Otley Carnival: Committee launch GoFundMe appeal to save beloved family festival

The carnival has become synonymous with Otley's history and identity for over 40 years.

It sees children, families, friends, schools, youth groups and the wider community come together, to make noise, have fun and celebrate the town.

But now the event, which hasn't run since 2019 due to Covid-19, is facing a fight to survive.

The committee team are hoping to raise £3,500 to ensure they can give local children and families an event which exceeds expectation and celebrates a post-pandemic return to normality.

“We would like so much to provide a free event, but we are calling on the help of those who can." said, Chair, Nigel Gill.

"We appreciate whilst this technique of raising funds isn’t new, it has never been adopted before by any of Otley’s events committees - so we hope it works.

"We think so many people will remember and love the carnival, despite the two year gap, and we’d love everyone to get behind us.”

The team are short on funds with people no longer carrying around spare cash for bake sales, raffle tickets and general bucket donations.

The event is free and so there is no revenue stream from ticket sales.

Otley Town Council, the Otley BID & local businesses have already donated towards carnival costs but it's still not quite enough.

The Otley Carnival Committee are a non-profit volunteer group that organise the event each year.

Newly formed in 2021, the committee are working tirelessly to bring an event which will be remembered locally forever.

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