Lambeth Council issues certificate of lawfulness for Brockwell Park events

Lambeth Council found itself at the heart of controversy when it issued a fresh certificate of lawfulness for live events in Brockwell Park, just a day before the first festival was slated to begin in May 2025.

The dispute originally arose after the council approved large-scale summer events under permitted development rights—a move challenged by local campaigners, Protect Brockwell Park, who argued that using the park for events spanning up to 37 days exceeded the legal 28-day limit, disrupted local wildlife, and degraded the park environment.

Their grounds of appeal centred on the sustainability of using the park in such a way and the significant impact on public space, leading a High Court judge, Mr Justice Mould, to quash the earlier certificate on the basis that the council had acted unlawfully and irrationally.

In response, Lambeth Council applied for a new certificate using a revised application format, asserting that the updated process, which included a public consultation period, now rendered the events lawful; however, campaigners have lambasted this move as a legal workaround designed to sidestep the implications of the court ruling.

However, a statement issued by the council on Thursday revealed that a new certificate of lawfulness for use or development applied for by the organisers for the events had been issued.

The statement said: “People were able to comment on the application, with the opportunity to make representations during this week.

“This certificate confirms that the use of part of the park for the summer events is lawful. The events in Brockwell Park are proceeding.

“The application for the new certificate of lawfulness follows the High Court ruling last week on the previous certificate, which was submitted in a different context and format.”

In a statement released ahead of Lambeth’s decision on Thursday, Protect Brockwell Park said any move to issue a new certificate would ignore “the substance of the court ruling and the ongoing harm to the park and its users, and playing legal games to outmanoeuvre the courts and silence residents”.

Responding to the amended certificate application that has since been approved, solicitors representing the campaign group said: “[This] latest amendment is desperate, legally flawed and factually unbelievable.”