PROCEEDS from this year’s Otley Carnival have been presented to its beneficiaries.

Trophies were also presented when the AGM of the Otley Carnival Committee was held at the Otley Aged People’s Welfare Centre on Friday, July 19.

The 2019 event raised £9,000 to cover its costs and another £3,000 to share between its three beneficiaries - Hug on a Tray, Marie Curie and Springboard Wellbeing.

The committee was also presented with a £200 donation by The Bridge Church’s Secretary, John Eveleigh at the meeting: the proceeds of a Mad Hatters tea party which the church had held on carnival day.

Treasurer Ann Steval said that the carnival’s ‘brilliant’ success would ‘not be possible without the continued support of so many local businesses, organisations and individuals’.

She also also thanked the beneficiaries for enthusiastically supporting fundraising events throughout the year, and paid tribute to committee members for their money-saving efforts.

This year that included making new bunting for the town and the Carnival Field, which saved several hundred pounds.

Outgoing Chair Rhona Smith thanked the committee too, for all their hard work, and welcomed the new Chair Natalia Hanna who gave a short acceptance speech.

Carnival Queen Niamh Emmett Casey, joined by her retinue and Town Mayor Peter Jackson, made the presentations to the beneficiaries on the night.

She also presented Keith Wilkinson Memorial Trophy (the ‘people’s choice’ parade award) to pupils Jasper and Harley from Westgate Primary School, who had suggested the school’s winning theme of Tropical Westgate.

And trophies for the Best Collectors were awarded to Liz Furness and Tony Wintle from Marie Curie.

This year’s carnival was held on Saturday, June 15 when unsettled weather did not deter large crowds from enjoying the day.

People lined the streets to cheer on the parade which set off from Wharfedale Farmers Auction Mart, led by Otley Bellman Terry Ford and the City of Leeds Pipe Band, at 1.15pm.

A procession of imaginatively decorated floats and walking groups - inspired by everything from the environment to space travel - along with marching bands, dance groups and vehicles carrying VIPs then proceeded to make its way down to the Carnival Field.

There, the gathered crowds saw the Carnival Queen being crowned and were treated to main arena displays from the likes of K9 Quackers Sheepdog and Duck Display, High Adventure Sumo Wrestlers and the Thompson School of Irish Dance

The carnival committee will now take a break for the summer. Work on organising the 2020 carnival and parade, which is set to start at the slightly earlier time of 12.30pm, will begin in September.