We’ve been really quite fortunate here in Horsham in that we’ve enjoyed dazzling Christmas lights displays in recent years.
Compare Horsham’s lights to Haywards Heath’s usual flimsy, end-of-the-aisle sale rack budget production or Crawley’s sad, sporadically placed mish-mash of festive furnishings and we’ve got something we should have been proud of and grateful for.
Sadly though - and we suspect that the majority of people at Horsham District Council share this view - funding of the lights is to be cut following a recent review.
It is a real shame, and it’s sad for The Resident to note that it was fellow journalists who caused the review - the council’s spending on the lights was put in the media spotlight prior to last Christmas when Horsham was compared with other major towns in the South East, some of which received little or no council funding at all.
Of course, during testing economic times spending must be reviewed, but it was a cheap shot to target the town’s lights - the switching on of the lights felt like one of the few times where many residents felt they were getting something back for their hefty council tax payments.
It was revealed that last year Horsham District Council spent £61,800 on Christmas lighting in Horsham town centre and an additional £9,250 was provided in grants to parish councils around the District.
Owing to the current economic climate and a reduction in the Council's income, the figures for Christmas lights this year (2009) are to be £14,450 for Horsham town and £9,250 to parish councils.
Cllr Robert Nye, Leader of Horsham District Council, said: “We deeply regret the need to cut this budget, however we can no longer justify the higher budget and must look to encourage the town traders to begin to make a contribution to the lights.
“Raising additional funds through local business and public initiatives will need be on the agenda if Horsham and the market towns are to continue to provide Christmas lighting displays to be proud of.
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