Summer fetes

My local town had their annual Carnival last Saturday with a procession with floats from local schools and companies. It doesn't seem to have changed much over the years. They cancelled the Dog Show as it was too hot but otherwise all the stalls and games are much as they used to be. You are not being unreasonable to want your old fete back. I would feel like you in the circumstances. A good idea to try a school fete.

I grew up in a rural area and, while most of the villages had an annual flower and produce show, I can't recall any galas or carnivals.
However, when my daughter was young, we lived just over the borough boundary from Dagenham and we all loved the annual Dagenham Town Show.
It was huge, attended by tens of thousands of people and there was just about everything you could want in a gala - Dog shows, flower shows, novelty animal acts, motorcycle displays, classic vehicle shows, trade stands and exhibitions, music and performing arts, junk food and street food, all the fun of the fair. It was brilliant - until the council decided in 2012 that it wasn't profitable and put an end to it.
That couple of days every year probably did more for neighbourliness and community cohesion than any other single thing.

I no longer live in that part of the country but I understand there is a campaign group at work who aim to bring back the show. Good luck to them, I say.

Where I now live, in a small town, we don't have a gala or carnival as such but there are several "Summer Sundays" each year with music on the Green, food and drink and various traders. A good place to be with a sunhat and a deckchair on a fine (but not too hot) afternon.

If you want it back then getting involved in doing so is a good start, ‘someone’ has to organise these events.
Our local carnival was today, it’s involved a group of people giving up a lot of time and energy to do so, it looked very successful.
Maybe put it out on your local FB group, contact Parish Council and other bodies?

Oh yes I still miss a proper Hospital Fete! Me and my friends would be in a fever of excitement, the possibility of winning something, anything from guess the buttons in the jar, the name of a dolly or the REAL deal- the Fancy Dress Competition!
One year I'd made myself into a (stupidly awkward and misshapen) Oxo Cube and was so envious of one friend whose Mum made her a lovely belly dancer outfit with all those little sequins & jiggles on......

Garden fetes, Christmas Markets, Summer Fayres, Town Galas with Float Parade…..

All these types of community events, which we remember with nostalgia from years ago, they all need teams of willing volunteers to make them happen.

And that is what’s missing nowadays. Very few people want to give up their time to help, but all expect everything to just ‘happen’, they like to come along for a couple of hours on the day, but that’s it.

Also why scout groups, WI’s, parish councils, PTA’s etc etc, can’t attract anyone to run these things.

Calendargirl

Garden fetes, Christmas Markets, Summer Fayres, Town Galas with Float Parade…..

All these types of community events, which we remember with nostalgia from years ago, they all need teams of willing volunteers to make them happen.

And that is what’s missing nowadays. Very few people want to give up their time to help, but all expect everything to just ‘happen’, they like to come along for a couple of hours on the day, but that’s it.

Also why scout groups, WI’s, parish councils, PTA’s etc etc, can’t attract anyone to run these things.

A lot of the sort of women who used to organise and help run these things, are now rather more likely to be working than they once were.

Yes witzend I think you’ve hit the nail on the head. When we were younger, we helped with these things. Now we’re retired, there’s no one to take our place as everyone is so very busy, seemingly, from both parents working full time and no one has time to spare. Sad really.

My town still has its own annual show, with livestock, dog show, vegetable and produce competitions, even the best fairy garden on a plate for children, which I remember doing as a child myself. All our local villages have their own version too. We must be old fashioned.

We have an annual SeaFest weekend, with parade, car show, musicians, etc. No carnival type rides other than a bouncy castle for little ones.

The Sunday is celebrated on the waterfront, with a kids fishing derby, build and race your boat, kayak tug of war, etc. It's good fun, but yes, it takes a lot of volunteers to organize.

