The Kirkintilloch Canal Festival has received a prestigious British Urban Regeneration Association award for the record-breaking 2008 Canal Festival.

The Waterways Renaissance Awards, run by The Waterways Trust and BURA (British Urban Regeneration Association), aim to recognise best practice in sustainable waterway regeneration and development throughout the UK.

The Festival was selected from a field of over 100 other entrants from across Britain and initially short listed as a finalist with two others. The nominations were judged by an independent assessment panel, comprising waterway, conservation and regeneration experts and chaired by Sir Peter Soulsby MP, with the result announced in Liverpool at a ceremony on 31st March.

In evaluating the Festival, the assessment panel commented that: "Its outstanding and exceptional feature is how the Festival has become a whole town event focussing on waterway regeneration. This waterway festival is showing the way for other regeneration initiatives in the town by getting local people enthusiastic about debating the value of their heritage."

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East Dunbartonshire Council is the Festival’s lead partner and Councillor Billy Hendry, Convener of the Council's Development & Environment Committee, said: "I'm delighted that the Festival has won this prestigious award. The event has grown from strength to strength over the last few years and is now a major tourist attraction in East Dunbartonshire, attracting visitors from all over Scotland.

"The Festival is a great example of how, through a coordinated approach, community facilities and developments can be used for events to successfully promote an area."

The 2008 Kirkintilloch Canal Festival welcomed over 27,000 visitors to Kirkintilloch Town Centre, bringing an estimated net expenditure to the local economy of over £380,000.

Preparations for the 2009 Festival are already well underway. Scheduled for the weekend of Saturday 29th and Sunday 30th August, the event will build on the success of previous years, providing a full weekend of events for all ages and interests, based around the Forth and Clyde Canal in Kirkintilloch Town Centre.

The Festival organisers have drafted in the expertise of Glasgow based event consultants GMFCo to help develop what's on offer at the event, which this year will include a range of themed boat trips, water displays, live waterside music and performance, a massive street parade, markets, fun fairs and much more.

(GK/JM)