Save Brockley Max

The Brockley Max story began 18 years ago when Moira Tait decided to start a festival to showcase the area’s amazing creative talent.  From its humble beginnings in 2001, in which 12 events took place at two venues, Brockley Max has now grown to over 80 events at 40 different venues during the 9 days of the festival.  

 As the festival has evolved over the years, so has the organising committee; 10 dedicated volunteers, all of whom are local residents, start planning in September the following years events. The festivals growth means that it’s not just the number of events that has expanded, but also the costs associated with running it, and over the last 18 years, the committee have managed to find the money to keep the Brockley Max going by diversifying income which now includes sponsorship, advertising, raffle ticket sales, event sales and until last year, funding from Lewisham Council.  

 And of course, Brockley Max would not happen without the support and goodwill of hundreds of volunteers, from performers and event organisers, to stewards and raffle ticket sellers.

 The festivals ethos has stayed the same over the years, to celebrate our community’s creative talent, to stay accessible to everyone by keeping most of the events free, and to connect the community to local businesses. 

 For the first time, however, Brockley Max is under threat as 90%  of our Council funding has ceased. We are short of £6500 which covers printing of the festival programme, posters and banners, running the website, equipment hire for the Opening Night and Art In The Park, art materials, licences and volunteer costs for example. We need your help to keep this amazing community festival running next year and beyond.


How will this money be spent?

The festival committee starts work on Brockley Max in August of the previous year, applying for funds, and approaching sponsors and advertisers. In the new year, we start working on our events programme and by the end of July, after each years festival, all the funding evaluations and accounts are done. 

The majority of the organising committee give their time for free, but there are a couple of key paid positions; all local and you can meet them here : 

Brockley Max costs about £30,000 each year to run and is spent on the following:

printing and publicity - £2800

volunteer costs - £4500

office overheads - £1200

professional fees - £13,400

and event costs - £8,000

Income for this is raised through sponsorship and advertising (approximately 35%), income from events/stalls at 15%, fundraising at 10%, and in the past approximately 40% came from funders and Lewisham Council.  

 
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Photos by Caro Swan  www.swanaround.co.uk