Agenda item

            The Committee considered the following report:

 

“1.0     Purpose of Report / Summary of Main Issues

 

1.1       To provide members with a report and overview of the 2025 festive lighting scheme.

 

 

2.0       Recommendations

 

2.1       Note the contents of this report and request to facilitate a Members workshop for planning for 2026.

 

3.0       Main Report

 

3.1       Background and Programme Context

 

            The Culture Team currently led on the delivery of the Council’s Christmas Lighting Scheme, working in partnership with appointed contractors, Business Improvement Districts (BIDs), internal Estates and Property teams, and private landowners to deliver a city centre-wide festive lighting programme.

 

            In March 2025, a new tender was issued inviting proposals from contractors to deliver the city’s Christmas lighting provision. This procurement process reflected a shift in approach, recognising the importance of festive lighting not only as seasonal decoration, but as a strategic cultural and economic intervention supporting city centre vitality.

 

            The tender placed particular emphasis on the role of Christmas lighting in contributing to economic recovery, reinforcing Belfast City Centre’s position as a major retail, leisure and cultural destination, encouraging increased footfall, and enhancing the overall visitor experience during the peak winter trading period.

 

            This approach aligns with the broader principles of the City’s Lighting Strategy, which positions lighting as a core component of public realm quality, place identity, safety, and the activation of the night-time economy.

 

3.2       Strategic Objectives of the Christmas Lighting Scheme

 

            One of the core objectives of the Christmas Lighting Programme is to improve connectivity and coherence across the city centre, creating strong visual and experiential linkages between key destinations, including:

 

·        Belfast Christmas Market at City Hall

·        Victoria Square Shopping Centre

·        CastleCourt Shopping Centre

·        Primary pedestrian corridors such as Royal Avenue and Donegall Place

 

            The lighting scheme is therefore not intended as a series of isolated installations, but as a coordinated city centre network that supports pedestrian movement, wayfinding, and dwell time across multiple retail, leisure and cultural anchors.

 

3.3       2025 Programme Delivery and Performance

 

            2025 Infrastructure Uplift and Enhancements

 

            As part of the 2025 programme uplift, Department for Infrastructure (DfI) lighting columns were upgraded in line with current electrical and safety standards. This enabled the safe addition of column-mounted Christmas lighting features across the city centre.

 

            Additional lighting was installed along Royal Avenue, including illumination of street trees. This intervention was widely recognised by BIDs and private landowners as having a positive impact on the inner-city core, contributing to improved ambience and increased evening activity.

 

            New lighting curtain installations were introduced on Castle Place and Fountain Lane, alongside colour-controlled festoon lighting on Garfield Street. Going forward, both the Fountain Lane lighting curtain and the Garfield Street festoon installations will remain in situ, with no additional cost to the Council, providing ongoing value from the initial investment.

 

            Some minor issues were recorded during the season, primarily relating to servicing and loading vehicles coming into contact with lighting elements. In total, there were approximately 6 contractor call-outs related to maintenance and minor repairs.

 

            Festive Lighting Commission and Switch-On Event

 

            The full festive lighting programme was safely installed and fully operational in advance of the official Christmas Lights Switch-On event. Delivery was achieved within required timescales and in compliance with all relevant health and safety requirements.

 

            The Culture Team worked closely with: City Centre BIDs, Council Estates and Property Teams, and Private landowners and managing agents to secure approximately 84 wayleave agreements for the installation of eyebolts and fixings, enabling lighting infrastructure to be installed across privately owned frontages and buildings.

 

            The successful completion of these agreements in advance of the Christmas period was critical to programme delivery and is acknowledged as a significant collaborative achievement across multiple stakeholders.

 

 

3.4       Issues for Long-Term Sustainability and Improvement

 

            While the 2025 programme was delivered successfully, a number of structural and strategic issues have been identified which require longer-term planning and intervention to ensure future viability and growth of the programme. Delivery of enhancements as part of the future strategy would be dependent on additional finance being available

 

            Benchmarking and Tourism-Led Lighting Models

 

            Comparable cities such as Dundalk have demonstrated the economic value of treating festive lighting as a tourism product, capable of attracting regional visitors and extending dwell time.

 

            In December 2025, representatives from the Culture Team, BIDs, the Night Czar’s Office, Belfast Chamber and CGR committee undertook a benchmarking visit to Dundalk to review their Christmas programme and large-scale lighting installations, including programme structure, infrastructure models and governance arrangements.

 

            Learning from this model will inform future strategic direction for Belfast’s Christmas lighting offer.

 

            It is suggested that a future strategy should address four critical and interdependent components:

 

·        City Spectacle: Developing a format and programme capable of functioning as a large-scale tourism product.

·        City-Wide Reach: Exploring how to achieve greater lighting density and presence beyond the core city centre.

·        Pathways: Building local skills, knowledge and career pathways within cultural sector for lighting and production

·        Infrastructure: Addressing key infrastructure challenges and mitigating future operational risks.

 

3.5       Infrastructure Challenges and Electrical Supply

 

            The current Christmas lighting infrastructure is heavily reliant on private electrical feeds, which presents a number of risks:

 

·        Increased health and safety considerations

·        Reduced operational control for the Council

·        Vulnerability to changes in property ownership, tenancy, or redevelopment

 

            In addition, ongoing city centre development has led to the gradual loss of previously available fixing points and electrical connections. This has resulted in a resource-intensive annual process to maintain lighting density and secure new permissions and access arrangements.

 

            This environment limits the Council’s ability to plan multi-year installations or invest in more permanent and resilient infrastructure solutions.

 

            Future Technologies and Adaptive Approaches

 

            There is a need for a more agile and future-focused approach to festive lighting, recognising that:

 

·        Lighting technologies are evolving rapidly

·        Energy efficiency and sustainability expectations are increasing

·        Audience engagement is shifting towards immersive and interactive experiences

 

            Any future strategy should therefore allow flexibility to adapt to emerging technologies, sustainability standards and new artistic approaches over the next decade, rather than relying on static formats or short-term installations.

 

            City-Wide Approach: Geographic Spread and Equity

 

            At present, festive lighting remains heavily concentrated within the city centre core, with limited provision across city neighbourhoods and local high streets.

 

            This raises concerns regarding:

 

·        Equitable distribution of cultural investment

·        Support for neighbourhood retail centres

·        Opportunities for community-led festive identity and participation

 

            Future models should explore scalable and adaptable approaches that allow festive lighting to support local place-making across a wider geographic footprint, while maintaining overall programme coherence and quality.

 

3.6       Stakeholder Engagement and Current Actions

 

            The Culture Team is currently working with:

 

·        City Centre BIDs to gather structured feedback from businesses

·        The lighting contractor to evaluate operational improvements

·        Internal Council departments to review infrastructure and permissions processes

 

            This feedback is being collated to inform refinements to the 2026 programme and longer-term strategic considerations.

 

            In addition, the Culture Team is developing a Members’ Workshop, which will provide an opportunity to:

 

·        Review current challenges and constraints

·        Consider alternative delivery and infrastructure models

·        Explore funding and partnership opportunities

·        Begin development of a longer-term Christmas Lighting Strategy for the city

 

            Next Steps and Strategic Direction

 

            The intention is to move towards a more strategic, sustainable and place-based approach to Christmas lighting, which:

 

·        Supports economic regeneration objectives

·        Enhances the city’s cultural offer and visitor experience

·        Reduces operational and safety risks

·        Builds local creative and technical capacity

·        Enables more equitable city-wide participation

 

            Following the Members’ Workshop and further stakeholder engagement, officers will bring forward proposals outlining potential strategic options, investment requirements and delivery models for Member consideration.

 

4.0       Financial and Resource Implications

           

            There are currently no financial implications attached to this report.

 

5.0       Equality or Good Relations Implications / Rural Needs Assessment

 

            There are no Equality or Good Relation Implications attached to this report.”

 

The Committee:

 

i.       noted the contents of the report; and

 

ii.      agreed that a Members’ workshop be held on the Festive Lights planning for 2026.