'Great sadness' as plug pulled on historic Nuneaton event

The first carnival was held in 1930



Nuneaton's historic carnival has come to an end. Organisers made the bombshell announcement late last night.

They said that it is with 'great sadness' that the event, which was first held in 1930, will never take place again. The 2025 event was due to be held on June 8 but committee members have said that they have taken the 'difficult decision' not to hold another.

The writing was on the wall last month when the committee of volunteers launched a desperate hunt to find a new chairman to take over. It appears that this was unsuccessful and now the event, which is fondly remembered by generations, will now not take place again.

The full statement from the committee reads: "It is with great sadness that we today announce the end of Nuneaton Carnival. We are sure that you will all understand that this was a very difficult decision.

"Thank you to everyone who has ever taken part, supported and attended Nuneaton Carnival. Without every single one of you none of the history of Carnival would have been possible.

"It will take some time for us to close everything down but we will be donating any remaining funds to this year’s nominated charity. An update on the final figure will be made public once everything is complete."

It concludes: "Thank you for your understanding at what has been a very difficult decision."

Contrary to popular belief, the event was run by a small army of volunteers. In its heyday, the carnival attracted scores of entrants.

It was one of the last remaining carnival events in the region and at one point was a rite of passage for locals to take their place on a float or line the streets to donate pennies.

Cancelling carnival a horrific decision - chair



Cancelling Nuneaton Carnival has been a "horrific decision", but a lack of volunteers to help run it means it cannot be put on again, the retiring chairwoman says.

Charlotte Aspley said this year's event was "a lot of work" and a "particularly difficult year" given the small committee they had.

She said she had stood down in September due to family commitments and also running her own business and announced on Monday it was ending.

The majority of this year's £10,000 funding had been raised, but more people were needed to organise it, so the "opportunity was there if someone wanted to take it", she added.

In a post on Facebook, the Nuneaton Carnival groups said: "It is with great sadness that we today announce the end of Nuneaton Carnival. We are sure that you will all be understanding that this was a very difficult decision.

"Thank you to everyone who has ever taken part, supported and attended Nuneaton Carnival. Without every single one of you none of the history of Carnival would have been possible."

Remaining funds will still be donated to this year’s nominated charity and an update on the final figure will be made public once everything is complete, it stated.

Ms Aspley said she had taken some time out after organising this year's event and ultimately decided to stand down.

"It came to be very clear that to go forward another year was quite a stretch so I made the difficult decision back in September to step down," she said.

No-one or any group had yet come forward to take on the event, which started in 1936, despite some interested parties.

"A lot of people I don't think realised it's a voluntary role - we had a lot of people inquiring as to what the salary was.

"Sadly it doesn't come with a salary, just hard work I'm afraid."

But she said as it currently stood, there was nobody confirmed to take it on.

"Having had nobody really step forward in the last two months I'm pushed into a little bit of a corner really," she said, adding that it was "a horrific decision".

"Carnival means the world to me, so it was a very difficult decision," she said.

"I was a Carnival Queen many years ago. back in the 90s, and and I've had the joy of being on the committee for several years and taking the role of chair was difficult in the first place."

She said she understood that people would be upset but hoped someone or a group would step forward and take it on.

Nuneaton Carnival 2025 will go ahead as new committee 'thrilled' to take over



Nuneaton Carnival 2025 will go ahead as a new committee has revealed it is 'thrilled' to take over. The previous committee said they were forced to take the 'difficult decision' to pull the plug on the event, which was first staged in 1930.

But just days later, a new committee came forward and now they have officially taken over. Among the new group is Andy Sergeant, a former Attleborough ward councillor.

He said that the new group are 'thrilled' to take over the organisation of the event and hope to uphold its traditions while making it more vibrant as they embark on an 'exciting journey'. He told CoventryLive that the new all of the committee members are set to be officially elected next week.

"There’s been a lot of enthusiasm from local groups to get involved," he added. "We really want to get the community involved. We have lots of ideas and hopefully will be speaking to the council very soon about our plans."

In a post on Facebook, the new committee were keen to express their 'heartfelt gratitude' to the previous committee for their incredible dedication, hard work, and commitment to making the carnival one of the biggest events in the town's calendar.

"Their efforts have laid the foundation for a truly special event, and we are deeply honoured to carry on their legacy," they said.

"As we step into this role, we are filled with enthusiasm and fresh ideas to make the carnival even more vibrant and inclusive, while preserving the traditions that make it so special. We look forward to working with our community, local businesses, and volunteers to create an event that continues to showcase the spirit and creativity of Nuneaton."