Great Mazey day and Golowan festival this year as always. It's one of my favourite days of the year and whether you see it as a festival to St John the Baptist, mid summer or like me a good excuse to have a party, there's a lot to like. Credit to the organisers and particularly the police, volunteers, schools and local organisations who spend a great deal of time organising lots of things, to make it all fantastic.
There are obvious economic benefits to the whole Golowan week, but for me it's the celebration. The origins of Golowan or Gool Jowan (the feast of John) obviously predate Penzance's patron saint St John and are linked to the seasons, as with many Cornish festivals. That's my view of it, it's a celebration of summer, of Penzance of Cornwall. As such all of Penzance is represented our diverse traders, their foods and goods, music, art, boats, the harbour and of course drink ;-). I really enjoyed it and a great thank you to all those behind the scenes, that organised one of the best community festivals around. Makes me proud to live in Penzance with my family and to serve on the town council.
Lovely...except why does it cost £26000 of ratepayers money? Helston flora and Padstow 'obby oss get by on a fraction of this as they are truly community based...Mazey has become a 'Glasto copycat' without the financial success.
ReplyDeleteWe can't afford public tiolets, services for the vulnerable are under threat but yet we can afford to pamper a load of lovies.
Where did you get your figures for Flora day funding can I ask? Trouble is these things aren't cheap these days, risk assessments, road closures, insurance all cost money.
DeleteRob, you seem very keen on local accountability here is your big chance to prove it. Get the accounts for Golowan publically published so we can all appreciate what a fantastic event it is!!!
DeleteI will endeavour to get Flora day costs....but we all know they won't touch the sides of what Pz pays out.
Just looked at Golowan website....the sponsors are two local education establishments and Penlee house gallery{itself in reciept of public money} and only two local businesses.....so on top of the tens of thousands of direct public money even the 'private' sponsorship is largely out of public money.
There is a precept for Golowan. Or at least there was, I can't be bothered to check, because I don't really care. It's a bargain. Besides being a great chance to party in grim times, the event fosters community pride and a sense of place. Particularly amongst our kids. Priceless. Who ever you are "Anonymous", you are saying nothing we did not have to contend with 20 years ago, getting it off the ground. We faced people like you down then, I'm sure the present organisers will do the same. We love it. It's here to stay. Get over it.
DeleteWhere has anyone said it should not continue.
DeleteI am saying that the festival should by now have matured enough to pay it's own way more than it currently does.
The fact that it's funding got halved and it is totally unaffected suggests a lack of accountability that has yet to be publically analysed.
Particularly because of the financial difficulties in other areas such as playground equipment and childrens services and as a parent{i assume} i am sure you welcome the best practice in fiscal responsibility here.
Surely any councillor should be able to access a thorough set of accounts for such a large proportion of public funding. Where has our money gone?
ReplyDeleteEverywhere else seems able to create a simple community event for a comparitive shoestring budget.
You want to defend mazey day then why hide the facts?
Nowhere is there a festival that provides such a huge return for such a small investment. All public events cost money, ifyoyu actually compare costs of them you'd see that.
Deleteso you can back up your assertion with actual figures????
DeleteHow much was the insurance?
How much did the fireworks cost??
..the glossy brochure??...the full time staf??..
How much cash came from sources other than the public purse??
You want to defend something but you have not got any idea what you're defending it seems.
Rob, you are the councillor...it is your job to 'compare the costs'....you don't even know the costs.
DeleteWhy exactly is it my job to examine the costs? Golowan is a seperate entity to the town council, you may think we are omnipotent but unfortunately we are not. By the by as I understand it there are no full time staff. The majority of work is done by volunteers, who give up their time and expertise to make this a great community festival. There are obvious benefits to Golowan all traders report being rushed off their feet with the extra trade and I know of a few traders that Mazey day brings more profit than any other week of the year. I'd suggest if you have problems with the costs of Golowan it would be best to address them to their office, although I don't think you should as they are busy planning next years festival.
DeleteAs an accom provider over many years i can confirm there is negligable benefit from Golowan. In fact one regular customer specifically asks to avoid this week!
ReplyDeleteSome local shops shut or report far reduced trade. The food outlets and pubs who mostly benefit should take a greater financial or organisational role in this event.
All my customers from last week and this week were not aware of this event and it made no impact on deciding to stay here. I used to advertise {for free-typical}on the golowan site with zero result.
DeleteHaving read the anlysis doc of a few years ago concerning the benefits of golowan i can whole hartedly state that it was a whitewash especially as it tried to bogusly claim to be of benefit to tourism.
The fact is that it is a good community event that has been overindulged by previous councils to try and become a music led festival. Because it lacks a focus in musical gendre ie folk, jazz etc it falls between the stools and fails to even cover its own costs.
I'm really surprised to read these comments. I see hundreds of people from overseas that come to Penzance for Golowan or at least here during the festival. Do you find it hard to fill rooms during this period?
DeleteYou pay the money as a cllr you have the right if not the duty to access the accounts and check ...is that not obvious...
DeleteIf they refuse explain that funding depends on it.
