The 16-year-old boy who died at Leeds Festival has been named as David Celino, as his family pay tribute to the ‘beautiful, fiercely independent’ teen.
David, from Worsley in Salford, was taken to hospital from the huge music festival on Saturday night but tragically died in the early hours of Sunday.
An investigation has been launched into what West Yorkshire Police officers believe is a drugs-related death.
One line of enquiry suggests he had taken a type of ecstasy (MDMA) which was described as a grey or black oblong shape.
David’s ‘broken’ family said he had just celebrated ‘fabulous GCSE results’ and considered Leeds Festival to be the highlight of his summer.
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David Celino died after being taken ill at Leeds Festival. Credit: Official Reading and Leeds Festival
In a statement released through the police, they said: “Our David was a beautiful, fiercely independent and warm character who lived every day at 110% and who loved to spend time enjoying music with his friends.
“He had just received fabulous GCSE results, got into college, and had hoped to study computer science at a top university.
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“Leeds Festival was the highlight of his summer; ultimately it was to take his life in the most unfair, cruel and horrible way, and we are broken.”
His family, who have requested privacy, are being supported by the force and police enquiries are ongoing.
Officers were first called at about 10.16pm on Saturday 27 August to reports that a 16-year-old male had been taken to the medical tent.
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Assistant Chief Constable Catherine Hankinson of West Yorkshire Police, said: “Our thoughts are with the family of the boy who has died, and we have officers supporting them at this very difficult time.
“While the exact cause of his death is yet to be established, one line of enquiry is that he had taken a particular type of ecstasy (MDMA) tablet, which was described as a grey or black oblong shape.
Credit: Official Reading and Leeds Festival
“At this moment in time this is believed to be an isolated incident as we have not received any similar reports.
“Users of any drug which is not professionally prescribed can never be sure of their contents and the risks involved with taking the substance.
“Anyone who does feel ill after taking any substance should seek urgent medical attention.
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“We are continuing to conduct enquiries on site and are liaising closely with the event organisers.”
Featured image: Official Reading and Leeds Festival / WYP
News
Greater Manchester officially launches five-year climate change action plan
Danny Jones
Greater Manchester has officially begun its five-year climate change action plan, with the overarching goal of becoming a net-zero city region by 2038.
The comprehensive pledge put together over a number of years itself will see Manchester City Council and the nearby local authorities put into action a number of key measures that will help to reduce not only central carbon figures but, eventually, across the 10 boroughs in turn.
Over the last 15 years, emissions have been reduced by approximately 64%, saving an estimated 44,344 tonnes of carbon through cleaner building energy, street lighting and other electronics, as well as the increasingly green and over-growing Bee Network.
They have also insisted that it isn’t just about cutting down on greenhouse gases; the aim is to make the city region and the surrounding areas more sustainable, affordable and create a better standard of life.
Our five-year plan to tackle climate change launches today. 🌏
It details how we’ll continue to deliver dramatic reductions in the amount of carbon we emit (the biggest contributor to climate change). 🏙️
As per the summary on the Council website, in addition to creating more efficient homes, they’re hoping to provide more access to nature and good-quality green space, “public transport you can rely on”, and “better health and wellbeing for those who live, work, study and visit here.”
With a steadily recovering local and national economy (touch wood), they’re also hoping for an influx of new jobs, too.
Summarising the key bullet points leading up to the end of the decade, these are the next steps currently outlined by the Council:
Lower carbon emissions
Grow the use of renewable energy
Improve low-carbon travel in the city
Improve air quality
Grow the city’s natural environment and boost biodiversity
Improve resilience to flooding and extreme heat
Engage and involve our workforce and our city’s communities
Reduce waste and grow reuse, repair, sharing and recycling
Support a move to a more circular economy
Minimise the negative impact of events held in the city
Develop our knowledge of our indirect emissions and lower them
Create a green financing strategy and explore new funding models for the city
Influence the environmental practices of other organisations
As for emissions, the target is now to drop the present output by another 34%, which will prevent almost 43,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO₂) from being pumped into the atmosphere.
Having touched upon the continued expansion of the Bee Network infrastructure, Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) is also set to install multiple new travel links over the coming years, including both new tram stops and train stations – further
You can read the climate action plan in full HERE.
Manchester’s firework displays are ‘back with a bang’ as they return from 2026
Emily Sergeant
Council-organised firework displays in Manchester’s parks are set to return from next year, it has been confirmed.
You may remember that these once-popular events have not been held since 2019, as the COVID-19 pandemic initially prevented them from taking place from 2020 onwards, and then following that, they remained paused on a trial basis while the Manchester City Council sought to ‘reprioritise funding’ to support a wider range of free community events across the city.
But now, as it seems, the door was never shut on their potential return.
An ‘improved financial position’ now means that the Council is in a position to bring firework events back, while also still continuing to support other community events.
Papers setting out the Council’s financial position show that fairer funding being introduced by the Government next year will leave the Council better off than previously anticipated, he the reason firework displays have been brought back into the mix.
The Council has admitted that ‘pressures remain’ after so many years of financial cuts, but this new funding creates the opportunity to invest in the things residents have said matter the most to them.
“Manchester prides itself on free community events and we know many people have missed Bonfire night firework spectaculars,” commented Cllr Bev Craig, who is the Leader of Manchester City Council.
“That’s why we are pleased to confirm they’ll be back by popular demand in 2026.
“We know that generations of Mancunians have enjoyed Council-organised displays and that free family events are a great way to bring people together… [and] now that this Government is actually investing in Councils like ours rather than the cuts we had since 2010, we can bring back Bonfire events.”
Daisy Jackson -
29th August 2022 
