LEICESTER’S Golden Mile will continue to be the focus for Diwali Day celebrations, but with major changes to the annual event due to crowd safety fears.
Serious concerns about public safety at the popular event have been raised by the Diwali safety advisory group due to the massive crowd numbers the event has attracted in recent years.
The group - which includes event and safety experts from the city council, representatives from Leicestershire Police, NHS Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland ICB, East Midlands Ambulance Service, Leicestershire Fire and Rescue and crowd security providers – has warned that the current location is no longer fit for purpose, and urgent action needs to be taken.
Several meetings have since been held by the safety advisory group to consider a range of options, including relocating the popular event to Abbey Park or the city centre, extending it onto Belgrave Circle or moving it onto Melton Road.
Following council engagement with Belgrave businesses and local community representatives, the decision has now been taken to enable Diwali Day celebrations on Belgrave Road, where it has been held for more than 40 years.
However, major changes to the popular event will be required to ensure it can be held safely.
Belgrave Road will be closed to all traffic for the evening of Diwali Day to allow families and friends to celebrate safely together and enjoy the atmosphere, shops and restaurants of the Golden Mile.
Festive illuminations featuring more than 6,000 lights will continue to be installed along Belgrave Road during Diwali. The popular Wheel of Light will also return.
There will be no stage entertainment or firework display at this year’s event. And Cossington Street Recreation Ground will no longer feature as part of the festivities.
These measures need to be taken to avoid potentially dangerous crowd massing that has been observed at the event in the last two years.
The city council has committed to continue to work with the safety advisory group and local community representatives to see whether any further enhancements can be made that will not compromise public safety.
The new approach was agreed at a meeting last night between the City Mayor Peter Soulsby, Cllr Vi Dempster, asst city mayor for culture, representatives from the Leicester Hindu Festival Council and Belgrave Business Association, and members of the local Jain and Sikh communities. Local ward councillors, council officers and safety advisory group members also attended.
Graham Callister, the city council’s head of festivals, events and cultural policy said: “Diwali has been a real highlight of the city’s festival calendar and attracts thousands of people who come from far and wide to join in the celebrations on the Golden Mile.
“However, we are now being advised by our emergency service partners and event security providers that we have reached the point where the growing crowds and sheer volume of people attending is causing significant concern about public safety.
“Scaling back on event infrastructure and activity means there will be the additional space needed - and more importantly less congestion - to safely welcome the crowds that want to celebrate on Belgrave Road.”
Cllr Vi Dempster said: "Unfortunately, Leicester’s annual Diwali festival has become a victim of its own success. We’re being strongly advised by our emergency service partners and crowd control experts that it cannot continue safely in its current format due to the unrestricted and growing crowd numbers that it attracts, and that’s a warning we must take extremely seriously.
“We are absolutely determined that Diwali continues to be part of the city’s festive calendar. We also understand the depth of feeling to see it continue on the Golden Mile where it began over 40 years ago. To do that, we must ensure that it can take place safely. That must be paramount.”
Over the last two years, record crowds have turned out for the city’s Diwali celebrations on Belgrave Road and Cossington Street recreation ground. Last year’s event saw estimated crowds of up to 50,000 people attending.