Gala Day made festive by Crossgates Events Committee
Crossgates Events Committee (CEC), or as it is more commonly known ‘The Gala Day Committee’ was re-established in August 2011 as a result of a desire in the community to re-introduce a Children’s Gala Day.
The Gala Day had been the tradition in the latter half of the 20th century.
Crossgates Events Committee received funding from the Mossmorran Wind Farm Ltd Community Fund to support the delivery of the 2021 event. The Mossmorran Communitiy Fund supports community projects that benefit residents living in the Hill of Beath, Cowdenbeath and Crossgates & Mossgreen Community Council areas.
To fund the gala day, Crossgates Events Committee has a year-round timetable of events to raise money which includes a Christmas Fair, a psychic evening, street collections and quiz nights. The gala day is also supported by local businesses and personal donations. Prior to the day, each child resident in the village receives a gala bag containing sweets and vouchers, plus a wrist band which provides free unlimited access to all the attractions on the day. An active Facebook page promotes the event and maintains links with the local community throughout the year, with an average 1000 people attending annually.
When the Committee came to planning the 2021 Gala Day, they realised that much of the original equipment to support the delivery of the event was showing wear and tear, and the committee decided to make an application to the Mossmorran Wind Farm Community Fund to refresh this core equipment. They were awarded almost £1,000 in 2020 to fund essential insurance cover and the purchase of simple things like mallets, high-vis vests and walkie-talkies to make sure the event went ahead safely and smoothly.
However, Covid restrictions meant that the 2021 gala event had to be cancelled, much to the disappointment of the community as a whole. Some equipment had already been purchased, but once it was clear the event could not go ahead, the Committee contacted Foundation Scotland staff to discuss a reprofiling of their grant.
Recognising that this represented the second consecutive year that children in the area had missed out on a community event, the Committee was keen to deliver some form of activity, still conforming with lockdown and social distancing rules, which could be delivered during the Christmas break.
An alternative use was agreed and so at Christmas time, in a sleigh drawn by a large red tractor, Santa visited Crossgates, distributing selection boxes to all children and gifts to the local care home.
Future events will go ahead, benefitting from the equipment purchased from this grant, but the flexibility was appreciated by both the group and the community.
Reflecting on the grant, a member of the Events Committee said:
It has been a tough couple of years for the gala committee but we have been determined to provided something for the local community to make up for the disappointment of Gala Day being cancelled. If original plans can’t go ahead there is something that can still be done safely and within the restrictions that allows the community spirit of Gala Day to happen in other ways.
The Mossmorran Wind Farm Community Fund opened in 2016 and grant sizes range from £250 to £2,000. These grants support a range of activities, for example those that enhance the quality of life for local residents, contribute to vibrant, healthy, successful and sustainable communities or that promote community spirit and encourage community activity.