Fears North Ayrshire towns will be dark at Christmas over lights 'bombshell' funding blow

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Kilwinning Christmas lights organisers fear the town will be dark this festive period after being slapped with a 'bombshell' fundraising blow.As part of swingeing budget cuts, a decision was taken to axe the installation and testing of lights for groups across the region.Now the community-led group that brings festive cheer to Kilwinning each year faces forking out over £5000 to have the work carried out.The sum is a devastating amount for an event that already costs around £8000 to put on each year, meaning that more than half of Choose Kilwinning's budget would be swallowed up before a light was turned on.More recently, groups were issued with a letter outlining that groups would have to self-fund everything, including licenses.Choose Kilwinning work on a fixed yearly budget which they decide at the start of the year, they also have grant funding which was based on figures they had and their fundraising are planned to cover costs they forecasted from last years event’s activities such as Santa and their stage.Choose Kilwinning says that the "timescales the council now expects groups to work to are unreasonable and the lack of support is cruel."Chair of Choose Kilwinning and campaign co-ordinator, Aaran McDonald said: "Four months after the decision was taken, months after local councillors asked for more detail and months after we had to start planning for Christmas, the council dropped this bombshell on us!"The costs they are asking us to cover only months out from the event would be hard for even the most energetic group to raise!"The council must know that we start planning and fundraising for Christmas almost immediately after we turn on the lights and yet they have waited until now to smack us with these huge