About Crawley International Mela Association

How it all started

The Crawley Mela has been in existence since 1989. Originally a summer festival organised by Crawley Borough Council with the support of local Asian and African communities, it has until recently been coordinated and hosted by The Hawth Theatre. However as Council funding and resources became scarcer over the years, more of the administrative responsibility was taken up directly by community volunteers.

The Mela is formally established as an unincorporated voluntary association. The Constitution includes specific Objectives which make the participation of all of Crawley's ethnic and cultural communities an essential part of our success.

With grants and support from Crawley Borough Council, the Scarman Trust and the Arts Council Southeast as well as continued and very welcome facilities support from the Hawth, the 2004 Mela launched a series of major changes in approach: to play a more active and continuing role in local communities and schools; to reflect and attract interest and participation from all of our local communities; to build on the range and quality of family workshops for 'children of all ages'; to deliver full parallel programmes of quality acts on both the Community and Marquee stages and in the Hawth Theatre; and to create a varied and intriguing retail bazaar environment. We believe that this year will be exceptional in every way.

The Crawley Mela remains free, family-centred, and crucially dependant on the support of a large number of enthusiastic volunteers throughout the year and at the Mela. Anyone interested in giving their time to support the Mela is warmly invited to contact the Mela Association:

What is a Mela?