Slam Dunk Festival issues important update amid bad weather

The rock, pop-punk and emo festival is being held today at Temple Newsam, just outside Leeds city centre, with performances from acts including You Me At Six, All-American Rejects and I Prevail.

Shortly before 10am today, the festival issued a statement on social media - a couple of hours before a Met Office warning for thunderstorms in West Yorkshire started.

The statement said: "Having assessed the ground conditions for Slam Dunk north, we are sorry to inform you that due to the weather, the ground is in bad condition.

"While the event is going ahead, we cannot guarantee our access customers the experience that we had hoped.

"Although access facilities including platforms and ambulant areas are still available and customers can still attend, we advise that those with mobility issues avoid the site."

The statement confirmed that refunds would be available.

Earlier, at 9am, the festival issued a statement saying the site had suffered "a lot of rain" ahead of the event, "with possibly more set to come".

"We advise festival-goers to pack for all weather conditions, including sensible footwear for the day," it added.

It also said organisers had decided to close all car parks on the site, and all advance parking passes would be refunded.

"We now advise that customers travelling with car parking passes now seek parking in Leeds city centre and make alternative arrangements to the festival site," the statement went on.

Slam Dunk said it would arrange for additional shuttle bus services to the site, free of charge for those with car parking tickets.

"We are extremely saddened to have to make this decision after all the additional plans we have put in place which were proved successful yesterday in Hatfield (the southern leg of the festival), but our customer safety is paramount," the statement said. 

"We apologise for the inconvenience, we ask that you be patient, and we thank you in advance for your co-operation."