A music promoter says he is “fuming” after his ska music festival was turned down for financial support by the local council amid claims it isn’t diverse enough.

Mark Simpson approached Redcar and Cleveland Council last month for help with the costs of the Blam Blam Fever festival, which is taking place in a number of venues in Redcar this weekend.

Mr Simpson requested a grant of £3,900 after some of his sponsors pulled out, but the council declined the application.

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It said an open funding process was being devised that would open in late autumn for small scale support grants – too late for Blam Blam Fever and Mr Simpson.

The Northern Echo: Music promoter Mark Simpson, left, and a flier for his 'Blam Blam Fever' festival in RedcarMusic promoter Mark Simpson, left, and a flier for his 'Blam Blam Fever' festival in Redcar (Image: LDRS)

He said Blam Blam Fever, which is in its fourth year with all profits given over to Redcar RNLI, was the only live music festival in Redcar and had the biggest weekend line-up of any ska event in the UK this year.

In an e-mail sharing his reaction he said he had also “jumped through hoops” at the request of the council previously to create a community interest company (CIC) in order to access funding and had been “led a merry dance”.

He said: “They really don’t want tourism coming to Redcar, which I find unfathomable.”

The 52-year-old sat down with the Local Democracy Reporting Service and described how year-on-year the festival had doubled in size with plans afoot to twin with another ska festival in Germany – ‘Freedom Sounds’ in Cologne.

He said: “It’s a win-win situation for everybody, we encourage tourism not just nationally, but internationally.

“People come back again when they’ve been to this festival, you see them during the year and that’s great for the town.

“We started in February initially, but changed it to the summer because of covid and it just mushroomed and went bang.

“We sell every hotel out from Staithes all the way to Middlesbrough and you can’t get a bed for love or money.”

More than 30 acts are taking part in this year’s event with the headliner The Beat featuring Rankin Jnr.

Previous performers include Bad Manners and The Christians.

Up to 800 people are expected to attend throughout Friday and Saturday, along with more than 200 musicians.

Venues include Coatham Memorial Hall, O’Gradys, the Cleveland Hotel, The Halt, the Gypsy Rover bar and Kenzies.

Mr Simpson said: “In previous years we’ve had people coming from Hamburg, Venlo in Holland, and we have a band, the Blue Beaters, from Italy, who played to 25,000 people the night before the Eurovision Song Contest.

“They go back and speak about Redcar and the warmth and friendliness.

“No matter where you go now people will talk about the ska scene in Redcar – we are right up there with the big hitters.”

He said some sponsors pulling out had “dropped him in it a little bit”, but amid a cost of living crisis he totally understood their decisions.

“We always cut it fine financially, but that’s because we like to invest in really good bands – it’s a fine line that you walk with it,” he said.

“Last year the council did provide us with £3,000 for things we wanted to do to make it more sustainable, but that was the only funding we’ve ever had off them.

“To expand costs you money, the facilities have to be better, you have to advertise it and market it more.

“We’ve had to lose a venue this year because of the financial restrictions I have got and the council money would have helped with booking out hotel rooms for band members.”

Mr Simpson went on: “The council is being very short sighted for what the festival brings to businesses here.

“The people we bring in will spend money in the pubs, restaurants, shops and on taxis, you can be looking at up to £500 per person, it’s a lot of money, and about 85% of people who come here are travelling from elsewhere in the country.”

He added: “I was going to move it this year and have been approached by other local authorities.

“To not back it and to not even come round and see what we are doing, which they [the council] never have done, it baffles me.

“I had one meeting with a councillor with me two or three months ago and was told if I was CIC I could apply for funding pots, they were giving me inklings the funding was there.

“Then after they had an emergency meeting apparently there wasn’t any funding.

“They stated they won’t support any music events with the money that they are allocating being for family events and arts and crafts, which doesn’t help the night-time or day-time economy.

“I’d like them to be more involved the council, but you don’t get any feedback, it’s a closed book unless they are involved with something themselves.

“They class the event as not being diverse enough, which I don’t get, we encourage people from every type of ethnic minority to come and the band that I managed was The Equators – they are all black.”

‘Seems to be whose face fits’

Redcar councillor Billy Wells, who along with Councillor Mike Lockwood unsuccessfully approached council leader Mary Lanigan for help on Mr Simpson’s behalf, said the festival could be lost to Redcar and Cleveland and go elsewhere.

Cllr Wells said: “This brings hundreds of people into Redcar, yet the council says it has got no money.

“They say the Ska festival isn’t diverse enough, but you can’t get any more diverse.

“Every business and guest house gets something out of it when it’s on, people come from all over the place, yet we can’t give them a few grand.”

Cllr Wells said the decision to turn down Mr Simpson had been made by officers with no consultation with members which “made a mockery of democracy”.

The council said it valued the festival’s contribution to the local music scene and was committed to providing advice and guidance in terms of the business development model for the event.

It said relevant councillors had been kept informed of the decision not to offer financial support to the festival at this time.

A spokesman said: “The council fully supports and welcomes all kinds of festivals and events which make our borough such a vibrant place to live and visit. 

“We currently don’t have a funding round open however, we will have a small grants round coming up this autumn which if applicable organisations can apply to and the organiser will be notified when this is available for applications.

“Council officers have worked with the festival organiser to offer business planning support and will continue with this support. 

“We hope to continue our dialogue with the ska festival organisers in future and wish it every success.”

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