New stretch target
Thank you for all your amazing support. With the pledge from East Sussex Community Wellbeing Fund we've reached our initial target of £10,000. With an extra stretch we can produce even more elements.
HFT CIC is raising funds to deliver the 2024 Hastings Fat Tuesday Festival, which is unable to go ahead without significant support
by Hastings Fat Tuesday CIC in Hastings, East Sussex, United Kingdom
Thank you for all your amazing support. With the pledge from East Sussex Community Wellbeing Fund we've reached our initial target of £10,000. With an extra stretch we can produce even more elements.
Arts Council England, which over past years has made major contributions to the Fat Tuesday festival budget, has been unable to support the organisation for 2024, recognising the outstanding quality and ambition of the festival but citing lack of funds and high competition.
Since its inauguration 14 years ago the festival has established itself as a major event in the town’s calendar, one off the largest grassroots music events in the Southeast. Last year, the festival scheduled more than 380 live shows across five days, reaching aggregate live audiences of more than 27,000. 80% of the events were free, removing financial barriers for all and providing a host of benefits - not only to those attending but to the local economy, the education sector and to the 500+ grassroots musicians and freelancers who took part.
The festival would usually include a music conference, community and school workshops, a community parade, Le Grand Mardi Gras Ball, the Unplugged Tour, the Tuesday Tour, Under the Radar night, the Reggae Room, Sonics and Slim Monday. Its also the stage for the Fat Tuesday Club young participants and the Hastings Fat Tuesday Youth Second Line Band.
In order to deliver a festival of any sort in February 2024 significant funds need to be raised to pay the hundreds of artists who take part. If we raise the initial £10,000 we will up the crowdfunder to allow for even more of the festival to take place.
Thank you for any support you feel able to give.
The Hastings Fat Tuesday Team