Fears raised over future of popular summer events amid safety row

Bruce Sinclair, Local Democracy Reporter

Two popular summer events that attract thousands of visitors each year have been placed in doubt after organisers announced their provisional cancellation.

The Tenby Summer Spectaculars, scheduled for August 16 and August 30, have been put on hold by Tenby Round Table, which says unresolved safety and licensing issues mean it cannot currently proceed.

Announcing the decision earlier this week, organisers said it was made “with enormous sadness” after months of discussions with Pembrokeshire County Council failed to produce what they described as a clear and workable agreement on temporary restrictions for pedestrian access during the events.

The group said it could not legally or safely manage crowd numbers without certainty over the arrangements.

A spokesperson said months of requests, meetings and professional safety consultations had failed to resolve the issue.

“We have done everything a responsible event organiser can do,” the Round Table said in a statement.

The group claimed Pembrokeshire County Council’s Public Realm department had been unable to provide a definitive answer on safe and controlled access to the harbour area despite nine months of discussions.

Organisers argue that the crowd management measures they are seeking are widely used at major events elsewhere in the UK and are necessary to ensure public safety.

The cancellation remains provisional, however, with the Round Table giving the council until June 25 to provide what it described as a “clear, accurate and legally grounded answer”.

“If they do, we will do everything in our power to reinstate the events,” the group said.

The dispute comes ahead of a licensing committee meeting next month, where councillors are due to decide whether the licence required to host the events should be renewed.

Responding to the concerns, Pembrokeshire County Council insisted it had not instructed organisers to cancel the events and remained supportive of them going ahead.

Deputy council leader Cllr Paul Miller said: “The Spectacular is a much-loved event with significant numbers of attendees. As a result, we have an important duty to make sure the event can take place safely to address the concerns formally raised by the responsible authorities under the Licensing Act, which include the blue light services.

“Tenby Harbour is a working harbour and a key community asset and, just as every year, this event needs to be licensed, with organisers providing important information on how they plan to manage it safely.

“As a council, we very much want this event to go ahead, but we have to make sure the event is safe for the public, with the right safety measures in place.”

He said the licensing sub-committee would consider the application once the required information had been provided by organisers.

Hope

Local councillor Sam Skyrme-Blackhall also expressed hope that a solution could be found.

“I want to see the Spectaculars go ahead,” he said.

“It is important for locals and visitors alike to celebrate Tenby, have fun and raise money for worthy causes.

“I am really encouraged from meetings that I have had with senior officers that everyone is ready to do all that they can to enable these events to go ahead.”