Bowland Wild Boar Park seeks approval for wedding venue set up without permission
One of Lancashire’s most popular family attractions has set up a wedding venue without the correct permission.
Management at Bowland Wild Boar Park have been visited by council enforcement officers and are now seeking retrospective permission to use five tipis as a wedding venue in a “secluded” area of the park for up to 200 guests, alongside an associated toilet block and creation of hardstanding.
They say it is a sustainable development and will boost tourism in the area.
In a statement to Ribble Valley Borough Council, agents PWA Planning say: “The applicant initially erected the tipis on site to try and gain interest from potential customers who would be looking to hold their weddings at the venue, so they could understand the level of business that the venue would generate, to determine if it was a worthwhile investment.”
The tipis were erected lawfully given they are a temporary structure; however, they were left up for longer than the permitted 28 days. A website for the wedding business, called Bowland Tipis, was created in 2023 and promises a “magical wedding experience” with packages from £4,500.
Close to AONB and ancient woodland
The agent states that the venue can accommodate up to 150 day guests and 200 evening guests and that the structures “provide a unique setting for weddings, adding to the charm of the venue, which is further enhanced by views of the AONB (Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty) beyond the site and the neighbouring ancient woodland that screens views of the tipis themselves.”
They say that the outdoor toilets and wooden picnic tables offer “minimal massing,” and are removable. In addition, the weddings would only take place between April and October and would be dismantled and removed from the site for the remainder of the year, apart from small periods to allow for open days, wedding fayres, and for events such as a Santas Grotto on an ad hoc basis.
Noise and light
The weddings are to run alongside an external catering company that will travel to the site on wedding days to cater for the event. The tipis will have an onsite, licenced, permanent bar.
Agents add: “Given the site is within fairly close proximity to the holiday accommodation, the weddings will finish at 11:30pm, with all guests leaving by 12am at the latest. On that basis, all live music and DJs will need to finish playing music by 11:30pm. Guests will not be able to have a firework display at the wedding to limit noise and any potential impacts this could have on the animals kept at the Wild Boar Park.”
They add that a lighting assesment has concluded that “there will be minimal lighting over the wider development site and no overspill light. As such no significant adverse impact on the neighbouring properties including the camping site to the south will be experienced.”
A decision will be made by Ribble Valley Borough Council planning chiefs in coming weeks.