Yorkshire music festival could ruin Queen's Platinum Jubilee celebrations for villagers desperate to get together after covid

The Made In Leeds Festival is set to bring the likes of Craig David and Tom Zanetti to Leeds East Airport on June 4.

But residents of Church Fenton, the nearest village, are urging for the date to be moved - as they say it will spoil plans for the Jubilee celebrations, including their own ‘Fenton Fest,’ a parade, a treasure hunt, and a picnic in the park.

They say the village does not have the infrastructure to support both events.

Up to 14,000 people will descend on the former RAF base for the festival, the first to be held there since 2019.

Villagers are now searching for a solution having being told by Selby District Council they cannot now formally object to the festival going ahead as council permission has been granted.

A letter seen by the Yorkshire Post written on behalf of Church Fenton parish council to Selby District council read: “Fenton Fest is a village music and family entertainment event that has run for several years. It was agreed 12 months ago that this would be combined with a Queen’s Jubilee celebration.

“Ultimately this local event which has been planned for 12 months will not be able to go ahead if Made in Leeds happens on the same day, many reasons include noise pollution completely drowned out by Made in Leeds, parking, access to the event site, traffic management and safety of festival goers.”

“From experience, villages will become rat runs and quickly gridlocked due to frustrated drivers in long queues.

“This event is not part of the celebrations and is not in the spirit of local communities being encouraged to come together and celebrate the first time a British monarch has reigned for 70 years.”

Previous festivals held on the airfield before the pandemic led to ticket-holders leaving the site and trying to urinate on the village sports’ field, according to the letter.

One concerned resident who wished to remain anonymous said: “There were issues with drugs paraphernalia being found in hedges and people urinating in gardens.

“This is the first big weekend we can all get together after covid and celebrate, and it’s just not right.

“Most people will have the weekend off and everyone just wanted to have a community-orientated weekend in a way we’ve not been able to do for three years, and all that is now up in the air.”

The organisers of Made in Leeds were approached for comment.