The starting line set for Saturday March 30, at East Gresford. The derby will feature a fluffy friend racing as well, according to the derby's publicity officer Penny Evans.

"We're bumping up our feature races with some surprise guests including one who may or may not be very busy over the Easter weekend getting ready to deliver some eggs," she said.

"We also have our relays which is always a hoot, watching people race down the hill and then drag their billy carts back up."

Alongside the track the derby will feature a number of off-track attractions such as hot food, the pony pat lotto, the gumboot toss, raffles and live music at the Beatty Hotel.

Keeping in the theme of a billy cart derby, money raised by the event will go towards speed safety signs in Gresford.

"We're trying to raise as much money as possible to put towards some safety signs coming into Gresford to remind people to keep to the speed limits and keep our kids safe," Ms Evans said.

"Being a little village like ours we have lots of people and kids in our community so we just want to remind people when you're visiting our village to please keep everybody safe.

"One of the signs will be in place on the day and we'll actually be able to use it to gauge the speed of the carts travelling down the street."

The derby is a long-standing event in Gresford. It was forced to take a break during the COVID-19 pandemic. It returned last year and is still a vital event to raise money for schools across the shire.

"We raised tens of thousands of dollars last year, we actually put money back into every school in the Paterson and Gresford valley. We also made a donation to all the community groups like the soccer and cricket club," Ms Evans said.

"We also managed to pay for a new mural that is a timeline of Gresford's history, that is now at the Gresford Showground."

Ms Evans said that some logistical issues have been amplified by roadworks happening on Durham Street but the committee have been able to refine their parking and traffic plans to help the event run smoothly.

She also thanked Dungog Rotary Club who are supporting the event behind the scenes.