A number of Nottinghamshire Live readers have voiced their frustration at the timing of celebrations in Old Market Square. A special event is due to be hosted at 1pm on Monday (May 30) in Nottingham city centre, where Nottingham Forest players and club officials will be showing off the Championship play-off winners trophy.
It comes after Nottingham Forest secured promotion to the Premier League, and will play in the top flight of English football for the first time in 23 years. The Reds beat Huddersfield Town 1-0 at Wembley in the play-off final on Sunday (May 29).
To celebrate, the event was organised so fans could hear from and celebrate with those responsible for bringing that success, and fans are advised to arrive no earlier than 11.30am. Some Nottinghamshire Live readers posted on Facebook that the timing of the event should be different, taking into account those working during the day.
But Nottingham City Council says the celebration falls on the first day of the school half-term holiday and is designed to be a family event, and that it is expected to be very popular with road closures and diversions put in place, plus some temporary changes to bus services. The event will also be live-streamed.
Read more: Forest fans pour onto the streets of Nottingham and London to celebrate unforgettable win
Cari-Anne Mitchell posted: "This is our team and it should be later on, the fans deserve to be there, 1pm what's that all about ? Why not 6 when most people won't be working, it’s terrible."
Suzanne Hulme posted: "It's a long bank holiday, why not do it Thursday, Friday or Saturday, so most are off and if not, people can book it off and businesses can close if they want to due to staff shortages or just to take part."
Geoff Wilson posted: "Joke! What a stupid time to do it! People at work and with appointments. Doing it at 6pm/7pm would've given bars and restaurants in the city a huge boost."
Karen Norman posted: "OK for the ones that don't work."
Labour Councillor David Mellen, who represents the Dales ward and is leader of Nottingham City Council, said: "This is simply a wonderful moment for Nottingham and we hope many Forest supporters, their families and city residents are able to join the players outside the Council House tomorrow. For those who unfortunately can't attend, the event will be live-streamed.
"We are absolutely thrilled that Forest secured promotion - it means a huge amount to the city after more than two decades outside the top flight. On behalf of the council, I'd like to congratulate Steve Cooper, his players and staff, the club’s board and owners, plus the wonderful supporters who travelled down to north-west London in their thousands to represent our proud city.
"We must recognise Huddersfield, too, who played so well on the day. This is a huge moment for Nottingham.
"We said last week that, beyond the sheer pride and joy that promotion brings, having a team in the Premier League offers the local economy an estimated £120m boost. We expect it could lead to an extra 100,000 people coming to the city as visiting football fans, as well as an increase in national reputation helping to attract students applying to our two universities and people looking for holiday breaks, along with extra spend by Premier League club staff and players."
