Town council could spend £60,000 on Whitby’s Christmas lights for next three years

The feeling that Christmas festivities start earlier every year is a well-recorded phenomenon, and in the case of Whitby Town Council, the so-called ‘Christmas Creep’ starts in April.

Christmas could also come early for the successful bidder of the contract, which is worth £60,000, according to a listing on the government’s Contracts Finder site.

An extraordinary meeting of the Town Council on Tuesday, April 29, will discuss plans to recruit a contractor to provide lighting for the town centre from mid-November to early January for the next three years.

According to the town clerk, the Christmas Lights sub-committee will be convened to consider the applications received and to make recommendations to the council.

The clerk added that “a full council meeting will be convened to make the decision”.

The selected contractor must be able to supply, install and remove the rented lights across the centre of town, from “lighting columns along Langborne Road, New Quay Road and St Anne’s Staith, from fittings spanning Baxtergate, Lion Bank, Church Street and the face of the Old Town Hall”.

The council also requires the dressing of Christmas Trees at the end of Baxtergate, Bridge Street and Bagdale, according to a tender notice.

In the event of an emergency, the contractor “must be able to attend the site within two hours, and for all other call-outs, attendance is required within 24 hours – the company shall explain how any faulty equipment will be remedied and how quickly this shall be done”.

The notice states: “To be considered, interested contractors must demonstrate a proven track record, supported by evidence of previous or similar projects.”