Bognor Regis' Pride, Carnival and Birdman all cancelled but will come back 'bigger and better'

Bognor's Carnival, Birdman and Pride event have all been cancelled with plans to bring them to the town in 2022.

The events rely on support from local businesses but the economic knock from the Covid-19 pandemic has left the event's organisers deciding not to pile on pressure for sponsorship.

Chair of the events, Sarah Boote-Cook said it was a sad decision but 'the only one we can make'.

She said: "It wasn't a hard decision. The reality is, for the good of the community we cancelled it. It the last thing our community needs right now but it was a sad decision. No one wants to make that decision but it is the only one we can make.

"We rely on local business sponsorship but a lot of local businesses have been struggling over the last year.

"Meeting in large groups is not going happen for some time. We made the decision early on and a lot of work goes into it.

"We have got to face reality. Our local businesses are really good supporters of all of our events, however, now is not the time to ask. When businesses have time to get back on their feet, then we can look at it all."

Sarah said the events will come back 'bigger and better' next year and there are even plans to hold a Pride event after the summer but on a smaller scale.

Sarah added: "We decided we would come back much bigger and much better next year. It will be a bigger day with a lot more planed. 2022 is already outlined. It is going to be very exciting.

"It's going to go into the evening to make up for the time that we have lost. It will be a complete weekend with Pride on both days and Birdman on one of the days. It will be full days of live music."