Volunteer-run lantern making workshops have started up in Sharrow in the weeks leading up to the community’s annual ‘spectacular’ lantern carnival.

The Sharrow lantern carnival will be held on March 21st in Sheffield General Cemetery, with ‘creative, welcoming, and inspiring’ lantern-making workshops being held three times a week on Saturdays, Sundays, and Thursdays in preparation. 

The carnival is run entirely by volunteers and funded by charitable donations, including the workshops.

Tim Dennell, 67, who has attended the event annually since 2016 to take photographs, said: “It’s popular with families and children as it provides opportunities for creative activities in the weeks leading up to the Carnival as well as the chance to show off their lanterns at the event itself.”

The carnival has been held at Sheffield General Cemetery for the past two years since the carnival struggled to convince police to close the roads for the former procession through Sharrow. 

Andy Smith, 60, who is the events manager at the Sheffield General Cemetery Trust, said: “It’s genuinely a really popular event in Sharrow and something that people are desperate to keep going but within all charities things are very difficult at the moment.”

Funding difficulties caused great stress for organisers of the carnival this year, who have had to balance finding more volunteers while not encouraging too much attendance that would put greater pressure on limited resources. 

Mr Smith said: “There are desperate needs for foodbanks and when people can’t eat properly and children are suffering around our city, those are obviously incredibly important and deserve the money that is available. Subsequently, things that aren’t priorities like the lantern festival or the cemetery are struggling.”