The company behind the All Points East festival has had a new license approved by the council and will host more events at Victoria Park in east London from this summer despite concerns from residents. AEG Presents Limited was granted a new premises license with Tower Hamlets Council’s licensing sub-committee last week (February 13) after it previously had a time limit and expired in December 2023.
Unlike the previous licence, AEG’s new license is not time-limited but it will still have to comply with the council’s large events policy and adhere to the lease for the ground, which is also owned by the council. The new license application sought approval from the council to allow it to sell alcohol on the premises from 10am to 10.15pm (Sundays to Thursdays) and from 10am to 10.45pm (Fridays and Saturdays); as well as providing regulated entertainment as part of the festival from 10:00 to 22:30 (Sunday to Thursday) and from 10:00 to 23:00 (Friday and Saturday).
The All Points East festival has taken place at Victoria Park since its inception in 2018 and for the past three years has been held in the month of August. Last month the Mayor of Tower Hamlets, Lutfur Rahman and his cabinet struck a new deal with AEG which will see it take over areas of the park again between April and September for the next three years (2024, 2025, 2026).
AEG will host an extra weekend of major music events in either May or June this year while it plans to add a fourth weekend to its 2025 and 2026 schedules after the council reviewed its major events policy late last year . During last week’s meeting, the licensing sub-committee heard concerns from Tony Joyce and Simon Cooper, two residents who had objected to the plans due to noise and traffic concerns.
“I have to put in earplugs for two hours during sound checks”
Joyce claimed the park becomes a “construction site” in the two weeks leading up to the festival and said he was constantly disturbed by trucks backing up during the day and generators “running all night”. He added: “The day before the event starts we have sound checks for two hours which are really loud because they are trying to get the levels of the sound (right).
“This goes on for two hours, I put in earplugs because of it.” Mr Joyce said during the festival that he cannot listen to the radio or watch TV even with headphones in. He said: “If I put my hands on the window I can feel the window vibrating with the sound, which goes on all day from 11am to 11pm :00.”
Cooper raised concerns about traffic and walkways to and from the festival. From a distance, Cooper said: “(Cadogen Terrace) is closest to the main stage. My first concern is that the area around here has changed rapidly in the last two to three years.
“Fewer complaints and many came because of the wind change”
Simon Taylor, representing AEG, said the company was “very well known and very experienced” having hosted All Points East at the same venue for the past five years. He said the number of complaints had fallen “year-on-year” and was about 70 percent lower in 2023 than before.
Taylor said: “Noise complaints are down from 133 to 35 and of those 35 were two days where there were wind changes which affected about 26 – or caused about 26 complaints. Crime figures are very low and in 2022 there were 26 crimes reported and 7 arrests. In 2023 16 crimes were reported and 10 arrested.
He added: “There was only one complaint about anti-social behavior in 2023, and complaints during the construction period were reduced to zero in 2023. There were three traffic and parking complaints in 2023. Later in the meeting, Taylor said: “You have a very competent applicant and they have shown that those between 2018 and 2023 can deliver successful events and can mitigate the effects of these events.
“These are proven robust terms governing the planning and delivery of the event, all responsible authorities are happy with the application and there are no objections (from them).” Regarding traffic management concerns, Taylor said there was a “significant misunderstanding” with AEG’s proposed traffic management plan.
He said: “There is no doubt that full consideration will be given, we have promised that we will submit both Mr Cooper’s and Mr Joyce’s names to the planning for 2024 if this license is granted.” After the meeting, the Licensing Subcommittee retired privately so they could make their decision. According to a decision published a few days later on the council’s website, the license was approved.
Part of the decision read: “However, the subcommittee takes this opportunity to remind the applicant that these events unfortunately negatively affect some individuals, such as Joyce, and would urge the applicant to cooperate with these residents prior to the events and to offer such additional assistance as may be reasonable.”
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