A SERIES of concerts held at Caldicot Castle last summer led to losses of £140,000 of taxpayers’ money, the Free Press can reveal.

The castle hosted five gigs – including the high-profile Little Mix concert – within a nine-day period in July to boost tourism in Monmouthshire.

Increased spending on security by Monmouthshire County Council in the wake of the Manchester bombing, together with low ticket sales, have been blamed for the shortfall.

Councillors had been told of the losses by the local authority’s chief officer for regeneration and culture, Kellie Beirne.

Responding to questions of the council’s commercial failures, Ms Beirne said: “It’s going to be reported that we lost £140,000.

“Yes, that puts a dent in public money. But there’s another thing that puts a dent in public money and that’s the cost of failure, indecision and caution and that figure is never reported but that does have an impact.”

More than 15,000 Little Mix fans saw the girl group perform on July 13 as part of the council’s “diverse and dynamic” programme of events at Caldicot Castle.

Ms Beirne told the Argus that the event was a “commercial success” that came at a heavy cost of the council and the public purse.

“We had to invest in infrastructure, and to put in as much as possible to maximise the potential economic benefits,” said Ms Beirne.

“But unfortunately, the atrocities in Manchester meant that we had to redouble our efforts to step up security.”

From July 3 vehicular access to the castle’s country park was restricted as the events team worked hard to make the area safe.

Armed police were drafted in to help with security, together with extra fencing, barriers, and road closures in and around the site.

“This had a big financial impact,” said Ms Beirne.

Four concerts were held at the castle either side of Little Mix – the Retroactive Festival, Rusty Shackle, Ocean Colour Scene and Only Men Aloud.

But their combined takings failed to reach the council’s expectations, leading to further overspends.

“Some of the smaller event didn’t sell as many tickets and didn’t create return on investment,” added Ms Beirne.

The chief officer said that the council are already making headway in mitigating the deficit, with the final financial psotiion expected to be announced in the next financial year.

“The true figure will then be known but this will clearly be contextualised within the Council’s wider financial outturn position,” said Ms Beirne.

“But these were safe events, which was the priority after Manchester. I feel we created an opportunity for the community, to put Monmouthshire on the map and raise its profile.

“We know that the events created a massive economic return to the wider community. Local pubs and hotels all benefited as a result.”

Concerns remain amongst some Caldicot residents over the lack of high-profile events in place at the castle this year.

According to Ms Beirne, Monmouthshire County Council have received offers to host “major” events in the future.

But the chief officer stressed that no decisions will be made until a pending review into how the local authority handles events is completed.

The review is expected to go before the council’s audit committee in the coming weeks.