WELLINGTON Carnival is to be scrapped after no-one came forward to take over the job of organising the event.

The Carnival, one of the key points in the town’s calendar, will not be taking place this year after the committee failed to find a new chairman and secretary.

The move comes after Sharon Collins recently announced she was standing down as chairman – only a few months after being begged by Carnivalites in the area to carry on.

An emergency meeting was held last week in the hope new blood would come forward to take over the Carnival’s organisation.

But a message put out on the Carnival’s social media Facebook page on March 13 made disappointing reading.

“Wellington Carnival Committee has to SADLY advise that nobody came forward to run the Carnival,” said the statement. The street fair will go-ahead on June 7 and every year after by the current street fair organisers.

“However, after that, Wellington Carnival Committee will be dissolved.”

The committee had said in the days leading up to the emergency meeting – held at the Beambridge Inn on March 11 – that if it was unsuccessful in recruiting a chairman and secretary there would be NO Wellington Carnival for 2020.

News of the demise of Wellington Carnival has been met with widespread disappointment by other neighbouring Carnivals and Carnival clubs.

“On behalf of a club that takes part in Wellington Carnival it is extremely disappointing to hear that nobody has come forward to help,” said one person.

“Every year Carnivals struggle with volunteers and every year people complain. I hope that someone will come forward to help to save a much-loved Somerset tradition.”

Another person wrote: “We are sad to hear that volunteers were not forthcoming to save the event. Organising events like this can be thankless tasks but they are rewarding and a shame that the community will be losing out.”

Another well-wisher wrote: “I am really sorry to hear this but as someone who has been involved in Carnivals for 38 years it doesn’t surprise me. Nobody seems to want to know nowadays and Wellington won’t be the last town to lose its Carnival for sure.”