Penhill Carnival 2020 is one step closer to becoming a reality as the call has gone out for volunteer helpers.

Councillor David-Oladapo Ibitoye who represents Penhill and Upper Stratton is leading the charge behind the revival of the annual event which used to be a summer feature for Penhill.

Coun Ibitoye said: “We want this to be something that the whole community can get involved in.

“We’re very much in the pre-planning stage at the moment, but the idea is for this to be something that can unite the community, generate some community spirit and be a thing that everyone can look forward to and have fun with,” he said.

The group currently hoping to pull of the one day event this year on Penhill sports field is looking for at least two more volunteers to form an event committee. They also need ten volunteers to help with general organisation and helping out on the day.

Mr Ibitoye added: “We need volunteers to get on board with this. We want to get people in the community involved and to put this back into people’s hands as something that everyone loves."

Anyone interested in helping out is encouraged to go along to the Penhill Carnival Volunteers Meeting at the John Moulton Hall on Saturday February 22 at 10.30am.

“We know that this sort of thing is done much better when the community is involved in its creation,” said Mr Ibitoye.

Plans for the event include a live music, food stalls, a bouncy castle, a carnival queen and procession, alongside charity stands and games for children.

"We want this to be fun-filled, something to remember and something people can look forward to in future years," Mr Ibitoye said.

The carnival was first founded in 1976 and had grown into a week-long event when it first finished in 1995. A brief revival followed in 2011 but this ended in 2013 due to a lack of volunteers.

Another attempt to bring it back in 2015 resulted in a family fun day.

Volunteers for this year’s potential event will need to attend fortnightly meetings for to discuss ideas and help with arrangements.

Mr Ibitoye added: "Once we start, we are hopeful that this will be something we can do every year, to create a real family and community event."