Organisers of the Nottinghamshire County Show say it will return as a one-day event again next year after its new format and a return to focussing on its rural roots brought a bumper crowd flocking through the gates.
The Newark and Nottinghamshire Agricultural Society, which hosted the show at the Newark Showground last weekend, says that the event attracted more than 14,000 people in total thanks to its mixture of competitions, trade stands, animals, music and entertainment – helped by a timely spell of hot sunny weather.
The attendance is in line with the combined total that the show would have been expected to attract over the course of its previous two-day format, but figures show that there was a significant increase in the numbers of people aged under 17 – by 30% – attending the show compared to previous years.
A bumper crowd of 14,000 people visited this year’s Nottinghamshire County Show, which was held on one day rather than the usual two, a decision which has been hailed as a success.
This is being put down to a rise in the numbers of families attending and the organisers’ efforts to engage younger people in countryside living.
The committee took the decision to reduce the show to one day during discussions held over lockdown, when the show took an enforced two-year break because of COVID regulations.
Its members also agreed to focus more on the heart of the show – the rural traditions and the huge contribution that the agricultural sector makes to the economy and way of life of the county and the food industry.
And it wanted to tap into the current popularity of TV farming programmes, including Clarkson’s Farm, Kelvin’s Big Farming Adventure and Channel Five’s Springtime on the Farm.
The countryside games area at the Nottinghamshire County Show proved to be extremely popular with younger visitors, who made up a larger proportion of the crowd than in previous events.
Show organiser Elizabeth Halsall said: “We have had a great deal of tremendous feedback from visitors and competitors over the past couple of days saying how much they enjoyed and preferred the new one-day format and the attendance figures certainly supported the decision to switch.
“The turnout beat all of our expectations and there is no doubt that returning the show to its agricultural roots was the right decision, especially since it gave a new generation of younger visitors a glimpse into rural life.”
