By Grant Williams
A plan to host a 10-day Hindu festival in north London has raised concerns over the potential impact of noise and other disturbances on local residents.
The council issued organisers with an enforcement notice following last year鈥檚 event in Wembley due to complaints about the noise but this year鈥檚 new hosts said the sound system then was 鈥渘ot done properly鈥.
Brent Council has received an application from Asian Events Media (AEM) to host a 10-day festival to celebrate Navratri 鈥 an annual Hindu festival that honours the goddess Durga. Located at Alperton Studios in Wembley, the event would run from September 22 to October 1 from 6pm to 11pm Monday to Thursday and until midnight Friday to Sunday.
The event was hosted at the same site last year, however, the council issued the previous organisers with a planning enforcement notice due to 鈥渘oise and disturbance鈥 caused by the festival. The notice remains in force to prevent similar issues and the local authority鈥檚 Planning Enforcement Manager (PEM) has said granting the licence will 鈥渇acilitate the criminal act of breaching [the notice]鈥.
In a representation made against the application, the PEM said: 鈥淭his building is not designed to hold such events. There is no sound proofing and the noise echoes around the building and escapes the walls and cavities. [鈥 This is not a mere regulatory provision of the planning acts but is considered a serious crime that is triable either way in the courts.鈥
A local resident has also complained that the noise last year was 鈥渓oud and constant鈥, which meant they were 鈥渟o tired [they] were unable to attend work on two days鈥. They added: 鈥淧lease do not grant this licence [鈥 I strongly believe that, given the residential nature of the area, this is not a suitable site for a music venue.鈥
However, this year鈥檚 organisers have said the previous event was not done correctly. A spokesperson for AEM told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) that the past organisers were 鈥渘ot professional鈥 in knowing how to set the sound and the speakers 鈥渨ere not placed properly so the sound didn鈥檛 distribute equally鈥. They added that bass speakers were used which were not needed for an event like this.
The spokesperson also pointed to a similar event they held in Barham Park last year where they adhered to sound levels, monitored equipment and received 鈥渘ot one complaint from residents鈥. They added: 鈥淲e are very, very strict with the events that we do.鈥
Last year鈥檚 events also ran until 3am, whereas the latest application will finish at 11pm on weeknights and midnight on weekends. Despite this, the council鈥檚 PEM refused to withdraw their objection and suggested any efforts to mitigate the enforcement notice 鈥渘eeds to be done through a planning application鈥.
Neither Brent Council鈥檚 Licensing Enforcement Officer nor the police have made representations.
If approved, the event would be attended by up to 1,500 people 鈥 with a 拢10 ticket allowing access for all 10 nights. Activities at the event will include a stage with dancers, religious music and food. The event would be alcohol-free, with traditional vegetarian street food, such as samosas, being served inside a catered gazebo.
The application will be reviewed by Brent Council鈥檚 Alcohol and Entertainment Licensing Sub-Committee at a meeting later this month (July 14), where a decision on whether the event can go ahead will be made.