The organisers of a Shropshire cultural event have accused council chiefs of failing to understand its nature after they were refused funding.

Minsterley Eisteddfod, near Shrewsbury, was founded by Welsh lead miners who moved to the area in the 18th century.

However Shropshire Council has refused to help fund professional judges, who organisers said would improve standards.

The council said the move “might not be the best way to improve performances”.

Joe Evans, chairman of the event, today said he was surprised and disappointed by the authority’s decision and claimed leaders did not understand the principle of the eisteddfod.

“It’s taken me a bit by surprise,” said Mr Evans.

“It’s a worthwhile event in the arts world and you would have thought they would want to support a local function such as this which has a very high standard of competition.

“We have arts, music and poetry and we encourage the youngsters to get on stage.

“It’s got a Welsh name in eisteddfod and I suppose they don’t know what it means.

“It’s a festival. In England it would be called a music festival so that might be the thing they don’t understand.”

Organisers applied to Shropshire Council’s Longden, Ford and Rea Valley local joint committee for £1,500 to help meet the £5,200 cost of professional judges for the event, which is staged annually over a weekend in March.

A spokeswoman for Shropshire Council said: “While the committee were supportive of the principle of the eisteddfod, they felt that employing professional judges might not be the best way to improve performances.”