Major music events in Cardiff’s Bute Park ‘broke planning law’

Martin Shipton

A series of high-profile rock concerts held in the centre of Cardiff this summer took place without planning permission having been granted, it has emerged.

Nevertheless, Cardiff council has decided it would be inappropriate to take enforcement action against the organisers.

The concerts, which saw Noah Kahan, Alanis Morissette, Slayer and Stevie Wonder perform in Bute Park attracted audiences of tens of thousands, but were opposed by conservation groups like Cardiff Civic Society which argued that they barred city residents from enjoying their legal right of access to the park.

A council report has now revealed that there was no application for planning permission in advance of the events, and no issue of a “Certificate of Lawfulness”, and that therefore the event organiser proceeded at risk.

‘Temporary use’

The report states: “Officers have identified a recent High Court judgment dated May 16 2025 where the judge in question upheld a challenge to a Certificate of Lawfulness of Proposed Use or Development issued by Lambeth Council for a similar events use of a public park. In that case, the court confirmed that considering the duration of a proposed temporary use of land, the decision maker must determine not only the date on which the change to that temporary use is to occur but also the date on which the land is to revert to its normal use.

“Therefore, as part of our investigation, officers have considered the date on which the temporary use of the land commenced and the date on which the land is due to revert to its normal use, based on the evidence available and in light of the High Court judgment.”

Officers established that the land would be subject to an effective change of use for 37 days – more than the 28 days allowed by planning law in temporary circumstances.

The report says: “There have been no other temporary events in Blackweir Fields during this calendar year, but the result remains that the number of days exceeds that permitted.”

Enforcement action

Officers then considered whether enforcement action should be taken. The report states: “The Welsh Government’s Development Management Manual advises that the decisive issue should be whether the unauthorised development would unacceptably affect public amenity or the existing use of land and buildings meriting protection in the public interest. It states that enforcement action should be proportionate to the planning impacts of the breach. It should remedy harm, not punish, and should not be taken against trivial or technical breaches causing no material harm to amenity or the objectives of the development plan.”

They concluded: “The main ‘harm’ that would arise beyond the 28 days is the continued use of this part of the park as an event space, thus precluding access to the site by members of the public, along with a temporary impact on the way in which the park is experienced as part of the wider registered Historic Park. It is pertinent, however, in this context that the change of use relates only to a small part of the wider Bute Park, with the rest of the park (along with the substantial open space across the river) remaining in use as a public park.

“Within this context, and having particular regard to the above assessment, it is considered that the minor nature of the breach would have no demonstrable impact in terms of the policies within the Development Plan that seek to protect open space from inappropriate new development in the wider public interest.”

Officers recommended that it would not be expedient for the council to take any formal enforcement action against the event organiser in respect of Blackweir Live 2025.

‘Shocking’

Campaigners who opposed the events described the revelations as shocking.

Leading opponent Jeremy Sparkes said: “This project was conceived over a year ago and has been personally backed by council leader Huw Thomas. Yet it failed to secure the lawful permission necessary for the event to proceed as originally proposed and signed off by the council’s events team back in February.

“Blackweir Live was significantly in breach of planning law. This gives rise to a huge number of questions but the immediate ones I think are:

Should this decision not to take any action be subject to a ‘call In’ procedure?

Was publication of the decision suppressed until after the full council meeting on July 17? The decision was signed off and dated July 10 but only released into the public domain nearly two weeks later, and after much chasing up to avoid Huw Thomas being asked specifically about it.

Should Cllr Ed Stubbs, Chair of the planning committee, have made the sign-off decision himself given that he is a Labour ward colleague of Huw Thomas and all the controversy around Blackweir and whether it had the necessary legal permission?

Should the licence that was granted now be recalled for a full review?

Planning process

A council spokesperson responded: “The council has reviewed the situation, in line with all appropriate internal governance arrangements, and decided not to take formal planning enforcement action over the Blackweir Live event. This decision relates to the planning process, which is entirely separate to the premises licensing arrangements for Blackweir Fields.

“While the setup and breakdown of the site exceeded the 28-day limit for temporary events, the concerts themselves stayed within that timeframe, which was why planning permission was not sought for such a temporary event.

“The recent legal judgment clarifying how the 28-day rule should be applied was only established in a High Court case in May – after the Blackweir events had already been agreed and booked.

“The site was fully cleared by July 18, and most of Bute Park remained open throughout. The Council can only enforce against a breach in planning rules once any alleged breach has occurred. Taking legal action at this stage could have delayed the site being returned to public use.”

“The implications of the recent court judgment will now form part of a wider review of arrangements for future events in Cardiff.”