Please ensure you have fully read and understood the following terms and conditions. These are your responsibilities as the hirer when booking park booking sites.

All Christchurch City Council park bylaws [PDF, 713 KB] must be complied with.

Please carry your event confirmation with you. If you have any issues, please ring the 24-hour contact centre at 03 941 8999 or 0800 800 169 to be connected to the duty ranger.

Our parks are public spaces

  • Public access must be maintained at all times.
  • Vehicles are only allowed on park roads. They may not be on the grass. 
  • Other non-related activities may occur within or near the booked area during your period of use.
  • Gas barbeques situated in Council parks and reserves are not included in a park booking and are first-come, first-served. Please respect the rights of other park users and ensure that the barbecues are made available after use.
  • Mobile food vendors may be hired for an event, provided they only cater for that event and do not sell to the public. No other mobile vendors or commercial enterprises are permitted to make sales.
  • You may hold a food fundraiser if it complies with Government guidelines.

In keeping with the natural setting

  • There are no rubbish bins in most parks, so all groups will need to supply their rubbish bags and take their rubbish away.
  • No bouncy castles or mechanical amusement devices are allowed for casual park bookings.
  • No events which take place in Council Parks are permitted to drive stakes or pegs into the ground unless previously approved by the Council.

To ensure everyone’s safety and enjoyment

  • You accept responsibility for leaving the booked area clean and tidy after use and for any damage to the booked area.
  • Any damage is to be repaired to the satisfaction of the Christchurch City Council.
  • No fires are permitted at any park or beach. This applies all year round. Except you may bring a portable gas fired barbeque to the park. 
  • The organisers shall absolve the Council from any liability whatsoever relating to the booking of the above area.

Vehicles and trailers

  • No vehicles are allowed off park roads, such as on the grass.
  • BBQ trailers are allowed with permission from the park manager. There is no access permitted for BBQ trailers in Halswell Quarry or Victoria Park.
  • To release a locked-in vehicle, call the contact centre on 03 941 8999 or 0800 800 169.

Park maintenance

Whilst we make every effort to ensure that the public toilets are usable, we cannot guarantee that they will always be operational for your event.

Cancellations

  • Cancellations made before 48 hours of the event commencement will receive a full refund. 
  • If you cancel the booking within 48 hours of the event, the full hire fee will apply unless there are exceptional circumstances, such as park closure.  We encourage you to check the weather forecast before this time and have an indoor backup venue in case of bad weather. 
  • The Christchurch City Council reserves the right to cancel any bookings due to circumstances beyond its control.

Further conditions and information

Contact John Hoskin, 03 389 3584 to arrange permission.

Chair hire is available at $2 each.

Power is available from 4 power points at the Glasshouse. You will need your own extension.

Vehicle access is restricted. To arrange vehicle access to the car park use the contact details above. Please note there is a speed limit of 20kph.

Parking for Picnic Area 3 is located behind this Picnic Area, off Heyders Road. 

Please do not park inside Spencer Park.

Pedestrian access to Picnic Area 3 is through a gap in the Macrocarpa hedge.

The fireplace in the shelter at Sign of the Bellbird cannot be used under any circumstances.

Generators and/or amplified music are not permitted.

Fires are strictly prohibited from all Christchurch beaches and coastlines due to the danger to sand dune plantings and of sparks blowing inland and causing a fire along the dunes.

This applies all year.

Gatherings are limited to no more than ten people so as not to interfere with other casual users of the Pier.

Where possible events should not occur for two hours on either side of high tide to prevent conflict with other users, such as fishermen.

If a PA system is to be used, please direct it towards the estuary and regulate the volume to ensure there is no inconvenience to local residents.

Access to, or use of, South Brighton Motor Campgrounds and facilities is not permitted.