Childhood memories are falling victim to cash cuts

BORN and raised in inner-city Radford, my year's highlights were major free events.

- By LOUIS CORBETT

From the Forest Recreation Ground fireworks to the colourful carnival passing through the heart of Nottingham, there were things going on, things that were free.

However, upon moving back to the city from Sheffield, I found that, in my absence and since the pandemic, the large-scale events I grew up loving have slowly disappeared. For the 18 years I lived in the inner city, I loved the cultural celebrations we were able to host, particularly Nottingham's carnival, which used to pass through Radford, Berridge and Hyson Green before ending at the Forest Recreation Ground.

This event was celebrated by the community, something that was around me for all the years I lived there - so why did it move back to the Embankment?

The event started in 1958 at the Embankment, but its move to the Forest Recreation Ground was celebrated in the surrounding areas the parade passed through.

It was an event eagerly awaited each August, yet it disappeared from the city centre and was moved back to its old location. This meant that for the people around me, celebrating their heritage, it was harder to get to as it was moved to the other side of the city.

This was a real loss to those communities based around the vicinity of the city centre and a loss for those wanting to celebrate a free event.