Volunteers are being urged to come forward and help ensure Middleton Carnival has a bright future.
The Middleton-in-Teesdale Carnival AGM took place last month in the Masonic Hall and only nine people turned up, all of whom were already connected to the annual event.
Organisers were hoping villagers would pop along and support the carnival by potentially volunteering to help run next year’s event, which will take place over the first weekend in August.
Now another carnival meeting is taking place, this time at 7pm tomorrow, Thursday, October 23, at UTASS, on Chapel Row, Middleton.
Volunteers and potential new committee members are encouraged to attend as plans for 2026 take shape.
Colin Headlam, chairman of the carnival committee, has even designed a poster bearing the plea: Middleton Needs You – or the end of the carnival is near!
He hopes the bold message stirs residents into action.
“We need more volunteers and committee members,” he told the Mercury. “The shops and businesses were very supportive ahead of this summer’s carnival, donating £1,350, which was great.
“But we need more people from the village to help out during the year as we organise the carnival, as well as on the day itself.
“Lots of people tell us we are doing a good job but not enough people are coming forward to help out.
“I’d really encourage as many people as possible to attend the next meeting on October 23 to find out how they can help.”
Planning has already started for the 2026 carnival weekend and Colin has confirmed that the Vikings are coming.
“We have already booked a Viking re-enactment group, so that’s going to be good fun on the day,” he said.
“But there are a lot of other things to arrange over the coming months to make sure we have a really good carnival planned for next August. And we’ll also need volunteers over the carnival weekend as well to make sure all the events can go ahead.”
This year’s carnival weekend was rated a success but attendance numbers weren’t as high as anticipated, despite the good weather.
Several competing events in the area had an impact, including the Stockton International Riverside Festival. However, the organisers have resisted the temptation to move the carnival away from the first Saturday in August.
