Holiday giants row over outdoor events licence

The owners of the UK's largest hotel chain have objected to plans for a holiday park to host outdoor music events until late at night.

Great Yarmouth's Vauxhall Holiday Park has applied for a licence to allow it to put on live and pre-recorded performances until 23:00 BST.

However, Whitbread Group, which owns a nearby Premier Inn in the Norfolk seaside town, has objected, claiming the application does not include adequate safety measures.

The holiday park, on the A47 Acle New Road and operated by industry giant Parkdean Resorts, said it would not be appropriate to comment ahead of Great Yarmouth Borough Council's licensing committee meeting.

Attracting tens of thousands of visitors every year, the holiday park recently underwent a £5m refurbishment which added new facilities.

Run by Parkdean, which has 65 holiday parks in the UK, it has regularly held "weekender" events covering a range of different music styles.

It is currently not allowed to host performances in the open air and has applied for an outdoor licence, covering 08:00 to 23:00 every day of the week.

Whitbread has more than 800 Premier Inns, including one opposite the holiday park.

It has argued the application should be refused as it did not provide enough measures in a range of areas, including public safety and preventing disorder.

In a letter, the firm's solicitor Leigh Schelvis said it was "not fit for purpose… and likely to prejudice the safety of members of the public".

Fifteen people living nearby have also written objections, raising concerns about the potential for noise.

A spokeswoman for Vauxhall said "as we are in an active licensing process, it wouldn't be appropriate for us to comment on the matter".

The council committee is due to decide on the application when it meets at 10:00 BST.

Do you have a story suggestion for Norfolk? Contact us below.

Follow Norfolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.