A CHELMSFORD woman has hit out at the organisers of a "shambolic" fun day after her charity stall lost money at the event.

Police were called to angry scenes at Kidz Fest at Orsett Showground on Saturday after parents turned on organisers to demand refunds.

Families paid up to £36 for tickets to enjoy castles made out of cardboard boxes and other ‘homemade’ attractions.

One of the activities on offer, according to a stallholder, was a ‘circus skills workshop’ made up of “a piece of string and batons lying on the ground”.

Around 100 furious parents confronted organisers Winter Fest in a confrontation that turned ugly, leading Essex Police to be called to the event.

Scenes of chaos included police being called to the theft of a cash tin, which onlookers said led to a tug-of-war between organisers and vendors.

Onlookers said event manager Tomo Kembery tried to claim he was not in charge, leading the crowd to get more angry.

Mr Kembery issued an apology today after fuming parents and stall holders took to Facebook to express their outrage over the weekend, and promised “refunds were being processed”.

One Chelmsford-based stallholder who paid £35 to attend the event in the hope of making money for her favourite charity, but lost money, said she was “fuming”.

Peige Greensted, 23, of Pembroke Place, who regularly runs stalls for Amy and Friends, a charity for children with Crohns disease, said: “It was really upsetting. I work four different jobs and I got up to lose money on my day off.

“I was told it would be ten times bigger than it was. He even let people book on Sunday after he knew it was cancelled. He personally hasn’t contacted any of us to apologise.

“The advertisement was totally different to what he put on. He assured me there would be at least 3,000 people and only 1,000 turned up. And no-one wanted to spend money because they were so annoyed."

Claire Gibson, 42, of Chestnut Avenue, Grays, who works as an administrative assistant and took her three children to the event, said they felt "totally robbed".

She said: "It was a disgrace. The whole thing was shambolic. There were only four toilets which were filthy, no shade, no baby change facilities. We spent well in excess of £120 for a glorified school fete! There were so many angry parents and upset children."

Kayleigh Lang-Mundy, 30, of Berberis Close, Langdon Hills, booked tickets for four children to go on Sunday, but was told by Mr Kembery it had been cancelled.

Mrs Lang-Mundy, who has a two-year-old daughter, said: “I think we had a lucky escape really. Neighbours of ours went who had spent £100 on tickets – they turned around and went home after 20 minutes.

“When I asked for our refunds, he was unbelievably rude. He swore at me in his email, using the f-word, and told me I was no longer welcome to come to his events.

"I was shocked. People like that should not be allowed to run children’s events.”

Iain Webb, 40, of Winchmore Hall, who had travelled all the way from London with his two kids, 6 and 8, after buying discounted Groupon £9 tickets, labelled it “shambolic”.

He said: “It was just really annoying. We travelled for an hour and a half to get there and there was a cardboard castle with paintbrushes to decorate it, a free arts and crafts stall and you could hold a guinea pig and rabbit. That was it.

“My kids couldn’t understand why they would do that to kids.

“We were expecting a full day of things to do. Every single person there felt they had been misled. We ended up spending a lot of money.

“When my kids saw the ‘castle’ they just thought it was rubbish left lying in the middle of a field.”

In a statement, Mr Kembery said organisers were “really upset by the obvious outcome and disappointment of Kidz Fest that has been portrayed in the media today.

“Winter Fest have offered refunds to customers of Kidz Fest who were unhappy with the event as a gesture of goodwill. This is by no means an admission of any liability of wrong-doings.

“We feel the event was as advertised with a clear indication of what was included in the ticket price. At the bottom of the advertisement text on our website, we clearly listed what activities would be chargeable.

“We apologise for any inconvenience caused and we are currently processing refund requests."

A spokesman for Essex Police said: “Police were contacted shortly before 2pm on Saturday, August 6 following a disturbance at Orsett Show in Rectory Road in Grays.

“The disturbance was following a civil dispute between attendees and the organisers of the show.

“Officers attended to prevent breach of the peace and offered words of advice to attendees. A theft of a petty cash tin was reported to officers but this has been left as part of a civil matter.”

A spokesman for the upcoming Kids Fest event this Saturday in Chelmsford said it was “nothing to do” with the Orsett event, and was being run by a different company, Party Man.

To donate to Amy and Friends, visit https://crowdfunding.justgiving.com/peige-aarons