Support is needed to ensure Devizes’s best loved events can make a return after the pandemic.
The history of Devizes Outdoor Celebratory Arts (DOCA) is firmly rooted in the town’s rich history of community-led events.
The charity hopes to bring Carnival to the streets of Devizes by July, but desperately need public support in doing so.
DOCA have launched a fundraiser to ask supporters to donate the equivalent of a cup of coffee to help the organisation ride the storm of lockdown and, hopefully, make it to the other side of the pandemic.
Artistic director Loz Samuels said: "This has been such a hard time for everyone. We hope that when we can start to program events for Devizes again that people will be really ready to join in and socialise again.
"We hope that we will be able to bring Carnival to the Streets in July, rolling over the theme ‘Go Wild’ from last year. We really hope that the schools will be back to something like normal by then and will be able to join in. We will monitor the situation and plan appropriately nearer the time.”
Until the pandemic, there had been a Carnival in Devizes every year – excluding war years – since 1912.
Originally formed to raise money for the cottage hospital it soon became one of the most popular events in the town’s calendar with early parades reaching more than a mile long.
The International Street Festival was introduced in 1999 and has grown to become one of the biggest and most exciting free outdoor arts events in the South West.
Alongside the Carnival and Confetti Battle, these major annual events would typically be celebrated as part of a Festival Fortnight every August. DOCA's colourful Confetti Battle is perhaps a stand-out event for many local families.
The Devizes Christmas Festival & Lantern Parade began in 2004 and in 2015 the Devizes Festival of Winter Ales was added to the town’s calendar.
Various other events sprung up over the years including the Devizes Colour Rush, all of which raise money for DOCA and boost footfall to the town centre.
Before the first lockdown, DOCA had celebrated the news that the Arts Council had again invested in their plans for the coming year.
They have been generous enough to let DOCA roll over the funding until it is possible to go ahead, but with no events and no income from stalls, income from the much loved Festival of Winter Ales DOCA’s funds are running dangerously low.
Chair of the Trustees Kelvin Nash said: ‘We hope that volunteers will come back to support us, we will do everything needed to keep things safe of course.
"Without the involvement of local people we would not be able to put on the events we bring to the town. We also hope that people might be able to find the cost of a coffee to help us and ensure that we can continue."
To donate to the coffee fundraiser, click here
To find out more about DOCA and events in Devizes, click here
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