Crowborough's 78th carnival is Saturday 12 September. The fete opens 1.30pm on Chapel Green. The evening procession route and road closures are not out yet.
Crowborough’s carnival is Saturday 12 September 2026, and it is the 78th. The afternoon fete opens at 1.30pm on Chapel Green, and the day ends with the torchlit procession through the town.
That date is confirmed twice over: on the Crowborough Bonfire & Carnival Society’s own Carnival 2026 page, which heads it “Saturday 12th September, Chapel Green”, and in East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service’s season list of every Sussex bonfire society date, published on 3 September 2026.
The afternoon: what is confirmed
The society has published these four times for Chapel Green:
| Time | What happens |
|---|---|
| 1.30pm | Carnival Day Fete opens |
| 2.30pm | Fancy dress competition judging starts |
| 3.00pm | Make a Guy judging, straight after the fancy dress |
| 4.15pm | Make a Guy winner announced |
The fete runs right through the afternoon with entertainment, refreshments, stalls, displays and a raffle. The fancy dress is open to 0 to 16 year olds, with classes listed in the programme. For Make a Guy, you bring your guy to Chapel Green at any point during the fete with your contact details attached; there is a cup for the winner and cash prizes to third place.
The evening procession: not yet published
This is the honest answer to the question most people are asking, and it is the reason to check back. As of 5 September the society had not published the procession start time, the route or the road closures. Its own words on the Carnival 2026 page:
“We will be adding more to this page as Carnival Day approaches: the procession route, road closures and the full timings for the evening.”
What is known is that the procession happens, that it goes through the town, and that visiting societies from across Sussex take part. The society’s torch crew spent successive evenings in July making nearly 5,000 torches for it. We will update this page as soon as the route and closures go up.
The programme, and where to buy it
The 2026 programme is on sale now at £1, and the society says it sets out “the whole of Carnival Day set out for you, so you know what is happening and when”. Stockists listed by the society:
- Blu Barbers
- Brew Box, London Road
- Brew Box, Goldsmiths Park
- Carson’s Tea House
- Crowborough Shoe Repairs
- Crowborough Social Club
- Fieldbuss Newsagents
- Guest Shoe Services
- Images
- Value Essentials
- White Hart, on the Green
- Zest
Where the bucket money goes
Every penny collected in the buckets during the afternoon and the evening goes to the year’s chosen good causes, and the society keeps none of it. The four for 2026, announced on 30 August, are The Good Company People, Smiles Sensory & Family Farm, Artytime and Crowborough First Responders. There is also a JustGiving page if you do not carry cash.
For scale: the 2025 carnival raised £4,065 for that year’s charities, a figure the society published on 11 October 2025.
Getting there and parking
Chapel Green is in the middle of town, next to All Saints Church. Our parking in Crowborough page has the town’s car parks and the rules that apply to them. If you are driving in from Uckfield or Buxted, check Crowborough roadworks and travel first: Framfield Road at Buxted and several A22 schemes are live this month, separately from anything the carnival itself closes.
Not the only one this month
Crowborough opens the local run of the Sussex bonfire season rather than closing it. Fletching is the next night, Mayfield the following Saturday and Buxted the one after that. The full local calendar, with which dates are confirmed by the societies themselves and which are not, is on our Crowborough fireworks and bonfire night page.
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