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Organisers of one of the longest running Scottish gatherings in the Southern Hemisphere, Waipu’s Highland Games, are changing its traditional date from New Year’s Day to December 31.
Waipu Caledonian Society said the struggle to find helpers and the increasing difficulties of running a major event on a public holiday had forced their hands.
“The decision to change the date was hard for the members to make,” life member and former games chief Donald Ewen said.
“The rationale is the increasing difficulty of being able to secure caterers, vendors and volunteers on a public holiday.”
He added that any criticism of the decision was mostly coming from non-members and “those who have not been involved in the New Year’s Day preparation, running and clean-up after”, and said the advantages outweighed the disadvantages.
