Charity shop helps to 'bankroll' village carnival

The organiser of one of the oldest illuminated carnivals in the country said the event was only able to survive financially with the support of a local charity shop.

Pewsey Carnival - which started in 1898 - costs about £45,000 to run every year, the majority of which is funded by Cossor's Shop in Pewsey, Wiltshire.

Carol Parsons, chair of the carnival, said the village was bucking the trend as funding issues have affected other carnivals across the West and Trowbridge Carnival had to be cancelled this year.

Hundreds of people took part in Pewsey Carnival on 19 September on dozens of hand-decorated carts.

"If we didn't have the charity shop, Cossor's, in Pewsey, we wouldn't survive as it bankrolls the carnival and helps keep our heritage going," said Parsons.

"It is the turning point; the thing that makes the difference and enables us to do carnival the way we always have done, otherwise it would be very much smaller."

Carnival clubs across the region spend all year making carts for the parades, many of which are elaborate and cost thousands of pounds to construct.

One of the Pewsey traditions is to light 1,200 candles on the River Avon, carried in holders that are more than a century old.

Carol's daughter, Hannah Parsons, is one of the next generation taking on the mantle of organising the carnival.

"A lot of younger people coming through are Pewsey families, so generations of their mums, dads, granddads and grandmums have seen it all happen throughout the years and they're used to how the carnival feels in the village.

"My granddad did 50 years and mum's done the same, so it's a real family tradition for us and I've been involved since I was about three."

Hannah said it was, however, harder to get the younger generation involved with running the event, although a new mascot, Alfie, is now taken into schools to promote the carnival and spark children's interest early on.

Aside from the illuminated floats procession, Pewsey has introduced other events such as the Wheelbeero race, Oktoberfest and a Feast Tea for the over 60s.

Carol said it was important for carnivals to evolve to survive into the future and, going forward, all the carnivals in Wiltshire should get together to share best practice.

"We should have a day together and blast out ideas because in various ways we've all got different things that we do and we might be able to magpie ideas off each other, which would be so helpful," she added.

This year's carnival is raising funds for four charities - Beyond Dementia, Prospect Hospice, Julia's House Hospice and Wiltshire and Bath Air Ambulance.

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