In fact it is worrying that you seem happy to spend my money without performing this simple first step......it seems that so long as you had a nice time on mazey day you're happy to sign whatever cheque is put before you
Firstly I don't pay and I'm not paid for being a councilor. Secondly I haven't signed any cheques, for this or anything else. The money contributed to Golowan was decided in the April budget before I took office. I haven't had the chance to perform any kind of due diligence. Sorry if that ruins your image if councillors nonchalantly spending money.
DeleteSorry Rob if I'm being a bit heavy handed with you when it has not been your decision.
DeleteNext year it will be your decision -good luck.
In my business i have to identify and justify every expenditure and live well within my means for just such occasions as the odd unforseen global recession......it's a winning habit that i'd like to pass to others.:}
I run a retail business in the town and my sister has a bed and breakfast.
ReplyDeleteI can say that both business do better on Golowan and we don't sell beer or fast food.
How can having and extra 5,000 plus people in the town be bad for business? Golowan brings people to Penzance to see what it has to offer. The children's parades, the shows, the stalls, the fair - these are not music events.
I know, let's ban Golowan and Newlyn Fish Festival, and finish off Flora Day. Actually, why don't we put up a big sign at the Tamar that says: "Turn back, nothing happens here."
I say to the 'accom provider' - if you want the figures, go get them yourself. You obviously have too much time on your hands. If you don't know how to make the most of Golowan, then no wonder you make no money - what's your 'accom' called? Fawlty Towers.
This year most the music (The Lugger, The Farmers Arms, The Dock, The Spingo Tent, The Zero Lounge etc) were put on and paid for by those establishments.
If you don't invest, you don't reap. Honestly, the moaning minnies in this thread are an embarrassment to Penzance. If you don't like Penzance, you can always move - the majority of us won't miss you...
Nobody is saying its a bad thing ...but when the custodians of our taxes seem to not have a clue what is being spent on what or how it compares with similar local community events then as a rate payer {paying several thousand a year} i reserve the right to ask weather it is efficiently being used especially as other more mundane but equally socially beneficial services/amenities are being cut daily.
DeleteI cannot for the life of me understand why I, as a tax payer, am coughing up for fireworks that start at 23:15 at night. What responsible parent keeps their children up to attend such a show?
ReplyDeleteSecondly, have we factored in the cost of the various NHS staff who have to spend their evenings patching up clowns who don't know when enough alcohol is enough?
Oh and a quick LOL at the "if you don't like it leave"...you gonna run the town by yourself are you?
Its a fair point about the fireworks, I've missed them myself the last few years too. But it's a great way of celebrating Mazey eve and it's unfortunately bound to be late, due to the late midsummer evenings.
DeleteAs for drunks clogging up the hospital, it's unfortunate but all too common these days. Other than closing pubs year round what can you do?
I'm not sure why there's such a big fuss about this - Rob was voted in by the people to, effectively, serve them and the town. People hear are asking for numbers and figures, quite a simple request, so why is it so difficult?
ReplyDeleteQuite right we should have complete access to where the funding goes. If no one discloses the accounts it sarts to look like a coverup...lets see the figures and have an informed intelligent debate.
DeleteI'd be happy to know that the whole thing is super efficient and productive.
Alas it looks very bloated compared to many other popular events.
Well as Rob has already made clear, this events organisation is not part of the Town Councils Direct Authority - Councillers have the same access to public accounts as every other member of the public, if you're curious to understand figures for a particular event then why not put in a FOI request with the authority responsible for funding it. If you find the figures not to be to your liking, why not formulise a way for that same money to be used in a way that quantifiably, will have a more positive soical, cultural & economic impact on the area in question. In other-words; I'm sure people will get behind you if you have a better idea; rather than just nay-saying the status quo.
DeleteIt's seems pretty obvious to me that if you have an event that attracts large numbers of people to an area or from the area, they will spend money at that event - this can only be good for the area in question. Now it may be the case that not every business benefits from such investment & public occassion; but attracting people to an area for such an event surely is better than stopping any event all together. If perhaps your question is that noone additional is attracted to the area it seems odd. However even if that was the case, wouldn't it still be a success to get a large part of community out at the same time in the same place, and spending the odd bit of money they have at the event.
I'm all for criticism of process & spending, but at least have a positive alternative to suggest before just blindly shouting 'no'!
Aj
Deleteno one wants Golowan stopped...why so defensive?
As Rob has stated elsewhere the funding has already been halved and yet it is as popular and as well attended as ever it was.
The question is'' is it still costing more than it should in light of the fact that similar local communal events seem to prosper just as well without the glossy brochures and imported variety acts?''
Well I was going to blog separately in the issue and I will. But the figure mentioned above £26k is about right for the net expenditure from the town council on Golowan. Which is about half what Cornwall Council and Penwith before them provided.
ReplyDeleteOh goodness, another Tory taxpayer resentful because he/she has to cough up a few quid for the community.
ReplyDeletePeople like 'accom provider' should get off their arse and do a decent day's work instead of scrounging of the backs of volunteers and unpaid councillors.
