park opens its doors 

Mr Atkinson also argued the events are disruptive to neighbours who use the park regularly and those residing in Prospect Park Hospital and Prospect Hospice.

He therefore suggested that the event be moved.

Mr Atkinson said: “There’ll be more disturbance. I don’t think Prospect Park is suited to these events. It’s a residential area, it’s a quiet area. We’ve had concerts and charity events which are only a couple of hours.

“I don’t think it’s suited to large events. It’s heavily used by residents.

“My preference would be for you to find a suitable site.”

Mr Pickets replied that other venues have been considered, but moving the event to an alternative such as Palmer Park would be difficult due to scheduling.

Ultimately, the licensing application was approved at a council meeting today (Tuesday, December 12).

The decision was made by councillors Paul Woodward (Labour, Church) and Sue Kitchingham (Labour, Caversham Heights).

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Saoirse Holland, events director at Tots Events said: “We’re pleased with the outcome today, we’re glad to be working with the residents to ensure that everybody is happy and put on events that help the local community, and raise money for charities.

“This year we’re raising money for Shona’s Stones, which is an excellent charity with a memorial tree in the park.

“We’re really pleased, we want to do more fun family and community events.”

In the meeting, Mr Pickets said they hope to raise £100,000 for the Shona’s Stones charity, with the events employing 150-200 people locally.

In full, Tots Events Ltd has been given permission to provide regulated entertainment and sell alcohol from 3pm to 10pm for the Craig David event on the Friday, 12pm to 10pm for the Ibiza Classics on Saturday and 11.30am to 7pm for Raver Tots Sunday.

The events will be held from 19-21 July 2024.