This bank holiday weekend, the streets of Notting Hill once again set the stage for one of the greatest celebrations on Earth.

Children danced through the streets in a blaze of colour. Costume-makers with deft fingers created masterpieces from feathers, sequins and gems. Street vendors served up world-class pepperpot, Trinidadian roti and jerk chicken, and sound systems and steelpan bands shook the streets with the unmistakable sound of carnival.

On its 60th anniversary, Notting Hill carnival proved itself to be bigger, bolder and more vibrant than ever. It’s now the world’s second-largest street festival, attracting people from around the globe and generating a whopping £400m for our economy each year.

But carnival has always been much more than just a party. It’s a loud and proud celebration of Caribbean culture and the extraordinary contribution that Caribbean communities have made to our capital city. For me, it represents London at its very best: people of different ages, backgrounds, colours and creeds coming together, sharing in the joy of one another’s traditions and cultures, and celebrating the incredible diversity that has come to define the city we all call home.

That’s why I was delighted to step forward with an additional £4.66m of funding – more than triple the amount we provided last year – to help ensure Londoners and visitors could once again........

© The Guardian