Grasshoppers' Music Festival Plan Faces Pushback

Licence sought to host events with up to 3,000 attendees at rugby club

The festivals will take place on the grass pitches. Picture: Facebook

February 9, 2024

A bid to host large scale music festivals at the Grasshoppers Rugby Club on Syon Lane is meeting with significant opposition from local residents.

An application has been submitted on behalf of UK Entertainment Group Ltd to host events on weekends and Bank Holidays between May and September with up to 3,000 people attending.

The festivals, which would include live music and DJs would be within a fenced off area on the rugby pitches within the 12-acre site. They would be for adults only and would also host food stalls and have two bars.

It is understood that the club would benefit from renting the grounds during its off-season to the event organiser.

The licence would allow the festivals to continue serve alcohol from noon until 9.30pm on Sundays and Mondays and 10pm on Saturdays and to play amplified music until 10pm on Saturday and Monday and 10.30pm on Sunday.

UK Entertainment Group Ltd has organised a number of other similar festivals across the country and presented an Event Management Plan with its submission. It has appointed Steve Arundell from a specialist Event Safety Company to provide risk management strategies, risk assessments and safety advice throughout the latter stages of planning and some operation elements of the event.

Councillors on the borough Licensing Panel are set to consider the application at a meeting on Wednesday 21 February at 7.30pm.

They will have to take into account an objection from the council’s own Pollution Control officer which states, “I would like an indication to how noise will be managed on event days and an assurance that a letter drop to local residents will be undertaken with relevant event manager name and contact details or a manned telephone line advertised should residents wish to contact the venue to lodge complaints. More specific noise mitigation methods would also be required in order to protect local residents from the impact of noise- this can be supplied via a noise management plan/assessment to demonstrate methods of attenuation. Lastly an indication to the types of sound levels expected at nearest noise receptor would be greatly appreciated.”

Details of the festival layout submitted with the application

43 residents have contacted the licensing department to lodge objections with two offering support.

Objections range from concerns about noise, traffic, anti-social behaviour, increased drug use in the area and poor access to the site for such a large number of people.

Many objectors raised the issue of the narrowness of Wood Lane next the site and the poor public transport provision in the area.

Wycombe House Sports and Social Club, which is located next door, is objecting on the grounds that its cricketing activities could be disrupted by the extra traffic and noise.

Another objection was made on the grounds that weekend activities at nearby schools such as the Nishkam School and Bolder Academy may be impossible and visitors to Osterley Park would not be able to enjoy the green space on days when festivals were being held.

One of the supporters of the application said, “Grasshoppers is a well-established rugby club providing a very important sporting and social function for the local community The events being proposed will not only assist this important local sporting venue to sustain itself
financially but also provide excellent social events for the community to participate in and enjoy.”