How did the Notting Hill Carnival start?

Notting Hill Carnival started from the Windrush generation who were mainly Caribbean migrants. They came to England to help build the country in the late 1940s and early 1950s. The attitudes at that time meant they faced a lot of bullying because they were different. To celebrate their differences and help others understand and like their culture, they created a plan to bring everyone together - mainly the black community but they had their arms open to others as well. 

Claudia Jones was the leading member of the West Indian Workers and Students’ Association and a popular figure in the black community. Notting Hill Carnival was inspired by the indoor events that Jones started on 30 January 1959 and some of the money made from it was used to help the people who were affected by unfair treatment. The indoor carnivals lasted for six years under the slogan “A people’s art is the genesis of their freedom”. Jones sadly passed away in 1964 and a lady called Rhaune Laslett invited members of the black community to take part in a street fair in Notting Hill.

Laslett invited a steel band to appeal to the Caribbeans living in the area. When the steel band came to the first Notting Hill Carnival in 1965, almost every Caribbean came onto the streets in celebration, song and dance enthused by the great versions of popular songs being played on the pan by Trindadians. Jamaicans then incorporated massive sound systems that had everyone's throats and hearts wobbling. This was the first time black people were able to express themselves freely on the streets of Notting Hill. 

Last year around two million people attended the 2023 Notting Hill Carnival over two days, from August 26–28, and you’ll see why as you read the next articles…