Closed Newcastle parks cafes were 'haemorrhaging' money, council saysNewcastle City Council has recently shut down its cafes in Exhibition Park and Paddy Freeman's and told politicians this week that the "demand just was not there" to justify keeping them openView 2 Images The council-run café in Exhibition Park has now closed (Image: ChronicleLive)Two Newcastle park cafes were “haemorrhaging” money and had to be shut down, council bosses have insisted. City officials have defended the controversial move to close the cafes in both Exhibition Park and Paddy Freeman’s park. Newcastle City Council director Christine Herriot told councillors this week that the decision was about “stopping the haemorrhaging of money” – with the Exhibition Park cafe expected to generate a cost to the public purse of £177,300 for 2025/26 and Paddy Freeman’s cafe £19,700. ‌View 2 Images The Park Cafe in Paddy Freeman’s Park, Newcastle. People in my ward would not want to be subsidising cafes on the other side of the city to them.

Source: Daily Mirror March 05, 2026 21:50 UTC