Clitheroe community bonfire is cancelled (From Lancashire Telegraph)

Sounds like someone's spitting their dummy out here! It's one thing to come up against some jumped up 'elf & safety jobsworth, but when you've got such organizations as the fire and ambulance services raising concerns then it's time to listen. This event is a victim of its own success with many more spectators turning up last year than was originally envisaged. If spectator numbers increase again this year then the risks are very real. Please have a 're-think and take the council up on their offer of practical and financial help. This is a very popular event, don't let down the children and parent's of the Ribble Valley through some momentary surge of anger and frustration. Do the right thing!!

The h&s requirements are too excessive. I wouldn't go ahead with unreasonable demands like that either.

AnthonyUK wrote:
The h&s requirements are too excessive. I wouldn't go ahead with unreasonable demands like that either.

That's just the thing AnthonyUK, there are no reports of what H&S requirements are being made. Therefore one can't possibly say wether those demands are reasonable or not. Maybe a little more in depth reporting by LT would enlighten us further.

Darwen lost its bommie years ago and it has been lamented ever since. These are real, traditional community events that are being lost because of barmpot rules and regulations.

They wrecked the torchlight procession with unreasonable demands and now the bonfire...How come is it there has never been a problem, yet Ribble valley council manage to invent them? The are doing nothing for Clitheroe except wreck the town by giving planning permission to any developer going and put barmpot rules and regulations in place to stop any community event they can.
Just don't vote for the bar stewards is all i can say.

The Safety Nazi's have taken over Clitheroe, banning the bonfire is a good match for their 20 Mph Zones, Clitheroe will die as a community if the current trend as led by the Limp-Dumps the idiots who lve there keep electing continues !

These people are brainwashed jobsworths who have nothing better to do than going around and destroying traditional community events based on "health and safety"

I'm going out on a limb here but I bet there has never been a health and safety problem in the past. I bet these jobsworths are simply trying to justify thier own wages

BuckoTheMoose wrote:
I'm going out on a limb here but I bet there has never been a health and safety problem in the past. I bet these jobsworths are simply trying to justify thier own wages

I think some people did get slightly hurt many years ago but I can't remember the full facts think the wind blew sparks into the crowd or something like that. The biggest problem for anyone organising anything these days is the people that are out to make a claim for anything they can.

I'm glad you've shown yourself M@C58 as I'm sure your local knowledge is greater than mine but was there not a death last year? Some guy from Formby from what I can recall. Or maybe it was unconnected. Shed any light sir??

BuckoTheMoose wrote:
I'm going out on a limb here but I bet there has never been a health and safety problem in the past. I bet these jobsworths are simply trying to justify thier own wages

This night as been run without major incidents for 15years and if there has been a issue on the night at the review meeting that takes place after the event the volunteer organisers take on board for the next year so it won’t happen again.
The volunteers are a group of adult professionals with expert advice at hand they have been trying to communicate with the Ribble Valley ESAG group since March of this year with their plans without success.
A group can only take so much they have their own families, hobbies, and business to run as well.

The H&S people can't win. They make demands and they are being unreasonable but if something was to happen then everyone asks why they were allowed to organise an unsafe event.

Hello everyone who has commented on this page search Save Clitheroe Bonfire on Facebook and help us save it!!!!

I don’t think we are getting to full picture! What are the ‘unreasonable restrictions’ being placed on the committee? It would be good to know and then we can judge for ourselves if they are indeed ‘unreasonable’ All we have got is a concern from the Fire Service about people been potentially penned in if numbers where not effectively controlled. That concern to me seems quite valid – if something did go horribly wrong what would happen if people couldn’t be evacuated from the castle grounds safely if they were penned in???? Knowing some of the organisers, as I do, I can’t help feeling that they have thrown the toys out of the pram on this and are unwilling to work with the Ribble Valley Event Safety Advisory Group to resolve the situation. They are the professionals and like it or not Health and Safety isn’t something to be taken likely. Please can we have some clarification on what these ‘unreasonable restrictions/demands are? It’s all well and good Bill Barker saying this – but what are they? We could then begin to understand what the problem is. Instead we are just left dangling with one side blaming the other! Or maybe it’s an excuse for the organisers to get out of running things!