'Coughing up' - more like stashing pennies. The 'glossy brochure' is paid for by advertising, you know, by hardworking people keen to invest in the town not substandard 'accom providers' who'd rather not spend and drive people away.
So you would save money, what by having a couple of rockets less, making the firework display a few minutes shorter? £26,000 - so that's £1.17p for every taxpayer, per year, in the wider Penzance area.
I know, let's not spend any money on Golowan and see more businesses go bust. I know let's not have a ferry terminal and a £64 million investment - oh, hang one, you've already achieved the last one.
'LOL run the town by yourself (etc)' - sorry I couldn't make any sense from that sentence.
'Accom provider' - you are the living embodiment of everything that is wrong with Penzance. Take your measley cash and buy a guest house in England.
If I can corect a few things there - the lib dems produced the zero rise budget and the tory cabinet members argued against it and for raising the tax by circa 40p.
DeleteSo ask your lib dems why they claimed that no services will be harmed and they could find the savings with no effect to services{already they have announced services will be reformed ie cut}. Hence we are where we are services fighting services for precious funds.
The actual situation is that our councils are struggling to provide statutory services. It's no good sticking your head in the sand and pretending otherwise.
AS a poster below points out relying on poloticians to defend the festival is prone to failure.
"so that's £1.17p for every taxpayer, per year, in the wider Penzance area"
ReplyDeleteLet us not forget the council decided not to put up council tax by, what was it, 40p a week, which is causing the complete collapse of services up and down the county. So no, if we can't afford 40p a week to keep vital Child and Adult Social Care running maybe we shouldn't be spending £1.17 on late night fireworks for drunks.
£1.17p per year
Delete40p a week = £20.80p a year.
Learn some maths,idiot.
20.80 multiplied up means cuts to the vulnerable.
Deletebut hey lets spend wildly on any flash glitz that rides up market jew st.
You still haven't worked out the maths, have you?
Delete£20.40p is more than £1.17p.
No wonder you want Golowan stopped, you probably think it's an alien invasion.
I'd rather spend 1.17 a year on the needy and vulnerable than 20 quid a year on fireworks, I'm real sorry if that makes me an idiot in your eyes, nice to know you're looking out for your fellow man though, maybe one day we can return the favour.
DeleteAny business that relys on a one day event to survive needs to get real
ReplyDeleteThe council tax should have been raised to avoid the stresses we now have.
The very real choices will be between essential services and non essential......someone will eventually make grown up choices.
Golowan will evolve as it always has.It will be scaled down to its essentials imho.
For its own sake it needs to be as financially independent of state funding as possible because in the hierachy of need it WILL lose out to the truly vulnerable. Only a massive arrogance will argue otherwise.
Which essential services do you think are currently losing out to a small part of the town council's budget? How might you suggest that the festival can evolve to pay for itself and still remain a money spinner, not to mention a great celebration for Penzance and indeed West Cornwall?
DeleteIndirectly every pound diverted from county council responsibilities is impacting ability to provide service. Adult services and childrens social services are already declaring having to downgrade service afaik. Locally several public tiolets have been shut - a minor issue for some but a real prob for some old or infirm or mothers with kids.So we are already seeing all the pessimistic forcast come real. They can only get worse for years to come.
DeleteLets see some figures on budgets . Last time i looked Golowan was the second largest single item expenditure for TC.
No one outside Golowan can say what needs doing without access to the numbers. In broad strokes the writing is on the wall for any spending outside statutory obligation. Next year the council will get less gov grant again. Voices calling for status quo continued funding of a community event risk the whole event . It will be forced by economic neccessity to justify itself and compete with wider needs.
From outside the organisation we can see that halving the funding has changed the event dramatically, so that it is well on the road to fiscal responsibility with absolutely no loss in attendance. Simply asking for accountability and clarity to ensure best value is not a crime in fact it is what responsible adults should do.
Umm see my latest blog for the costs. Cornwall council pulled funding from Golowan a couple of years ago....
DeleteYou may think the writing is on the wall and we shouldn't support community events, myself I don't agree. To borrow the capitalists saying you have to speculate to accumulate. The simple logic is if we don't support our town centre, our businesses and jobs, then the amount of tax we'll raise will fall and the statutory services provided by Cornwall Council will be in further jeopardy.
Typical lefty luvvies here...slash money against the wall on 'shinny shinny'...leaving nothing for the needy.
ReplyDeleteFirst to complain at funding shortage for essentials.
pathetic.
"Typical lefty luvvies here"
ReplyDeleteHold up, I thought we were blaming the "Tory taxpayer"...good lord, can it be that all people from both sides want to see the spending reined in?! Heavens.
I believe anonymous you're not the same anonymous as above the first commentator whoever they are is blaming lefties. For investing in events in the town centre.
DeleteTypical Tory / UKIP / BNP rightwing looney - save a few quid of tax and whinge like hell when a hotel closes.
DeleteIf no-one spent money where would your capitalist dream be then? In some offshore account.
Lafrowda festival gets only £2000 grant from StJust town council. The rest is raised though sponsorship , donation, fund raising events.
Delete