Decision

Barnsley Council provides Christmas lighting in the town centre each year to decorate and light up the town centre from late November each year until early January. The Council owns the lighting stock for the town centre and uses a contractor to erect and take down the lights each year. In addition, these lights are also stored, tested, and maintained by the contractor.

The current four-year contract for the storage, testing, installation and removal of the Christmas Lights was procured after competitive tender and concluded in 2022/23. The Glass Works lighting supply was added to the existing contract in 2020.

In order to secure best value, both the town centre and Glass Works requirements will be combined into a single procurement and issued for competitive tender for the next three seasons with a maximum total budget allocated of £237,000 for the three seasons.

Reasons for the decision

The Christmas programme is an important element of supporting the town centre economy. The prosperity of the town centre during this period is key for the range of businesses across the town creating an environment that attracts and increases the visitor economy together with encouraging residents to use the town centre for shopping, hospitality and wider entertainment.

It seeks to help towards the festive flavour, showcasing the town’s Christmas retail offer and assist in maximising shopping visits and increase Christmas trade for the benefit of town centre traders, during what is seen by most traders as the most important and significant trading period in the shopping year. This is particularly important as experience is cited as a key reason for consumers to shop in person, offering a reason to compete with online sales, and ensuring local spend is maximised with the town centres businesses.

Alternative options considered

Not providing Christmas Lights was considered however there is a risk that this could impact detrimentally on the economic performance of the town centre and Glass Works at a key seasonal time of year for retail and leaisure operators.

The Glass Works Christmas lights are funded via tenant service charges, with tenants having a requirement for the Glass Works to be illuminated and decorated for Christmas. These resources have already been set aside within the Glass Works annual management budget and is not an additional cost.