Stevenage Old Town Christmas lights switch on

From 5 to 6 pm, you’ll enjoy heart-warming carols and choir singers, plus special appearances by Boro Bear and Santa Claus himself! And we’ll be counting down together to light up the Old Town with beautiful Christmas lights at 6pm.

There will also be refreshments outside Springfield House to keep you warm and merry.

Mark your calendars for Saturday, November 30th, at the Stevenage Old Town Bowling Green – we hope to see you there to help make this a magical start to the season

This year’s Old Town Christmas Tree

For many years the council has bought a Christmas tree from the Christmas Tree Farm and displayed it on the Bowling Green for a period of a month or so, before it is cut down to be shredded into chippings. This arrangement was not very cost effective and certainly not environmentally friendly when considering the fuel used for harvesting, transport, display, and recycling.

This year, things are different! A new large Nordmann Fir tree now stands permanently at the Bowling Green in the Old Town. The new tree will not only be decorated as a feature for the festive season, going forward, it can absorb around 4000 kg of carbon in its lifetime. It will contribute to improved air quality, stabilise the soil, and its branches and cones provide valuable habitat and food for wildlife.

The idea was proposed by the Stevenage Old Town Business & Community Partnership, supported by Councillor Simon Speller, and funded by the Climate Change Community Fund. After many months of planning and finding the prefect spot, the new large Christmas tree was successfully planted on 25th October. It was a joint effort by multiple SBC teams, including Arboriculture, Cemetery, Engineering, Events, and Climate Action Teams.

If you have any green ideas for your community, please get in touch with your local ward councillor to apply for the Climate Change Community Fund (CCCF)