The Christmas lights are going out all over Britain because of the cost-of-living crisis – and the biggest losers are charities.
Kindhearted residents are scrapping their dazzling domestic displays this year as electricity bills – along with most other bills – push them to a dark place.
Charity bosses reckon the switch-off will reduce donations by at least £500,000 – and probably more.
May Proctor, 72, and her husband Rod, 73, whose spectacular show with thousands of lights was dubbed the most Christmassy house in Leeds last year, have raised £2,000 from visitors for their local Lions Club in two years. But this year they simply cannot afford to turn the lights on.
May said: “Last year it looked like a wonderland fairy garden. It cost us about £500 for electricity and we keep the lights up for six to eight weeks.
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“I reckon it would be about £700 plus this year and there’s no way we can afford that. It’s too much for us.”
May is just one of the Christmas-lights charity fundraisers clobbered by the huge rise in the cost of electricity that is affecting everyone in Britain – along with virtually every other bill as general inflation rockets to above 10%.
Even with the Government’s price cap of £2,500 a year, customers not on a fixed deal have been hit with a 95% rise in combined gas and electricity prices in the past 12 months. And the cap expires next April, pushing bills for the average household up to an expected £4,300, according to analysts.
Ten families in Boxberry Gardens in Milton Keynes, Bucks, raised £8,425 for a local winter night shelter for the homeless last year with a stunning display that pulled in visitors. But this year the cost of living means they cannot go ahead.
Mum-of-one Sheena Roberts, the cul-de-sac’s unofficial spokeswoman, said: “We had lots of conversations about it.
“Everyone is in a different situation of course, and we had to think can we budget for this? The increased cost of living has affected everyone.”
GP receptionist Sheena, 40, and her partner Jason Millard, 52, estimate it would cost each house an extra £200 in electricity for their displays.
Sheena added: “We just wanted to help people in our community and give back to the vulnerable.
“Hopefully next year everyone will be in a better position and we can celebrate having got through it.”
Residents of 28 houses in Burton Latimer, Northants, who raised £42,500 over three years, will also be blacked out this festive season.
Jamie Featon, 44, the driving force behind the event, said: “We supported local charities, Scouts, Guides, foodbanks, local schools, animal charities, the air ambulance, a hospice, and bought and maintained two defibrillators in our town. But with the price of energy and the cost of everything going up, we decided we couldn’t do it any more.
“It is very sad and when December comes I will feel genuinely gutted.”
Dad-of-three Iain Fleming, of Hamilton, Lanarkshire, is another cancelling his display because of spiralling costs.
Last year his 60,000-light show cost £2,000 but he pulled in 900 people to the switch-on and raised cash for kids with life-threatening illnesses.
One year he had X Factor runner-up Nicky McDonald entertaining the crowds at the switch-on. But he told his Facebook followers: “Due to various reasons, one being the current energy situation, the Christmas light display will not take place this year.”
But some diehard illuminators are cutting back on energy use so they can keep the lights on.
Appliance engineers Toni Hart and husband Alan have switched off their hot tub to save money so they can keep on the one-million-plus lights that dazzle spectators at their home in Barrow-Upon-Humber, Lincs.
They have also invested in economical LED bulbs and shortened the event by a week. It usually raises around £8,000 for charity but adds £200 to their electricity bill.
Toni, 51, said: “We normally never even think about the cost but this year energy and fuel prices have skyrocketed so we have been mindful. We usually have 200 people come to the switch-on and then probably about 50 to 100 people coming by each night. ‘They make donations and this year we are giving the money to a Christmas food hamper charity for locals.
“We are lucky that we are both working so we can afford to do this but we know not everyone can. We just want to bring a bit of festive joy.”
Ian McLintock, founder of The Charity Excellence Framework, said: “Two-thirds of people say they are considering not putting up Christmas lights this year.
“Those who spoke to The Sunday People express concern about their ability to pay.
“If half of them don’t, that would be £500,000 less for charities this Christmas.”
Matt Whittaker, chief executive of Pro Bono Economics which helps charities manage costs with the help of volunteer financial experts, added: “Many charity Christmas light displays are likely to be lost this year due to the ongoing energy crisis.
“This will mean hundreds of community groups and small charities will have to go without much-needed funds that are crucial to their existence.”
