Gio Iozzi (left) and Bethany Anderson in Finsbury Park

CAMPAIGNERS near Finsbury Park have criticised the “disastrous” decision to extend mass commercial events in the park for an additional five years.

Finsbury Park, which is at the intersection of Islington, Haringey and Hackney but is solely managed by Haringey Council, currently hosts large-scale events for 47 days across the summer months.

They recently signed another five-year contract with Live Nation to continue hosting concerts and raves such as Krankbrother and Wireless until 2032, but local campaigners allege that several stakeholder groups were not consulted on the “rushed” decision.

Bethany Anderson, the former co-chair of Friends of Finsbury Park, said that “relentless” events render the park unusable for local families.

She told the Tribune: “Approximately 40 per cent of people surround­ing the park don’t have gardens, this park is their only access to green space. Over the two months of disruption, the park becomes completely decimated. It’s left unusable for picnics, kids can’t play football.

“The complaints we have heard are just devastating. There’s lots of people with anxiety, people with little kids who can’t get to sleep because of the noise late at night. The areas surrounding the park are densely populated, these people get kept up until 3am.

“How the park gets used is decided by Haringey Council, but there are lots of residents both in Islington and Hackney who bear the brunt of this. They don’t get to vote on this. What we also know is that at least six of the vital stakeholder groups were not consulted on this ahead of the deal being signed.”

Last summer, Friends of Finsbury Park said that the effects of the summer’s events had left the park in its “worst ever” state, and to continue without respite would be catastrophic for the park’s ecological wellbeing.

Dr Gio Iozzi, who is a member of Friends of Finsbury Park, said: “It becomes an event space first, a park second. They’ve had trees here removed just to get trucks in to begin festival works. They chop them back, and then they don’t replace them.”

In response to previous criticisms, Haringey Council have argued that the festivals bring a cultural offering to the park’s local community and young people, as well as generating income for local businesses in the area.

Dr Iozzi added: “We’ve got loads of culture in this area already that is free and brings a genuinely positive offering to local people.

“In fact, as a result of the commercialisation of public space, many of these free community events like the Latino Festival can no longer compete here.

“So it’s nonsense. Small local venues are going out of business around the corner and they want to say this is about ‘culture’. It’s just about profit, each year they get bigger and bigger, these companies get greedier and greedier, and Haringey Council capitulates.”

Both Dr Iozzi and Ms Anderson will be running as candidates for the Green Party in Haringey, and signed an open letter to the borough criticising the decision to sign the deal.

A Haringey Council spokesperson said: “We receive around £1.2million every year from our major events and that money is put directly back into the park. As well as paying for a dedicated parks team, these funds have enabled the council to make significant improvements.

“About 70 per cent of the park is accessible throughout the major events schedule, with large swathes of land and grass available which continue to be enjoyed by park users from Haringey, Hackney and Islington. No major events take place during the school holidays.

“We continue to promote the park as one of the best in London and take every measure possible to minimise any long-term impact on the ground, even when there are adverse weather conditions.

“The claims about the consultation do not fit the facts. In reality, a system glitch meant two stakeholders were not notified in the usual way about the proposal. We reached out to both groups so their views could be fully considered.

“Our approach is robust and in line with the council’s long-standing Outdoor Events Policy. Approving the hire of the park for a period of five years from 2028 to 2032 via a non-key decision Cabinet Member Signing is in accordance with the council’s constitution – an approach that has been robustly tested and upheld through a judicial review.

“The ongoing partnership with Festival Republic will ensure the council can continue to invest in Finsbury Park on a year-to-year basis.”