Parents left ‘disgusted’ after Kids Party in the Park in Southsea costing £80 branded as ‘empty field with small stage’ - as organiser hits back

The Kids Party in the Park event on Monday at Castle Field was supposed to offer a day packed with fun activities for children to get involved in – but descended into an angry confrontation on stage as a children’s singing group was booted off stage in one of the low points.

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Fuming residents who attended said they were left short-changed after accusing the company of ‘false advertising’ for failing to deliver on its promises. The vitriol directed at the organisers has led to the company hitting back after telling The News they were let down and have vowed to take court action and contact their insurance company. The female organiser, who did not want to be named, said they had been left ‘out of pocket’ from the event, which cost £25,000 to put on.

The organiser, who urged for patience from bitter customers amid efforts to get a refund, said: ‘I understand why people are angry and upset and we will deal with it in the correct way.’

Attendees said they were disappointed not to see a number of attractions that had been advertised. These included an outdoor cinema, bar, foam party, Hey Duggee, two stages, a magician, Sonic, inflatables, a toddler area, Paw patrol characters, Buzz and Rex, and Anna and Elsa.

Amy White, who attended the event, said: ‘it looked like a great day and although the cost was high the free funfair all day meant that it should be cost effective as there were no tokens to buy. And with the other advertised activities it should have been a great day. But what was paid for was actually an empty field with a small stage on one side.

‘It appears this is not the first time this company have done this sort of terrible event planning as there was another Kids Party in the Park organised in another part of Hampshire which was cancelled with a week's notice and refunds did not get given to the customers for over a month.’

Sarah Griffiths, who also paid to attend the party, said ‘families were let down’ and the company ‘massively messed up parking’. She added: ‘Shocking is an understatement.’

Helen Durnford was also unhappy, adding: ‘This was an £80 family ticket and the experience we got to what was expected was far from the truth. Disgusted.’

Another attendee Donna Glyde said: ‘(It was) badly organised, falsely advertised and a kids singing group got kicked off the stage.’

Donella Ogilvie-Lees added: ‘Lots of unhappy people (including myself) who attended the event.’

The organiser said they were left with a ‘major issue’ after the staging company left them with a half-built main stage and no second stage and issues with the sound - with her having to pay for sound equipment.

The lack of a second stage which was ‘beyond our control’ meant some acts were not there, such as the magician. This meant there were also tensions over those due to be performing, with a woman who runs a children’s singing group and the organiser involved in a heated conversation during a Craig David tribute set on the main stage. ‘They were meant to be on the second stage and she wanted them to go on the main stage... I said they couldn’t go on there as that’s where the main artists were,’ the organiser said.

‘The woman (who then went on stage) then asked them to cut (the tribute act) short and she got the crowd to boo (the act).’

The organiser said the bar not turning up was also beyond their control.

The company also came under fire for an event in Basingstoke in April that was cancelled a week before it was due to take place due to a problem with the condition of the ground. But it was reportedly called off because the organisers failed to show how they would keep the public safe.

A spokeswoman for the event told The News last month: ‘Party in the Park has actually been running for seven years, it started as a community event and then at last years Portsmouth event, because it was an open event, we probably had 8,000 people come to Bransbury Park. I thought from an organisers point of view we had to put people’s safety as a priority so making it a ticketed event I know how many people are on site and at the of last years event, I put a post up to see what the community did and didn’t like and people said the fair was too expensive so by ticketing the event it means that the fun fair is free with the ticket.

‘The Hove event cancellation was down to ground conditions – everyone has been contacted, everyone has been told, refunds have been issued. We are in events and these things happen – one thing I don’t want to happen is this to ruin something that has been going on for seven years.

‘We will have a minimum of 10 characters walking around all day and it is generally just a really fun day to have with the family, we are looking forward to it.’

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