COLCHESTER Council has come under fire after an investigation by the Gazette discovered a charity was charged almost £900 to close a road for one hour.
Colchester Pride, the registered charity which organised Colchester’s last Pride march, was charged £876 to close the route of the march for just 60 minutes, the Gazette can reveal.
The parade, which is centred around High Street, is set to return to the city centre in less than two weeks, meaning another steep bill for the organisation.
A Freedom of Information request discovered the organisers of this year’s Colchester Half Marathon were not charged a penny to close the city’s streets because the event was organised by a registered charity.
The discrepancy exists because road closures for sporting events are processed by Essex County Council, while Colchester Council processes road closures for other events like Pride.
'It's disgusting'
Despite the involvement of two separate authorities, Colchester Council’s decision to charge charities for road closures has been criticised.
Pride supporter Tom Stock said: “As a member of the queer community fundraising throughout the year I think it’s disgusting a registered charity like Colchester Pride has to pay a fee to the council to have a march on the High Street; especially when sporting events don’t get the same treatment and get their fees waived.”
What does the council say?
Colchester Council insisted its charges are fair.
“We charge a consistent fee for road closures, regardless of whether the organisation is a charity or not,” a spokesman said.
“This is because we deploy staff to manage the closures, provide equipment, and use vehicles. These activities can take up a lot of our officers’ time and come with costs, particularly at weekends.
“However, we understand that road closures can be a financial burden for charities, which is why we keep our charges as low as possible.
“We also understand that some people may be surprised to hear that we charge charities, but we believe it is fair. We charge our own companies an in-house fee, so it is only logical that we charge other organisations as well.”
A council-owned company was charged £1,200 to close High Street for the switching on of the city’s Christmas lights.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel