VILLAGERS in Banwell will be kept in the dark this Christmas because North Somerset Council guidelines mean they cannot put up all their lights.
VILLAGERS in Banwell will be kept in the dark this Christmas because North Somerset Council guidelines mean they cannot put up all their lights.
Banwell Parish Council has been told by officers they must employ a structural engineer to test any light brackets at a cost of £30 a time.
At a meeting earlier this week, Cllr Pete Shipton also told his fellow members that a cherry picker would need to put lights in the village at a cost of £60 per hour.
Health and safety rules also mean councillors would need to apply for a road closure which 'could take six weeks to come through'.
Councillors had intended to put up 14 sets of lights along the main road but will now put up a Christmas tree by the memorial stone in West Street, flanked by two safety barriers, with just one set of lights.
Cllr Pete Shipton added: "We are going to have to make the best of bad job really."
Cllr Steve Robinson said: "It will be a safe Christmas in Banwell.
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