Salford festival revived after 20 years

A popular festival has made a welcome return to Salford after a 20 year hiatus.

Crowds turned out in force for the Kersal Festival, which was brought back to life thanks to a dedicated team of volunteers and a financial boost from Salix Homes.

The three-day festival, which was first organised by Salford Ceremonial Mayoress Mary Connor in 1990, was a very popular annual event on the Kersal calendar, but has not been held for two decades.

The idea of reviving the event came about after some old festival pictures emerged on Facebook, prompting calls for it to make a comeback.

The festival returned bigger and better than ever this year thanks to Mary Connor and some additional help from the newly formed Kersal Festival Committee and the Kersal Arts Team.

The event was held last month (October) at the Sports Village on Littleton Road and revellers enjoyed a whole host of activities including a fun fair, circus acts, football tournament and a magnificent firework display.

Ceremonial Mayoress Mary Connor said: “Although the weather was against us at this year’s festival, it didn’t stop the people of Kersal coming out to enjoy a dance in the rain. The people of Kersal are still as community-spirited as they were when we first ran the event, with people of all ages getting involved.”

The festival committee applied to Salix Homes for a grant of £1,826 through its Springboard fund, which provides financial assistance to local groups and initiatives that are making a difference in Salford.

Mary added: “The help we received from Salix Homes was fundamental in allowing the event to go forward. There are a lot of hidden costs associated with running a festival, and we are very grateful to the organisation for helping us cover these.”

Since launching Springboard this summer, Salix Homes, which owns more than 8,300 properties in Salford, has donated around £27,000 to local causes.

Mick Walsh, neighbourhood manager for Duchy, Kersal and Charlestown, said: “Salix Homes is very proud to help bring this fantastic event back to life for the benefit of the whole community.

“The ethos of the Springboard fund is to support initiatives that strengthen the sense of community in Salford and encourage people to love their neighbourhood, so it was fantastic to see so many people out enjoying themselves at Kersal Festival and we hope it can now continue for many years to come.”

To find out more about how to apply for a Springboard grant, go to: https://www.salixhomes.org/springboard