PEOPLE power will reign at this year’s Winton Carnival with spectators given the responsibility of choosing the winning entrant.

A series of changes are being made to the hugely popular carnival this year, including the introduction of a new trophy for the person or organisation that polls the most votes.

There will also be a new dance marquee, where community dance troupes will be able to showcase their skills.

This year’s carnival will be held on Saturday, June 28. The parade will start from the junction of Wimborne Road and Calvin Road at about 11am and will wind its way down to Winton Recreation Ground, where the party will continue until 5pm.

Carnival chair Michelle Carroll said: “The idea is that the people watching the parade will be asked to take note of their favourite entrant and then vote for them at the carnival HQ tent at Winton Recreation Ground.

“We’ve got a special machine that will record everybody’s vote and the winner will be announced at around 4pm.

“We’ve never done anything like this before but everybody involved in the parade puts so much time and effort in and it seemed a shame not to have a prize.”

And project organiser Molly Heinrich said: “To my knowledge we are the only carnival where the audience will be able to vote for the winner. The carnival is already such a great community event and we think increasing the audience participation element will make it even more popular.”

She paid tribute to former carnival organiser Anson Westbrook, who died in 2012. “We were fortunate that we had a wonderful foundation left to us by Anson.”

Anyone interested in taking part in the parade, performing in the dance marquee or helping with the carnival should visit www.wintonforum.co.uk/carnival