Sunday 30 October was the last day of our 2022 tour and our final tour date. We were open in Reading, Prospect Park, a site we have been visiting since the 1980s. The fair had an incredible amount of visitors across the weekend – we feel so privileged to have such a supportive community of fans around the UK and beyond.
We’ve had a few questions so Joby Carter has shared some more information to answer some of the main questions about the future of Carters Steam Fair including what size plot of land we are looking for and his vision for creating an all year round attraction.
What happens next for Carters Steam Fair?
We have now returned to our White Waltham yard and we are getting ready for an action packed winter of signwriting courses. We also have an open day at our headquarters coming up too! This will be free for our Patreon community or members of the public can buy tickets. We’ll share more information on our social media channels soon.
Is Carters Steam Fair for sale?
We’re on a mission to do everything we can to find a permanent home for the fair whether that is by selling it to a new owner who can host it at their existing visitor attraction or by finding suitable land that can be developed into a new visitor attraction.
We’d like to build an educational centre alongside the fair and to create a hands-on experience of science, technology, engineering, art and maths with a dash of good old-fashioned fun. This would ensure that the unique legacy of the vintage rides continues, but also that the traditional skills of signwriting and fairground art are kept alive for future generations.
Our rare vintage ride collection spans over 70 years of British fairground history and fairground art from 1895 to 1965, all of which we have preserved and maintained in immaculate working order for everyone to enjoy.
We have pledged that we will spend the next 12 months raising awareness of the fair with anyone that may be able to help us find a permanent home. This includes speaking to individuals involved in heritage and the arts at a national level, government representatives, potential investors and those with expertise to guide us through these next stages.
If we are to develop a new site, we need external help in the form of investment and guidance. As a small family business, we are experts at touring the fair, but we are not experts in buying and developing land and creating the infrastructure that a permanent visitor attraction needs. We have committed to spending the next year exploring different options for this, but if we can’t find the right solution then we will look at selling the rides individually at auction.
What location or plot size do you need for the fair?
A permanent site for the fair needs to be at least 5 acres and to have good road access, ideally on an A road. We’d also need to apply for planning permission to build a large building to house the fair which will ensure greater longevity for the rides and the fairground art.
It would be great if we can find a site which already has good visitor footfall, but we are also looking at ways that we can encourage visitors all year round with a range of free and paid activities.
Why is Carters Steam Fair up for sale?
there are a combination of factors that have influenced the decision, you can read more about that in our previous article ‘the end of an incredible era and the search for a permanent home’
How can you help Carters Steam Fair find a permanent home?
We’d love your help in spreading the word: please keep sharing your personal memories of the fair and sharing posts like this one. The more lovely comments we have, the more we can demonstrate the support in keeping this unique piece of British fairground history alive. Every time you share one of our posts, we increase the chance of being seen by someone that can help! Every connection helps!
If you work for a visitor attraction or heritage trust and would like to talk to us, please get in touch: [email protected]
You can also keep your memories of the fair alive with our range of Carters memorabilia and fairground art posters on our website. There is a new range of fridge magnets coming soon too. Even something as small as a magnet on your fridge can help spark a discussion and help us make the right connections! https://www.carterssteamfair.co.uk/product…/merchandise/
You can also sign up to our email newsletter and we will keep you in the loop with any news about the fair as well as the latest about our signwriting and fairground art.
Thank you all,
Joby and Georgina Carter
Drone Photo Credit – Matt Delahoussaye
