Events company banned after balloon event

An events management company has been banned from a country house's grounds after a "disappointing" hot air balloon festival.

Ticketholders for the Wentworth Balloon Show near Rotherham were denied entry despite queuing in slow-moving traffic for up to two hours, and some have been unable to get refunds.

Wentworth Woodhouse Preservation Trust chief executive Sarah McLeod said the trust was seeking legal advice after Show Time Events Group "badly let down" customers and residents.

The company, which had hired the grounds of the stately home to deliver the festival on 6 June, has been contacted for comment.

Wentworth Woodhouse had no role in managing the event or selling tickets, but McLeod said responsibility for visitor experience "ultimately rests with me".

She added: "I would like to offer our sincere apologies to all visitors who experienced difficulties travelling to and from Wentworth Woodhouse."

Ruth Wilkinson, who had attended in a party of seven, said she was told by a marshal that the event was at capacity and turned away, despite having bought tickets in advance.

"We got stuck in traffic from about half past four, I think it was about half past five when they turned around and said, 'I'm sorry but you won't be able to come in'."

She said the traffic management had been "horrific" and she had not been able to get a refund from Show Time Events.

Adult tickets were listed from £10.50, while child tickets cost from £5.25.

Andrea Cooper, who had planned to attend with two friends who travelled up from Derby, said it took them all "two hours to move less than quarter of a mile" through the village of Wentworth.

She said, upon reaching the gate, she was told to drive to the next entrance.

"We drove on, until we saw the road signs for Rotherham and realised we'd been had – there was no other entrance," she said.

"I feel for Wentworth, as I feel they were probably conned a little."

All major events at the site require traffic management regulations, as set out by Rotherham Council, to be met.

A previous statement from Wentworth Woodhouse said Show Time Events had "failed to deliver" these despite being contractually obliged to and that the trust would not work with them again.

Traffic at future events organised by external parties will now be managed directly by the on-site team or by its "appointed contractors".

McLeod said the "disappointing quality of the event itself, the poor traffic management and the lack of respect shown by the event company" had had a "tangible negative impact" on the Grade I-listed stately home and gardens attraction.

"We sympathise with all customers, residents and local businesses who feel, as we do, that they have been badly let down," she added.

The trust took over the management of the house and grounds, which had previously been in private ownership, in 2017. Wentworth Woodhouse is the ancestral seat of the Earls Fitzwilliam, and properties and farms in the surrounding area are still owned by the Fitzwilliam Wentworth Estate.

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