'Big Weekend will be huge success for whole town'

The last Radio 1 Big Weekend was held in Dundee in 2023

Local people have attended a council drop-in event ahead of BBC Radio 1's Big Weekend.

Luton Borough Council estimates the festival, headlined by Coldplay, Raye and Chase & Status, could bring £4m to the town's economy.

About 100,000 tickets have been sold for the spectacle, which will be held at Stockwood Park in the town on 24-26 May.

Gerard McCleave, the authority's corporate director for inclusive economy, was at the meeting at the Stockwood Discovery Centre. He praised the preparation work by the BBC and his own council.

Gerald McCleave said the council would work to ensure the event was a "huge success" for the town

"We will continue to work with with residents right up to the event and afterwards to make sure it's a huge success not just for everyone attending, but for Luton as a whole," said Mr McCleave.

"This isn't just about the 35,000 people each day that are going to come to Luton, this is about the 225,000 people in Luton who are going to benefit from this."

Amy O'Callaghan said everyone she spoke to about the event was excited about it

Amy O'Callaghan, 35, from Luton, said: "I think it's really exciting.

"I just live down the road and I can't believe that I'm going to see some of my favourite acts just up my road.

"It's reassuring to come to events like this and to see the council genuinely engaging with people's problems."

James Taylor said he was very excited for the Big Weekend to come to Luton

Labour councillor James Taylor, the portfolio holder for regeneration and exclusive growth, said: "It's a big event and we know there's going to be some disruption for people and we've never tried to shy away from that."

A few weeks ago it was announced that two schools, Dallow Primary School and Chiltern Academy, would close due to "significant road closures" caused by the event.

Mr Taylor said: "We're doing our best to minimise and mitigate that as best we can, so if people are concerned about whether they can have their visitors to come and stay with them for the weekend or if they're going to be able to get their food delivery or carer, we're doing absolutely everything we can to try and accommodate that."

He said there would be a free parking permit for residents and that 40% of tickets had gone to Luton residents.

Chris Williams went to the event at the Stockwood Discovery Centre cafe to find out about parking permits

Chris Williams, 77, lives close to the park and said: "It's great for the town, the town needs a boost and I'm very positive about it."

He said he attended the drop-in to find out about the "knock-on" effects and felt it was "well under control".

Dorothy Cooper said if needs be she "can stay at home all weekend"

Dorothy Cooper, 66, believed the event would "put Luton in a good light" but she was worried about people being able to get in and out of their homes.

She said the information needed to be out there "as soon as possible".