Great Yarmouth’s spending on Christmas decorations in 2022 increased by 65%

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Great Yarmouth Borough Council increased their spend on Christmas decorations by 65% in 2022, despite the ongoing cost-of-living crisis.

A Freedom of Information (FOI) request to the council showed that their total spend on lights, trees and decorations in 2022 was £20,747, compared to a spend of just £12,585 the year before.

This spending increase was in sharp contrast to that of King’s Lynn and West Norfolk Borough Council, whose spending on Christmas decorations in 2022 decreased slightly to £37,000, compared to £40,501 in 2021.

The Christmas lights in Great Yarmouth were switched on by the town Mayor Graham Plant in a festive event on the 2nd December.

The event also included a range of local entertainment including dancing by local dance school Iceni Dance, the cast of the St. Georges Theatre Pantomime and a choir from Norway.

Local businesses remained open later into the evening to make the most of the increased footfall to the town. However not everything went to plan, and bad weather meant the planned firework display had to be cancelled.

The increased spend on festive decorations was against the backdrop of at least one local Yarmouth foodbank reporting a steep rise in referrals for food parcels during the Christmas period, and a need for both more volunteers to pack parcels and increased food donations from the public.

When asked to comment on the increased spend, a Great Yarmouth Borough Council spokesperson said: ''The increase in spending mainly relates to the additional lights the council now has - projections and floodlighting on historic buildings around the town. As this is the first year these have been used for Christmas images, the costs include procurement and installation of the gobos and set-up costs on the seven buildings.''

The spending picture on council festive events nationally is a mixed one, with ITV reporting several local authorities across the country pulling festive displays and cancelling switch-on events to save money.

All the other district councils in Norfolk approached as part of the FOI request explained that they were not responsible for the spending on Christmas decorations so were unable to provide comparable figures.