Windermere Christmas Lights Cancelled Following Safety Inspections

The annual Christmas lights display in a town has been called off after inspections of the installations uncovered safety concerns. Windermere and Bowness Town Council in Cumbria assumed the responsibility for erecting this year’s illuminations after a volunteer organization withdrew its involvement. Nicola Hastie, who was among the group’s organizers, stated that the council had been informed that grant funding had not increased, rendering the group unable to continue. However, Town Clerk Sally Parkyn asserted that no funding issues had been raised and that, when the council took on the task, health and safety regulations made it “more complicated than we imagined.” Ms. Hastie expressed that she had “absolutely loved” assisting in the organization of the Christmas lights event over the past 10 years, which also featured a parade. Nevertheless, she noted that the council’s grant money for the parade, which included fireworks and the switch-on ceremony, had not risen. “Everything costs more now,” she said. “It was not sustainable.” She further indicated that the group felt unsupported by the town council and had communicated last year that they would not be able to proceed. “It was a hard decision to make,” she said. She described the parade and the lights as forming a “package,” adding that she hoped the absence of lights in December would prompt both residents and the town council to address the matter with greater seriousness. Mrs. Parkyn disputed the claim that volunteers had raised concerns regarding grant money. Following the group’s withdrawal, which Mrs. Parkyn stated was only confirmed over the summer, she explained that the town council engaged contractors to install the lights. However, a survey of the anchor points, which volunteers had previously utilized, revealed that they did not comply with professional safety codes. “If you’re a volunteer you can probably do things in a way that you can’t as a professional company,” she commented, further noting that insufficient time remained to rectify the problem by Christmas. Mrs. Parkyn indicated that the town council intends to commence planning for the 2025 lights in January, and she expressed “100%” confidence that the Lake District town would feature illuminations the following year. Follow BBC Cumbria on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram. Send your story ideas to northeastandcumbria@bbc.co.uk.Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.