Notting Hill Carnival Futures: Scenarios for Europe’s Largest Street Festival
Ahead of its 50th anniversary, ETFI worked with the Notting Hill Carnival community to develop scenarios for the future of the carnival. The project also built new partnerships between the cultural and academic worlds.
Project duration: 2013 – 2014
The challenge
At the time, the Notting Hill Carnival was going through a turbulent phase. Public and private funding was under pressure, the narrow streets faced overcrowding, and there were concerns about public safety, crime and political tensions. At the same time, the number of carnival participants was declining and ageing.
The last strategic review dated from 2004, and the upcoming 50th anniversary in 2014 was the perfect moment to look back and look ahead.
Our approach
ETFI designed a scenario planning process of three half-day workshops at King’s College London, each with a different group: carnival organisations to define core values, experts and professionals to map changes and uncertainties, and carnival-goers from London and the international carnival circuit. ETFI then turned these insights into four future scenarios, covering location, audience, funding, performances, size and the nature of the carnival.
The impact
As ETFI’s first international project, Notting Hill Carnival Futures led to a public report, a stakeholder report, a white paper for government bodies and an academic article. The New Media Angels captured the process in a 15-minute documentary.
Read more: https://www.kcl.ac.uk/cultural/projects/2016/carnival-futures
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