Ban on ‘vicious’ deckchairs at park cafe over safety fears

DECKCHAIRS have been removed from a city park by a district council amid health and safety concerns.

The seating was laid out by an Italian café and was free for anyone to use, whether they were customers or not.

But now the chairs, in Clarence Park, St Albans, Herts, have been removed with an official claiming they “could be vicious” and “trap little fingers”.

A petition is urging the council to reconsider. One woman said: “Children can learn to use deckchairs safely – like they do with playgrounds.”

The chairs were introduced by Verdi’s in summer 2020, but Josie Madoc, chairman of the Clarence Park Consultative Forum, said there were issues that led to their removal.

She said: “Verdi’s have a set area outside their restaurant which is their licensed area where they are permitted to put tables and chairs. The deckchairs were placed far and wide outside this and therefore become the council’s responsibility. However, their health and safety cannot be verified. Anything in the park has to be checked and maintained on a regular basis. If Verdi’s

‘The chairs were so popular with old and young alike and we have never had a single problem or accident’

wants to discuss the possibility of doing this it’s a definite possibility that we might see the deckchairs come back.”

Charlotte Chesrye from Verdi’s said: “The deckchairs were so popular with old and young alike and we have never had a single problem or accident.

“They are covered by our public liability insurance.”