THE organisers of Remembrance Day parades in Ludlow and other towns in south Shropshire will not have to pay for road closures after all.

Shropshire Council had intended to impose a charge even for events of this type, but after complaints about the proposal, they have made a u-turn and scrapped the plan.

Now the charge will only be made for commercial events.

However, it will still increase the cost of activities like the Ludlow May Fair and the annual town centre run, if these are deemed by the Council to be commercial events.

“We were shocked by Shropshire Council proposals to charge for street closures for not-for-profit, community and Remembrance parades.” said Andy Boddington, Shropshire councillor for Ludlow North, which includes the town centre.

In June 2022, the Place Overview Committee recommended that costs should be recovered from commercial organisations but not from not-for-profit organisations, such as charity and community-led events. Administration of a road closure costs from £100 to several thousand pounds for complex events. But the officer report presented to cabinet went a lot further than the original recommendations by the Place Overview Committee.

However, the Council has backtracked and said it is not charging for Remembrance or charity events.

“That’s good news,” added Mr Boddington.

“I am puzzled about how the paper proposing charges for not-for-profit events got on the cabinet agenda in the first place.”