Parklife boss Sacha Lord has resigned from his position as Manchester nightlife advisor and has been ordered to pay back £400k to the government.Lord – the former Parklife and Warehouse Project boss – stepped down from his role as the Night Time Economy Adviser for Greater Manchester last night (January 28), having been appointed by Mayor Andy Burnham back in 2018.According to Manchester Evening News, following his resignation, the Arts Council withdrew £401,928 in a COVID grant that was awarded to Primary Event Solutions – a company owned by Lord – and is seeking the money back.
Their decision to pull the grant following a review came at the same time that Lord had announced his departure from his role.A post shared by Sacha Lord (@sacha_lord)Primary Event Solutions had received the grant from the Culture Recovery Fund, administered by the Arts Council during the pandemic.
The company was shut down back in 2023.As reported by BBC, Lord shared that the funds had been used appropriately but there had been “a small number of unintended oversights”.
He also explained that he was “concerned over inconsistencies and a lack of proportionality” in how the review was handled, adding: “The length of time taken to bring the matter to a close raises cause for concern and these delays have taken a significant, personal toll on myself and my family.”He shared that this had taken a toll on his family life, saying that it has been “deeply troubling” and “only reinforced the importance of protecting and spending more time with my loved ones during this period of my life as a new father”.He continued: “I am incredibly proud of what we have achieved as a city-region – earning recognition as the night-time capital of the UK, ranking eighth.