Choose Kilwinning wish to apply for PB funding to help meet the cost of testing and installing our Christmas Lights for our Christmas Lights Switch On, a day long community event which culminates in lighting up our Main Street.
Description
Choose Kilwinning is a voluntary community group comprising of local businesses, residents and representatives from various organisations in Kilwinning. We organise and fund 2 major annual events in our town - The Segdoune Gala in May & Christmas Lights Switch On in late November. Each of these events are extremely well attended and very much enjoyed by all ages in our community.
Our Christmas Lights Switch On has been a tradition for many years, bringing festive joy and cheer to our town and the wider Ayrshire population. The day is a major event with free music & entertainment, market stalls, Santa’s Grotto and many activities for all ages, culminating in our Main Street being lit-up with Christmas lights. We strive to keep the event as a fun filled family day rather than a day that has high financial outlay for parents or individuals.
These events are possible thanks to unceasing fund-raising activities by Choose Kilwinning throughout the year. Choose Kilwinning cover all expenses for the day including security, required licences, electricity supply, entertainment and on-the-day running costs. The Christmas lights themselves are owned by Choose Kilwinning, however North Ayrshire Council (NAC) have previously erected, tested and stored the lights from the Council budget. Sadly, this is not the case for 2024 as budget constraints within NAC have resulted in this vital funding being unavailable. NAC has agreed to carry out all of the above actions to ensure the lights are safe and in place for our Switch On, but this is going to result in an additional cost of £8,500 for Choose Kilwinning. We have also contacted two external companies who can provide the service, but again there would be extra costs of £5364 or £8394.
Choose Kilwinning are determined that our Main Street and Town Centre will be lit up this Christmas and are seeking help in raising the desired amount. Without more funding Choose Kilwinning will struggle to meet this figure and our Main Street and Town Centre might not have Christmas Lights throughout the run up to and during the festive period. This would be hugely detrimental to morale and mental well-being within our community and could also have a significant impact on our local traders. Any funding received from the PB would go towards meeting this amount.
Location: The population of Kilwinning is around 19.5k. The median gross household income in almost half of all Kilwinning postcodes (45%) falls below the North Ayrshire median of £24K resulting in many households struggling with on-going costs which in turn results in poorer mental health and general well-being. Choose Kilwinning wants our community to prosper and feel good about our town by engendering a feelgood factor at local events which are open to all and cater for all age groups. We strive to have fun and enjoyable events at minimum costs on the day. Under present day financial pressures, the necessity for Christmas Lights may appear as frivolous, however they bring so much joy to many in dark, wet and cold winter evenings and the daylong event of Switch On is greatly enjoyed by so many.
Proposed on behalf of: Choose Kilwinning is a voluntary community group comprising of local businesses, residents and representatives from various organisations in Kilwinning. We are very keen to support and be supported by other local organisations as we can accomplish so much more when we work in partnership with others. On our committee, as well as residents, we have a number of business owners; 2 representatives from our Parish Church. Kilwinning Abbey; a representative from one of our School Parent Associations who is our Community Liaison; a representative from our Brownie & Guide Groups, who is our Youth Group Officer, and a representative from Fairtrade, so we are a very inclusive group. The principal objective for Choose Kilwinning is to improve, promote and develop our town for the benefit of the local population. We aim to provide affordable, enjoyable events that bring the whole community together, boosting morale and fostering an environment of joy and celebration. We bill ourselves on Facebook as “Committed to bringing our community together through engaging events and activities. Our goal is to make Kilwinning more vibrant, inclusive and connected. “
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