For over forty years the Penrith May Day Carnival has provided a day of fun for residents and vistors to Penrith on the first Monday in May.
Following the 2024 May Day Carnival the members of Penrith Lions Club undertook a detailed review of the event. That has led them to conclude that the demands of the Carnival’s organisation now exceed the capacity of the Club.
The Penrith Lions as a result of the review have taken the decision that Club will no longer take the lead role in organising the town’s May Day Carnival.
The President of Penrith Lions Club, John Rogerson, said after the decision “we would all like to see the Carnival continue but, sadly, have to recognise that our Club simply does not have the capacity that is now necessary to plan and deliver a May Day Carnival that meets the expectations of local people.”
Created and organised by Penrith Lions Club the event has become a firm favourite in the town’s annual calendar. This year’s event was no exception. With the help of a network of local organisations and the local councils Penrith Lions put on a Carnival that attracted local residents and visitors into Penrith on Manday the 6th of May.
A spokesperson for Penrith Lions said "What people enjoying the day will not have seen are the months of hard work that it took to bring the event together. This involved not just liaising with funders, entertainers, stallholders and other participants but also many hours of detailed work behind the scenes to ensure that the day was not only fun but, importantly, was both safe and compliant with relevant regulations."
"Over the years the regulatory framework within which the Carnival has taken place has steadily become more complex. This has been very marked over the last twelve months during which the cost and time involved in ensuring compliance in areas such as health and safety and noise control has increased considerably, as too has the cost of securing public liability insurance."
Penrith Lions have extended their grateful thanks to all those who helped them with the planning and delivery of the Carnival over the years.
Particular recognition must be given to the financial support provided by Penrith Town Council and Penrith BID that enabled the 2024 event to take place and the many hours of hard work freely given the staff of the Town Council in guiding the organisers through a maze of administrative detail.
Lee Quinn of Eden Local and Luke Lamb of Road safe have also been very generous of their time and effort in support of the Carnival.
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