When I was a child I used to go and stay at my country cousins house for a week in the Summer holidays, they had a village fete every year all the usual simple things, cake stalls, lucky dips, veg and flower competitions, a farmer walked up a cow to the field so you could try your hand at milking it ( she was a very laid back cow)😀 one year I tried the golf stall where you putted at a ball at a series of numbered boards highest score of the afternoon won and it was me I’d won a free hair wash and set at the village hairdresser, I was 9 so they gave me a 10/- note instead it was the most money I’d ever had. It was a wonderful simple pleasant experience unlike todays expensive days out.t

The 'best fairy garden on a plate' sounds exquisite.

I have being doing fetes every Saturday during the fete season, having 2 weeks break now, then doing 3 more fetes, the last one being on 5th September. We love to raise awareness of our group, to do some fundraising and to ask the community for volunteers. We don't take huge amounts of money but it is a lovely day in every aspect of the true traditional fete. With all the community groups having a stand and doing some networking.

Our village/suburb still has its annual carnival with procession. However joining the carnival committee has been a real eye opener; the requirements from the council's SAG (Safety Advisory Group) seem to get more stringent each year. Fortunately we have a chairman who deals with SAG very well and soon says no to unreasonable requests which have threatened to price us out of running it, and I think strict and sometimes very costly health a safety requirements (eg stallholders have to have insurance, they can't just pitch up, our SAG wanted us to have an ambulance on-site which would have cost thousands - we did manage to decline that last one, but these are just 2 examples of more and more red tape we have to deal with year on year) is why a lot have died off. There used to be at least half a dozen carnivals in different areas of the town, each with their own procession. We are the only one left

Ours was lovely, nothing much changed over the years same calibre of people and families. Great day had by all. Sorry yours was a disappointment.

Stillness, No, no, they are not dying out at all. I’m Chief Event Planner for my friends and from the beginning of May to August we spend every Saturday doing 2 or 3 Fetes. We have a car and we like the old fashioned Fetes with Tombolas and Raffles. We hunt down the (what we call rummage stalls) where we rummage to get bargains. Usually there’s a Dog show, I’ve known Camel races (they’re very slow) and Donkey Derbys. A lot of Alpacas tend to be seen nowadays. There’s the Horticultural tent, the tea tent, the live music. We come home loaded with stuff and giggle at the prices we’ve paid. Have our tea there, have a Pimms. I spend ages lining them up at all the towns, but what a great time we have. No, no they’re around. Just google for your local area.

What memories of our old church fete!
I often think of it when I pick flowers for the house, remembering how my friends and I would go from house to house asking for fresh flowers from neighbours' gardens to make buttonholes to sell at the fete in the church grounds. We would arrange our buttonholes on trays and wander through the crowd selling them for a couple of pennies. There would be a tombola stall, a cake stall, a book stall, flower stall,a sweet stall, and some simple competitions for children to take part in.....oh and the most beautiful baby competition and the baking competition. It was good simple fun.
The church is now closed and falling into ruins.Sad

Getting enough people to be involved. We had a "forces" event this weekend. Our local cadet group were really good turning out in this heat in full kit, but apart from our local horse rescue team's tombola and the church's cake coffee beer offering (so cool) all the rest were commercial sales pitches.

We do have several events through the year, but I have noticed that the charity and community stalls are getting fewer and fewer, as the regular organisers decide that they have had enough of going it alone with no support.

The four villages around us still each have a Summer fete of some description. Some larger than others. We also have horticultural and agricultural shows later in the year. We go to two each year depending on what else is happening.

The Summer fetes tend to have more for children but I haven't seen any rides yet. Alcohol does feature everywhere I think, either selling or drinking.

There are a few villages around here that are having fetes and galas, and the Scout Group where my chiropractor lives is having a fete in a couple of weeks time. She is a scout leader so will be heavily involved in it. It’s the sort of village where there will be a good turn out for it. I may go along myself.

A lot of the Peak District villages usually put on a show or fete and being a farming area, there is usually an agricultural and horticultural element, as well as local crafts, etc. Bakewell is the big one and always an excellent day out but you need deep pockets or a lot of will power!! Bakewell also has a separate traditional carnival with a parade and floats.

Do you remember queuing up for the swinging boats? And the candy floss?