Notting Hill Carnival Ltd have been announced as organisers of the 2018 Notting Hill Carnival
25 – 27 August 2018
Carnival Village Trust’s subsidiary, Notting Hill Carnival Ltd (NHCL) have been confirmed as the official organisers of the Notting Hill Carnival 2018. They have vowed to safeguard the future of the event by making it the most “successful, safe and spectacular carnival” to date.
As the central organisation for this iconic event, NHCL are dedicated to the arts and bringing together the carnival’s community to reinvigorate and celebrate the carnival’s rich heritage. They are ideally located at the centre of the Notting Hill community to make this happen.
The core team have been involved in Carnival for over 40 years, with the Carnival Village Trust organising and hosting Carnival arts events and classes for over 11 years including MokoJumbie stilt walking, Mas-making, Carnival Make-Up, steel pan lessons as well as tea and cake mornings for local seniors at the both The Tabernacle and YAA Centre.
Notting Hill Carnival is an all inclusive celebration of Caribbean culture and symbolises the effect the Windrush generation and larger local community has had on Britain. These people are its heartbeat and not only laid the foundations of Carnival, but also the wider community groups that are now a vital part of Notting Hill.
“Our aim is to put on a successful, safe and spectacular Carnival and really bring everyone together, using all the incredible talent and enthusiasm that this community is known for,” says Notting Hill Carnival Executive Director, Matthew Phillips. “I saw a banner at last year’s carnival that read “ComeUnity”. For me that is carnival. It brings unity. We want to celebrate its heritage, enjoy its present and welcome as many people as possible to safeguard its future.”
NHCL have brought together an advisory board. Through this broad committee, NHCL will help ensure that Carnival’s heritage is respected while introducing a raft of new initiatives.
The first is to reinvigorate Children’s Day, which has traditionally taken place on the Sunday with special participation for children and more. There will be an increase in the participation of children’s bands and more family friendly options.
A commitment to train a substantial number of local stewards is also central to the plan, handing ownership of Carnival to the community, allowing the police to step back and providing Carnival goers with the best local knowledge. Each community within the carnival’s footprint will provide stewards for their area, with steward training to a NVQ and SIA standard offered – the qualification providing employment opportunities beyond Carnival. The stewards will be paid and work alongside staff from crowd management company McKenzie Arnold.
There will be stricter enforcement of parade rules to ensure that all bands are constantly moving, resulting in an equal opportunity for all participants to be judged as well as keeping the parade flowing and timely.
Health and Safety will be centralised for the first time with regular planning meetings scheduled with Carnival’s “Strategic Partners” (listed below). Enhanced temporary building, electronics and food hygiene standards are essential in safeguarding a long and prosperous future for Carnival.