Festival director Merran Fyfe said a broad program ensured a strong finish for the seven-day event.

Ms Fyfe told The Standard it was ultimately up to the council if the festival would continue, but it was her understanding if it ran on budget it would remain.

Ms Fyfe couldn’t comment on crowd numbers because they hadn’t been tallied but said the second half of the week proved to be very popular with families.

“The second half has been really strong,” she said.

Ms Fyfe said there had been a huge focus on the two to 12-year-old age group which had paid dividends.

“We made a decision with council to have a two to 12 focus and we’ve made sure we had activities to suit that age bracket,” she said.

“I’ve had a number of conversations and people have said the activities were fantastic.

“It seems to be buzzing today. It resembles an afternoon at Folkie.”

Ms Fyfe said the festival attracted people returning year after year and word of mouth played a role as well.

“I had a lady come up to me who has been coming for 12 years,” she said.

“There was a gentleman who is now bringing his grandchildren. Before he’d brought his own children.

“Now we’re seeing more and more of those people coming back.

“The family market is key.”

Ms Fyfe praised the work of volunteers who ensured the festival ran smoothly.

“The Warrnambool community should be really grateful for the work they do,” she said.

“We really appreciate what they do.”

The festival’s future was thrown into doubt after a record $593,000 operating loss caused a $143,000 budget overrun from last year’s event – the biggest since the festival began 17 years ago

Late last year the council called for community input after again agreeing to underwrite it with a proviso that it become more financially sustainable.

In 2014 it attracted about 19,500 people 3000 less than the previous year and 6000 below the 2012 attendance.

Crowd figures were the lowest since 2008 and the biggest slump was in local patronage.

Earlier this year a community advisory group was established to ensure the festival stayed within budget and attract more children.