A park churned up and damaged by a controversial music festival will not be fully repaired until next summer, the council has said.

Hainault Forest Country Park hosted We Are Halloween, a one-day music festival, on October 26.

Heavy rain during the event caused the ground to be churned up by revellers and heavy vehicles.

The continuing wet conditions have prevented Redbridge Council, who sanctioned the event, and organisers We Are FSTVL from beginning the “planned remedial work”.

The hoardings – temporary boarded fences – are still up and the heavily damaged site is cordoned off from the public.

East London and West Essex Guardian Series: East London and West Essex Guardian Series:

The site remains damaged following We Are Halloween music festival on October 26.

The festival caused controversy earlier this year, after Epping Forest residents bordering the park complained they had not been consulted on the plans by Redbridge Council.

Redbridge Council says, prior to sanctioning the event, it agreed a “comprehensive” clean-up arrangement with the organisers but did not disclose the details.

When questioned, the council did not confirm or deny whether We Are FSTVL would have to pay damages.

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Hoardings remain in place around the site of the festival

Redbridge’s park and spaces are run by Vision Redbridge Culture and Leisure (Vision RCL).

Vision RCL’s chief executive, Iain Varah, was appointed a chief council officer in 2004.

As a chief officer he was responsible for the creation of Vision RCL as a sport and leisure trust that has managed the borough’s sports and leisure facilities since April 2007.

A Vision RCL spokesperson said: “Returning this area of the park to its pre-event state is part of the agreement with the organiser and remains a priority.

“Extensive protective measures were put in place however heavy rain during the event meant some damage occurred. Continuing wet weather means it has not been possible to progress with the required remedial work as quickly as planned.

“Once we have a dry spell, we expect significant progress to be made very quickly, including levelling and re-seeding the affected area.

“We would like to thank visitors to the park for their patience and understanding whilst we work hard with the organisers to get the ground back to its best, which we expect will be early next summer.”

We Are FSTVL did not respond to comment.