Killjoy councils ‘ban unauthorised picnics to celebrate King’s coronation unless they apply for permission and complete risk assessments’
- Local Government Association said officials want people to ‘enjoy parties safely’
Several ‘killjoy’ councils are forbidding unauthorised picnics to celebrate the Coronation of King Charles III.
North Somerset Council has banned locals from hosting picnics in the park with their neighbours unless they apply for permission, complete a nine-page form and complete a risk assessment, The Daily Star reported.
Similarly, Wiltshire, Ealing in London and Warwick District have forbidden barbeques over the upcoming bank holiday weekend.
The Local Government Association said councils just want residents to be able to ‘enjoy parties safely’.
Several ‘killjoy’ councils have banned unauthorised picnics, barbeques or street parties to celebrate the Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Consort Camilla (pictured together in the Blue Drawing Room at Buckingham Palace on April 4)
Some councils are requiring that locals apply for permission, complete a nine-page form and complete a risk assessment if they want to host a Coronation celebration. Pictured: Residents of Murrayfield Drive in Edinburgh enjoy a Jubilee street party in 2012
Thousands of people will attend public parties over the May bank holiday weekend of the coronation as they celebrate the official crowning of King Charles at ‘Big Lunches’ across the country.
But councils are imposing strict rules on party organisers with edicts that go against government advice.
In many areas, the rules include the need for every resident on every street holding an event to sign a form, stating whether or not they approve of the planned party.
Officials are also scaring residents off from holding celebrations by demanding public liability insurance – which the Government says is not necessary – as well as making them pay for workmen to erect ‘Road Closed’ signs.
Thousands of people will attend public parties over the May bank holiday weekend as they celebrate the official crowning of King Charles at ‘Big Lunches’ across the country
The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) previously urged councils to use a ‘light touch’ approach and told residents to challenge myths about street parties.
The DLUHC, earlier this year, also encouraged residents to challenge council ‘myths’ about street parties.
Councils do not need to be informed of every detail, the department said, and there shouldn’t be long and complicated forms for road closures.
The ban on Coronation parties comes after several councils were branded ‘killjoys’ during last year’s jubilee for refusing to relax rules about drinking in public and bunting, with then Prime Minister Boris Johnson forced to step in.
