Sheffield fairground history to be celebrated thanks to National Lottery

One of Britain’s oldest travelling fairground families is set to tell its remarkable story for the first time after receiving a £120,248 grant from The National Lottery Heritage Fund.

The funding has been awarded to Jon Pullins Amusements Sheffield Ltd to deliver The Showmen of Sheffield, an ambitious two-and-a-half-year heritage project celebrating the Pullin family’s extraordinary contribution to Sheffield’s social history while preserving traditional fairground skills that are now at risk of disappearing.

For generations, the Pullin family has brought colour, excitement and entertainment to parks and open spaces across Sheffield, creating treasured memories for countless local families. Their remarkable story stretches back centuries, making them one of Britain’s oldest travelling fairground families.

Thanks to National Lottery players, the 30-month project will celebrate the Pullin family’s unique heritage while recording the memories of the thousands of Sheffield people whose lives have been touched by the city’s travelling fairs.

Volunteers and local communities will help collect photographs, memorabilia and oral histories, creating the first comprehensive archive of Sheffield’s travelling showmen. The project will also explore the important role fairs have played in bringing communities together and helping generations of children and families create lasting memories in the city’s parks.

A major focus of the project will be safeguarding traditional fairground crafts, including the specialist hand-painting and decorative artwork used on vintage rides.

Two historic 1950s children’s rides will be carefully restored as part of the project, providing opportunities for volunteers and visitors to learn about these rare heritage skills first-hand.

The project will also include exhibitions, a documentary film, podcasts, creative workshops, school activities, interpretation panels in parks associated with the Pullin family, a commemorative book, children’s activity resources and the creation of a dedicated Pullin Family Collection within the National Fairground and Circus Archive.

Jon Pullin said: “We are absolutely delighted to have received this support from The National Lottery Heritage Fund. Thanks to National Lottery players, we can finally tell the story of our family and the wider travelling showmen community in the way it deserves to be told.

“Our family has spent generations bringing enjoyment to Sheffield’s parks, but this project is about far more than us. It’s about the people who visited the fairs, worked on them, grew up with them and made lifelong memories there.”

Helen Featherstone, Director, England, North at The National Lottery Heritage Fund, said: “We’re thrilled to be supporting the Showmen of Sheffield project thanks to money raised by National Lottery players. Travelling fairgrounds will have brought joy to many over the years, so it is fantastic that this project will record that heritage for future generations and preserve traditional fairground crafts such as the instantly recognisable hand-painting we see when the fair comes to town.”

The Showmen of Sheffield will work with volunteers, schools, community groups and heritage organisations throughout the project, ensuring that this important part of Sheffield’s social history is preserved for future generations while giving the travelling showmen community the opportunity to tell its own story.

It has operated there since the 1980s.

Another operator is expected to be brought in in November, but it is not known what they will have on offer to the public.

Supporters of Pullins have launched a petition objecting to the family firm losing the contract.