Notting Hill Carnival secures nearly £1 million in funding following fears for future

Notting Hill Carnival will receive nearly £1 million in additional funding ahead of this year's event, after a leaked letter revealed the three-day event would need "urgent" financial support in order to secure its future. 

Last month, BBC News published details of a a letter from carnival chair Ian Comfort to Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy appealing for government funding to hire additional safety staff to protect “the future and public safety of this iconic event.”

On Friday (July 11), it was announced that Notting Hill Carnival had secured £958,000 in funding ahead of this year's event; raised between London's City Hall and Westminster and Kensington and Chelsea councils, the funding will now ensure Notting Hill Carnival 2025 can go ahead.

According to The Guardian, Comfort said the funding was a "much-needed and welcome commitment," despite it coming "just weeks before the event", which will run from August 23-25.

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"This support reinforces the importance of Notting Hill Carnival as a cultural institution – central to London’s identity and to the nation’s creative and economic life,” he continues. 

Last month's leaked letter had called on the UK government to provide funds for additional stewards and crowd management staff to address safety concerns around carnival — following a review of the festival that highlighted "critical safety concerns" in the operation of the event.

Comfort claimed cuts to the Metropolitan Police had "restricted" its ability to properly manage crowd flow, with extra staffing now "essential" to ensure the safety of Europe's biggest street party — with two million people attending year-on-year.

Windrush campaigners had urged the government to "recognise" the concerns and "act urgently" to protect Notting Hill Carnival; campaigner and human rights lawyer Jaqueline Mckenzie told The Standard in June that carnival being at risk "adds insult to injury" to victims of the Windrush scandal.

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In response to the letter in June, a spokesperson for Lisa Nandy had told BBC News that Comfort's letter would be responded to "in due course"; the government and Nandy have so far no provided a response to the request. 

While this funding will provide much-needed support to ensure Notting Hill Carnival can take place this year, Kensington and Chelsea council's deputy leader Kim Taylor-Smith has warned that the authority will only be able to provide additional funding "for this year only."

In a statement seen by The Voice, Taylor-Smith said the council had offered funding because "the government have not yet indicated any support" will be provided, hoping that the government "recognises its importance to the community and will lend its support for the future".

“Following Government funding proposals, this Council is now facing significant funding pressures over the next three years, with budget gaps of around £80 million," he said.

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Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said he was "proud" that City Hall was among partners to help provide additional funding to Notting Hill Carnival, telling The Voice that the funding will "ensure this iconic celebration can take place this year, as we build a better London for everyone". 

The Met's Gold Commander for Notting Hill Carnival 2025 Matt Ward said: “The Met fully supported the event organisers’ decision to commission an independent review into crowd safety and we welcome the news that some additional funding has now been secured to allow them to implement a number of its recommendations.

“However, we must acknowledge that with just six weeks to go a lot of hard work is still required to mitigate all of the risks identified," he warns. “While we can be confident that Carnival will be safer this year as a result of the changes that have been introduced, crowd safety remains an ongoing concern that must be carefully monitored and managed.

Megan Townsend is Mixmag's Deputy Editor, follow her on Twitter