Festival organiser given second chance to hold event

An African music festival has been given a second chance after its organiser begged councillors not to revoke its licence.

iZambezi Festival was due to take place at Charlton Park, near Malmesbury, on 15 August but was cancelled after a number of health and safety failures were highlighted weeks before the event.

Speaking at a hearing with Wiltshire Council to discuss its licence, festival organiser Chenai Chiwara said he had not previously organised a festival before securing permission for the event.

The three-member committee decided not to revoke the licence, instead imposing strict new conditions requiring organisers to submit an initial event management plan at least 180 days in advance.

It also said the festival must appoint an experienced event manager before that submission, and have key suppliers contracted no later than 60 days before the festival takes place.

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, Chiwara told the hearing he had lost a "substantial amount of lifetime savings" after the cancellation, including refunding flights for international performers.

The hearing was told the festival had been granted a premises licence for a 5,000-capacity event in 2026, with larger events in 2027 and 2028, eventually rising to nearly 15,000 attendees.

The licence required organisers to have detailed safety and management plans in place.

But two weeks before the festival was due to be staged, a meeting involving organisers, Wiltshire Council, Wiltshire Police, Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service and South Western Ambulance Service revealed that key arrangements had not been completed.

Chiwara said despite only around 100 tickets having been sold, organisers had anticipated attendance of up to 3,000 people.

Wiltshire Police alcohol licensing officer Richard Tottle said the documentation submitted by organisers was poor and raised concerns about public safety.

Roy Bahador, principal licensing officer at Wiltshire Council, said there were similar concerns regarding medical cover and public safety planning.

Chiwara accepted responsibility for the shortcomings, adding: "We accept that document deadlines were missed and that important arrangements were still incomplete."

Despite the concerns, both police and council officers said they supported the principle of the event if robust planning could be demonstrated.

Councillors reduced the term of the licence from three years to two, with a capacity of 5,000 in 2027.

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