THE CARNIVAL in Nuneaton has been held for more than 70 years, usually on a Saturday. As many of you will know, this year the event was held on Sunday for the first time. It was also my first time of involvement and I am pleased to report that it was a great day. Not only was the weather kind but there were great crowds and the residents really entered into the spirit of the occasion. There were even residents along the procession route who had parties in their front gardens and decorated their houses. My afternoon at the carnival started with the judging of the class B floats. This is the class that children and young people enter. There were six floats in the class and I had a tough job as all the entries were excellent. As is always the case in any competition there has to be winners and on this occasion the winners were Etone School. They put together an exceptional float and a great theme so well done to them and well done to all the other entrants who put in an excellent effort. Let’s hope they all compete again next year. Then it was on to the procession, together with a number of other councillors I had bucket in hand collecting for the carnival charity. I must say I did not realise that there were still so many 2p and 1p coins – people must have been saving them for this year. There were thousands and thousands, all gratefully received. This year the carnival organisers set a challenge for councillors to see who could raise the most money. As yet I don’t know who won but I have a feeling that it could be between the mayor, Cllr Gerald Smith, and Cllr Sonja Wilson. Time will tell! After the procession there was a busy gala field fair off Avenue Road which capped off a great day. I thoroughly enjoyed the carnival. I hope others who were there did. It was a great family day and a credit to those who were involved in organising the event, those who entered floats, the fundraisers and all others who took part, including the residents in the crowd. It was a credit to the borough!
