‘SHOW MUST NOT GO ON’
Just weeks before the event, and following months of work and tickets being sold, organisers are told:
ORGANISERS of the Leek Show have been left disappointed after they were forced to pull the plug on the event just weeks before it was set to go ahead.
The event was to be held at Birchall Playing Fields on July 31, but Staffordshire Moorlands District Council refused permission to use the site due to Covid infection levels.
With insufficent time to find an alternative venue, the show will not go ahead for the second year running.
In 2019, the show looked to be doomed when the then-organisers chose to discontinue, but a group of businessmen came together to rescue it.
And they have been left upset at the council’s decision, which leader Sybil Ralphs said was made following the recent Covid outbreak in Leek.
“The likelihood an event of this scale would lead to further local transmissions, and the risks of permitting the show to go ahead were too high and we had no option but to refuse permission,” said Ms Ralphs.
Organisers have now decided to take the show outside of Leek next year.
MEMBERS of Leek Show committee have been left shocked and angered after Staffordshire Moorlands District Council told them that Birchall Playing Field site was not available for the event just two weeks before it was due to take place.
The council’s decision – which they say they told the committee about back in May – means the show organisers had no alternative but to cancel the event planned for July 31, despite the Prime Minister announcing that all restrictions will be lifted from Monday, July 19.
Committee members have been working on putting the show together for the past few months and tickets had been on sale as Covid-19 restrictions were gradually lifted.
Following the council’s decision, the show committee has now announced that they are looking at moving the show from Birchall, which has been the location for the event for several decades, to a new site near Longsdon for next year’s event.
In a statement to the Post & Times, show committee chairman Eddie Sims said he had been informed prior to taking on organising the popular agricultural event that “dealing with the council was the most challenging part”.
He said: “As Leek Show committee chairman, I would like to pay tribute to our committee members for all the hard work they have put in to make this year’s show the success we all hoped for in the very difficult circumstances we have all been experiencing over the last 18 months.
“Some of our committee are longstanding volunteers who have been involved in Leek Show for many, many years, and for that, we thank them for staying the course and bringing the experience and advice to the majority of us who are newcomers with varying degrees of knowledge and experience – but above all, enthusiasm beyond bounds.
“As chairman of this organisation, I cannot begin to explain the disappointment I felt on receiving the email from Staffordshire Moorlands District Council refusing the licence to operate the show from Birchall, home of the show for 54 years.
“I had understood from the Torr family that dealing with the council, who are custodians of the site, was always the most challenging part of arranging the show each year.”
The Post & Times contacted the District Council to ask why the authority had refused to allow Birchall to be used at such a late stage of the committee’s planning.
Councillor Sybil Ralphs, leader of Staffordshire Moorlands District Council, said: “I want to be very clear that the council has not ‘cancelled’ Leek Show.
“We wrote to the organisers in May to say we would not be approving their application to hold the event at Birchall Fields.
“At that time they indicated that they had identified an alternative location and I sent my best wishes to them for the future success of this event at its new venue.
“We have since confirmed for a second time that we would not grant permission for the show to be held on our land at Birchall and, despite that, they continued to sell tickets and invite interest in trade stalls.
“Given the recent Covid outbreak in Leek, the likelihood that an event of this scale would lead to further local transmissions, and the continuing increase in positive cases nationally, the risks of permitting the show to go ahead were too high and we had no option but to refuse permission.
“We have a duty to protect public health and it would be simply irresponsible to encourage people from across the Moorlands, and possibly the region, to travel and come together in this way when we’ve all worked so hard to contain the outbreak in Leek.
“Even if the public health situation were not the very obvious concern that it is, the application was only received by the council very recently and much of the necessary documentation required to provide assurance we would need to be satisfied the event was being operated safely was not included.
“As a responsible landowner, that is not a situation we can allow.”
Now, the Leek Show committee are planning to host the show outside of Leek itself for the first time in at least 50 years, on a site near Dunwood between Endon and Longsdon.
Mr Sims added: “The committee feel it would be impossible to arrange a show for 2021 at an alternative site, with the added challenge of finding a suitable date that does not clash with other events in the area.
“But we are determined to make the 2022 show, on July 30, bigger and better than Leek has ever seen.
“The site that has been offered on Leek Road, opposite Dunwood Lane, is approximately 20 per cent larger than Birchall, and carries no limitations, so attractions such as show jumping, could return to the show.
“Main attractions could be as daring as your imagination. Security would be much improved and parking for several thousand vehicles is adjacent to the site.
“The leader of the Moorlands District Council has stated that the council would be very supportive of the move.
“There are ambitions to expand the show through most of the sections, have more exposure to modern-day farming with a Farmer’s Market, an artisan stall section, forestry and modern crop growing methods and demonstrations, plus classic and vintage vehicles and possibly even steam.
“All this needs volunteers so anyone who feels they may be able to contribute, please get in touch.”