Plug pulled on summer party due to dispute

Pitstone Party in the Park is the biggest summer time event for the village and attracted over 2,000 people last year.

This year, it was scheduled to take place on Saturday, July 1, but an unexpected dispute has caused organisers to pull out.

It was hoped that the differences could be ironed out, but this week the organisers confirmed the event had bitten the dust for 2017.

In a statement, the Pitstone Party in the Park committee said it has “reluctantly taken the difficult decision to cancel this year’s event”.

The committee gave the following reasons:

> Rising costs associated with health, safety and liability insurance.

> A potential £300 rental fee and newly imposed conditions for use of the memorial hall.

> An inability to claim back £1,400 retained by the memorial hall for the 2014 event.

> “Increased parish bureaucracy” over use of the recreation ground.

> Lack of committee member volunteers.

In a statement posted on the Pitstone Memorial Hall website, Tony Clare, chairperson of the charity, said: “To show our unwavering support for PITP 2017, this year I and my fellow trustees will personally fund the £150 PMH hire fee.”

But the event will still not go ahead. Richard Hall, from the Pitstone Party in the Park committee, said: “No, it won’t go ahead.

“Unfortunately the cost of it this year has risen significantly, mainly to do with the public liability and also the cost of the hall, there were a number of factors.

“We didn’t expect the costs to be as much as they were and once we added up all the costs we didn’t have enough time to raise that amount of money.

“Hopefully next year it will go ahead, we will need more members and some have already signed up, it will also give us time to fundraise and get the money we need to hold the event.”

To get involved contact [email protected].

> What’s your view on the event’s cancellation? Send your thoughts to [email protected]