HarryBosch wrote:
I'm glad you've shown yourself M@C58 as I'm sure your local knowledge is greater than mine but was there not a death last year? Some guy from Formby from what I can recall. Or maybe it was unconnected. Shed any light sir??

Harry, There has been no deaths at the Clitheroe Bonfire. You must be thinking of another event/bonfire else where.

ClitheroeKid wrote:
I don’t think we are getting to full picture! What are the ‘unreasonable restrictions’ being placed on the committee? It would be good to know and then we can judge for ourselves if they are indeed ‘unreasonable’ All we have got is a concern from the Fire Service about people been potentially penned in if numbers where not effectively controlled. That concern to me seems quite valid – if something did go horribly wrong what would happen if people couldn’t be evacuated from the castle grounds safely if they were penned in???? Knowing some of the organisers, as I do, I can’t help feeling that they have thrown the toys out of the pram on this and are unwilling to work with the Ribble Valley Event Safety Advisory Group to resolve the situation. They are the professionals and like it or not Health and Safety isn’t something to be taken likely. Please can we have some clarification on what these ‘unreasonable restrictions/demands are? It’s all well and good Bill Barker saying this – but what are they? We could then begin to understand what the problem is. Instead we are just left dangling with one side blaming the other! Or maybe it’s an excuse for the organisers to get out of running things!

Lancashire Fire and Rescue said they had concerns that visitors could find themselves penned in by walls in one section without control of numbers.
They have been miss informed by somebody the safety and control of movements of people around the castle field is paramount at all times for the organisers.
“They are the professionals and like it or not Health and Safety isn’t something to be taken likely”
Quite right Clitheroe Kid and the organisers don’t and never would compromise safety of the event.
Not quite right on part of your comment though Clitheroe Kid the Chairman of ESAG is actually a Building Inspector!!

Forever Blue wrote:

ClitheroeKid wrote: I don’t think we are getting to full picture! What are the ‘unreasonable restrictions’ being placed on the committee? It would be good to know and then we can judge for ourselves if they are indeed ‘unreasonable’ All we have got is a concern from the Fire Service about people been potentially penned in if numbers where not effectively controlled. That concern to me seems quite valid – if something did go horribly wrong what would happen if people couldn’t be evacuated from the castle grounds safely if they were penned in???? Knowing some of the organisers, as I do, I can’t help feeling that they have thrown the toys out of the pram on this and are unwilling to work with the Ribble Valley Event Safety Advisory Group to resolve the situation. They are the professionals and like it or not Health and Safety isn’t something to be taken likely. Please can we have some clarification on what these ‘unreasonable restrictions/demands are? It’s all well and good Bill Barker saying this – but what are they? We could then begin to understand what the problem is. Instead we are just left dangling with one side blaming the other! Or maybe it’s an excuse for the organisers to get out of running things!

Lancashire Fire and Rescue said they had concerns that visitors could find themselves penned in by walls in one section without control of numbers. They have been miss informed by somebody the safety and control of movements of people around the castle field is paramount at all times for the organisers. “They are the professionals and like it or not Health and Safety isn’t something to be taken likely” Quite right Clitheroe Kid and the organisers don’t and never would compromise safety of the event. Not quite right on part of your comment though Clitheroe Kid the Chairman of ESAG is actually a Building Inspector!!

But if they haven't had problems before then why the sudden kneejerk request to implement additional safety measures? If the Clitheroe Bonfire Committee gives into this then what next? Are the ESAG gonna throw up more and more unnecessary bumf and concerns to the workload of the already busy responsibilities? No wonder more and more events are going to the wall when dogooders throw up additional redtape and restrictions to event organisers that cannot always easily be accommodated.

all i can say is after 45 years living in clitheroe i have heard it all now,
my informants tell me its the work of one man. so maybe if we throw him into the ribble at high flood that might solve the problem.
the local papers should find out who it is and what its about .and let every one know about it.
my advice to the people who organise it is simple.
stick two fingers up at the sicko and carry on regardless.
the clitheroe grounds are puplic domain of clitheroe town people ( bought in the 1920 s as a war memorial for the dead of ww1 )
so its up to them not some idiot to say if the bonefire will go ahead.
carry on and good luck.