The council leader said some things could have been done better but five authorised events was a sign of success
Huge bonfire at IIchester Park(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)
Lessons will need to be learned about how Wirral Council approaches community Bonfire Night events, according to its leader. The local authority has been heavily criticised in recent weeks because of community tensions over two fires.
However, Cllr Paula Basnett said the local authority has seen success in several areas. Two weeks ago, event organisers on the Woodchurch estate and at Ilchester Park in Birkenhead were told their bonfires needed to be smaller but anger over the situation led to both being set alight earlier than planned.
All Wirral events this year, including those that have been held for decades, were required to undergo an approval process. This was brought in following recommendations from Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service (MFRS) and a new policy approved by councillors earlier this year.
This followed a trial working with communities in 2024 that was a first in Merseyside. Four events were given the greenlight two weeks ago. An authorised event was later allowed to go ahead on the Woodchurch too.
The Ilchester event was being supported by the North Birkenhead Development Trust (NBT), which runs the St James Centre nearby. However, just minutes before the event was supposed to start, a Wirral Council spokesperson said the trust had withdrawn from its role as the bonfire was built too big prompting safety concerns.
Wirral Council said the public should not attend the unauthorised event but hundreds still went. People have said fireworks were set off within the group, spooking some children, however others said it was a perfect atmosphere with no hassle.
Though no one was injured, an MFRS spokesperson said: “The bonfire was significantly larger than recommended and could have posed a serious risk to public safety.
“Thankfully, no one has been injured, but fires of this size can easily get out of control and endanger spectators, nearby property, and our firefighters.”
On November 6, Wirral Council leader Cllr Paula Basnett told the ECHO: “For me personally we have to put our residents’ safety first and foremost. From the briefings I have, that is where it came from that we needed to keep our residents safe.”
She added: “It’s about working together. It’s our communities working together collectively for what is best for their residents but also the local authority ensuring that what they are doing is compliant. From my understanding it was all around health and safety.
“I think we could have communicated better. I always feel if you communicate on ground level with our communities to understand what their concerns are, to understand what their views are, then we are halfway there to having a solution.
“If there was anything that maybe we could do better, it would be to communicate better.”
She added: “There is always lessons to be learned isn’t there? We will take what happened this year, obviously we need to reflect on that and come back with a way forward. A way forward everyone is happy with but we’ve got to keep everyone safe as well.
“The utmost single important issue is about keeping our residents safe and that to me is where this came from.”
Despite the issues, five out of six authorised events went ahead on the Wirral, including the Woodchurch estate where a previous bonfire was set alight earlier than planned. She said: “I think sometimes we home in too much on the negative,” adding the approach had seen success and no one was hurt.