The Town Council is keen to undertake a review of the much-loved Santa Tours event, following the changes to the event last year, to look in more detail at what went well, what did not, and to look at options for improving this year’s event and making it as magical and accessible as possible.
We need your help to do this and are looking for volunteers and members of the public to serve on a new Santa Tours Sub Committee.
Your feedback and ideas will be crucial to shaping the future of this iconic event, so please consider putting your name forward.
If you wish to join this sub-committee and help shape the future of the Santa Tours event, please log your interest with the Council by ringing 01325 300700 or emailing: info@great-aycliffe.gov.uk
In the meantime, an initial review of the event is to be undertaken by the Council’s Service Review Sub-Committee. This meeting will take place on Wednesday 4th February at 7pm at the Council Offices.
The Council is very keen to hear the views of the public as part of this review and members of the public are encouraged to attend this meeting, at which there will be an opportunity to make comments and ask questions.
Why did the Santa Tours need to change last year?
The Town Council needed to make some changes to the Santa Tours last year to make the event safer, more reliable, and more accessible to everyone who wishes to see and greet Santa on Christmas Eve.
These changes were made to address concerns relating to the safety of volunteers and the public, increasing operational difficulties linked to the growing town, increasing numbers of parked cars, narrow streets, and difficulties securing enough volunteers and suitable vehicles.
The changes saw the event move to a revised ‘hybrid’ system of designated locations around the town, at set times, allowing families to choose the place and time that suits them best, giving children plenty of time to chat and have their photo taken with Santa.
This was supplemented by a limited tour of the streets that also took place with Santa inside the vehicle and not stopping, but waving as he passed.
A lot of work went into planning the changes and implementing the new hybrid system of fixed locations and a limited tour of the streets and the Council was delighted to receive a lot of assistance and support from many community organisations, public houses and churches who offered up their car parks and provided hospitality and assistance on the night.
Santa also visited all care homes on Christmas Eve morning.
In addition, the Council worked with local charity All Disabilities Matter to host a Santa’s Grotto in the town centre in the days on Christmas Eve.
These updates were made to ensure that everyone could continue to enjoy the magic of this much-loved event, while keeping our volunteers and residents safe, and reducing the risk of anyone missing out on seeing Santa.
However, the Council appreciates and understands that the changes to the event last year created some concern in the community, with a number of members of the public unhappy at the changes, some of whom attended Council Meetings to formally express their concerns.
This is why we are keen to listen to public and volunteer feedback and involve the community in shaping the future of the event.
Ultimately, the Council needs to decide whether it wishes to pursue alternative options for running the event more in keeping with in the traditional tour format, bearing in mind the difficulties and costs involved in satisfactorily mitigating the safety risks, or whether to focus on improving and adapting the fixed meeting point format whilst all the time trying to ensure the event is as accessible and magical as possible.
A Huge Thank You to the Volunteers!
The Council wishes to say a huge thank you to all volunteers who made Santa’s visits possible last year.
Your dedication helped to bring joy to hundreds of families!
Massive thanks also to all of the community organisations, public houses and churches who offered their car parks, buildings, and hospitality on the night and helped to make the fixed locations so welcoming.