{"id":15317,"date":"2025-04-13T02:13:22","date_gmt":"2025-04-13T02:13:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/15317\/"},"modified":"2025-04-13T02:13:22","modified_gmt":"2025-04-13T02:13:22","slug":"council-bans-bbqs-in-popular-park-after-revellers-poo-in-bushes-uk-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/15317\/","title":{"rendered":"Council bans BBQs in popular park after revellers ‘poo in bushes’ | UK | News"},"content":{"rendered":"

Camden Council said on Wednesday it will no longer allow BBQs in Waterlow Park, Highgate, despite the recent heatwave. This decision comes after locals complained about party-goers littering, fighting and even defecating in the bushes.<\/p>\n

The council said that the ban was due to ‘parties’ gathering in hot weather and disturbing other park users.<\/p>\n

The decision followed a petition by residents who were concerned about pollution and the impact on the grass and wildlife.<\/p>\n

\"Waterlow<\/p>\n

Waterlow Park in Highgate, London. (Image: SWNS)<\/p>\n

One local resident described “massive events” that attracted a “huge influx of people” who played loud music, used barbecues in both designated and undesignated areas, and engaged in inappropriate behaviour such as “defecating in the bushes” and “fighting”.<\/p>\n

On Thursday (April 10), most residents in Waterlow Park expressed their approval of the ban, citing issues with excessive smoke and intimidating crowds. However, some felt it was a pity, noting that many Londoners without gardens have no other options for outdoor gatherings.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

The council is banning BBQs at the park (Image: SWNS)<\/p>\n

Sarah Humphries, 70, was one of those who welcomed the ban, expressing her strong opposition to barbecues. She said: “I’m completely against the barbecues. The smell of the smoke is just awful.”<\/p>\n

She added: “I actually have to avoid the park at weekends because of it. I do sympathise with people who have nowhere else to go – but it just isn’t right here.<\/p>\n

“People come in such large groups and I can’t even tell you, there is so much smoke.”<\/p>\n

\"Sarah<\/p>\n

Sarah Humphries (Image: SWNS)<\/p>\n

Elsie Smith, 67, expressed relief at the decision, stating: “We used to never be able to come here on weekends because there was smoke everywhere.”<\/p>\n

She added, “It’s bad for your health and the environment.<\/p>\n

“And the people who came with barbecues weren’t local – so it stopped residents using the park.<\/p>\n

“I’m relieved, to be honest. People should have picnics instead. Then everyone can enjoy the park without being smoked out.”<\/p>\n

\"Locals<\/p>\n

Locals concerned about the impact of fires started a petition (Image: SWNS)<\/p>\n

Renata, 54, echoed similar sentiments, saying: “I’d say the ban is a good thing.<\/p>\n

“This has been my local park for the last 20 years so I’ve noticed the effects barbecues have had.”<\/p>\n

Renata pointed out the damage caused by barbecues, stating, “The grass is burnt – and there’s a danger of wildfires. It just takes one accident for things to go up.<\/p>\n

“There’s a lot of smoke – which is bad for people and nature – and the big parties can be pretty intimidating.”<\/p>\n

\"General<\/p>\n

General view of Waterlow park (Image: SWNS)<\/p>\n

Jeffrey, 80, voiced his concerns about the risk of fires, saying: “I’m undecided on barbecues as a whole, but on this one, I’d probably have to side with the council.”<\/p>\n

He emphasised the importance of acknowledging the risk of wildfires.<\/p>\n

However, not all locals agreed with the ban. Max, 26, considered it “a shame”, explaining: “I just think most people living in London, or at least, most young people living in London, don’t have any outdoor space – so this is the only way they can have a barbecue.”<\/p>\n

He lamented the loss of a British summertime tradition: “And barbecues are such a British summertime thing – so it’s sad we have to miss out on that.”<\/p>\n

\"BBQs<\/p>\n

BBQs are now banned (Image: SWNS)<\/p>\n

Michelle, 55, echoed Max’s sentiments: “There’s a sign here which calls this park a ‘garden for the gardenless’. And that’s true. Families and communities came together for barbecues which I think is lovely.”<\/p>\n

Acknowledging potential issues, she added, “I understand if there are issues in terms of damage and safety, but there used to be a designated barbecue space, and I think that worked well. It’s a shame that has to go.”<\/p>\n

\"Grass<\/p>\n

Grass damaged by a bonfire (Image: SWNS)<\/p>\n

Camden Council said it wants everyone to be able to enjoy the park and will keep the policy “under regular review”.<\/p>\n

A spokesperson said: “Camden’s parks are vital spaces for our residents.<\/p>\n

“Two out of five of our residents do not have access to a garden at their home and our parks offer beautiful spaces to relax, socialise and exercise.<\/p>\n

“We want everyone to enjoy themselves and this means we will keep our policy of allowing barbecues in our parks in the summer under regular review.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Camden Council said on Wednesday it will no longer allow BBQs in Waterlow Park, Highgate, despite the recent…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":15318,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7757],"tags":[748,393,4884,257,10463,10462,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-15317","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-london","8":"tag-britain","9":"tag-england","10":"tag-great-britain","11":"tag-london","12":"tag-neighbour-rows","13":"tag-real-life-stories","14":"tag-uk","15":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114328240424546415","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15317","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15317"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15317\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15318"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15317"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15317"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15317"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}