Parklife's hidden heroes show how one team makes big events work for residents

Roch Valley Radio visited the Maccabi Community Centre in Prestwich, where the Community Impact Team is operating from to support local residents during Parklife and Oasis

As Parklife 2025 draws tens of thousands of music fans to Heaton Park this weekend, and Oasis for several nights in July, a highly dedicated team is working behind the scenes from a nearby control centre to protect residents, manage complaints, and provide rapid responses to any concerns raised.

Based at the Maccabi Centre in Prestwich, the Community Impact Team (CIT) operates with remarkable commitment. First introduced in 2015 as part of Parklife’s licensing agreement with Manchester City Council, the CIT brings together Greater Manchester Police, Bury Council’s traffic enforcement and licensing teams, PES security, and Parklife’s residents’ support and complaints line.

Roch Valley Radio was invited to the control room, where we saw first hand how the team operates in real time during the Catfish and the Bottlemen concert, receiving and logging complaints, deploying enforcement officers, and, most importantly, calling residents back with updates to show their concerns have been taken seriously.

Councillor Alan Quinn, from Bury Council, who has been instrumental in shaping and supporting the team’s work, praised the individuals behind the operation. “Every complaint is logged and followed up. We’re not just here to tick boxes,” he said. “We’ve got brilliant people here who genuinely care. When someone rings up with a problem, this team listens, responds, and makes sure the resident knows they’ve been heard.”

With around 13,000 traffic cones, approximately 23,000 parking permits, and hundreds of large waste bins and portable toilets, the team manages a significant and complex logistical operation.

Noise monitoring remains a key focus, with independent acoustic consultants confirming that levels stayed within agreed thresholds over Parklife 2024. “We’ve invested in making sure we do this properly,” a team member explained.

While noise levels at agreed monitoring points remained within the permitted threshold, the team acknowledges that under certain weather conditions, sound can travel far beyond the immediate area. Atmospheric phenomena such as temperature inversions and wind direction can carry bass frequencies for several kilometres.

In previous years, this has resulted in clusters of genuine complaints from places like Chadderton and other outlying areas, where residents reported clearly hearing music despite living miles from the site. 

Last year, staging at Parklife was relocated to reduce impact on surrounding areas. This year, additional acoustic improvements have been made, along with measures to protect the park’s grass and layout from prolonged infrastructure installation.

The CIT model has become a blueprint for urban event management across the UK. Created in 2015, it was expanded in 2017 with the launch of the Parklife Community Fund, which supports local initiatives in areas most affected by the festival.

“This model is now seen as one of the most robust of its kind for urban music festivals,” said Cllr Quinn. “It raises the bar for accountability and gives local people a way to engage directly with those running the show.”

The team’s work doesn’t stop when Parklife ends. With Oasis scheduled to perform a series of sold-out reunion concerts in Heaton Park this July, the CIT will remain fully operational throughout supporting residents.

Unlike Parklife, Oasis concerts will follow set start and finish times, with crowds arriving and leaving in a much tighter window. In preparation, Bury Council confirmed earlier this week that some schools near the park will finish early on concert days to ease congestion and reduce disruption for families.

Cllr Quinn said maintaining the same level of care and coordination is vital. “The demands with Oasis will be different, and each day will end with a debrief on what works, what doesn't work and what will change, but the principle remains the same: protect residents, manage traffic and minimise disruption. This team will stay in place because it works.”

The Community Impact Team will continue to operate across both Parklife and the Oasis concerts, delivering consistent support, visibility, and responsiveness for residents across Bury and Greater Manchester during one of the busiest periods of the summer.

You can visit the dedicated website here for more information: https://www.parkliferesidents.org/ 

Parklife travel: What you need to know if you're heading to Heaton Park this weekend. https://www.rochvalleyradio.com/news/local-entertainment/parklife-travel-what-you-need-to-know-if-youre-heading-to-heaton-park-this-weekend/