Hundreds of people turned out last night for the annual Christmas late night shopping in Boroughbridge.

The event is organised by Boroughbridge and District Chamber of Trade to give businesses a pre-Christmas boost and to foster community spirit.

About 45 shops in a town with a high percentage of independent traders stayed open late.

A visit by Santa Claus, courtesy of Boroughbridge Lions, plus Christmas carols, mulled wine and roasted chestnuts created a festive feel.

The Christmas tree lights were also officially switched on.

Besides shops in the town centre, the nearby Tap on the Tutt pub on Horsefair took part by hosting about a dozen market stalls outside their premises.

Hairdressers Watkins Wright beat 20 other entrants in the shop window display competition, which adopted the theme ‘Christmas chart hits – with a Christmas theme’.

Here are some photos from last night’s event.

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The hog roast sold out.

Carol singers

The Crown Hotel looking festive.

Hundreds of people turned out last night.

The Christmas tree lights were officially switched on.

The Tap on the Tutt hosted about a dozen stalls.

Boroughbridge will hold its annual late night Christmas shopping event tonight (December 6).

About 45 shops and businesses will be open late and judging will take place for the shop window display competition, which was won last year by estate agency GSC Grays.  Twenty-one organisations have entered this year under the theme ‘Christmas chart hits – with a Christmas theme’.

The event will begin with the official switch-on of the Christmas tree lights in Hall Square at 5.30pm by radio presenter Georgey Spanswick and Boroughbridge mayor Sean Hynes.

Organised by Boroughbridge and District Chamber of Trade, there will be children’s rides, a hog roast, mulled wine and roast chestnuts.

Boroughbridge Lions will host Santa and his sleigh and there will be performances by three school choirs from Boroughbridge Primary, Roecliffe Primary and Boroughbridge High School.

Independent of the chamber’s event, The Tap on the Tutt pub on Horsefair is organising some temporary market stalls outside their premises tonight too.

The chamber said in a statement:

“Last year’s event was truly marvellous, with an amazing number of people turning out in support of the event – it will certainly be a challenge to top that.”

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Boroughbridge Duck Race made a triumphant bank holiday return yesterday.

All 750 ducks were snapped up as people flocked to the River Ure for the fun.

The first duck race took place in 2019 but, due to covid, had not returned until this year.

Boroughbridge Lions organised the race to raise money for local causes.

Presentations took place afterwards at the Tap on the Tutt pub near the river.

Simon Wade, who owns the pub and was the force behind reviving the event, hopes the duck race will become an annual event.

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Here are some photos from the day taken by Pete Durkin.

Boroughbridge Lions volunteers prepare for the race.

Crowds line the bridge over the Boroughbridge to cheer on the ducks.

The ducks are released into the Ure.

Retrieving the ducks afterwards.

The event generated community spirit.

Lions members organised the event.

A late entry for the race.

The Tap on the Tutt was the focal point of duck race day.

A charity duck race will take place over the bank holiday weekend in Boroughbridge.

The first duck race took place in 2019 but, due to covid, has not been able to return until this year.

Sunday’s race is organised by the charity Boroughbridge Lions to raise money for local causes. It will take place from the weir to the bridge on the River Ure.

A total of 1,000 plastic ducks will race for the top prize of £200 cash. The owners of the first 10 to finish will all receive cash prizes.

The race starts at 11am and the winners’ presentation will take place at the Tap on the Tutt at 1230pm.

In a Facebook post about the event, Boroughbridge Lions said:

“Your bathtime duck pal is supporting our local community, you can too for only two Yorkshire pounds.”

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Festive spirit will be flowing in Boroughbridge tonight as the town hosts its annual late-night shopping, Christmas tree lights switch-on and a visit from Santa.

The event, organised Boroughbridge and District Chamber of Trade, will see shops stay open until 8pm.

The night will begin with the official Christmas tree lights switch-on in Hall Square at 5.30pm, followed by carols from three school choirs — Boroughbridge Primary and High School and Roecliffe Primary.

Boroughbridge Lions will host Santa and his sleigh and there will be community stalls, children’s rides and a donkey and miniature horse.

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Festive food and drink will include the Scouts’ roast chestnuts and Brighter Boroughbridge’s mulled wine and mince pies stall. There will also be a hog roast.

The shop window display competition theme this year is A Christmas Panto, with entries to be judged tonight,

The lights on the Christmas tree will be switched on by BBC Radio York’s Georgey Spanswick and the Mayor, Sean Hynes.

Chamber president Derek Hufton said:

“Anyone coming along will find the town buzzing.

“There will be lots of great independent shops to browse and buy Christmas gifts from.

“Santa and his sleigh, along with the kids’ rides, will be big attractions to the younger generation. But wrap up warm!”

Volunteers are being urged to come forward to help run Boroughbridge Community Larder — a new initiative in which surplus food is given away for free.

The community initiative, set up by Boroughbridge Lions and Boroughbridge Community Care, will stock surplus food from local shops, households and allotments which is then available for people to take home for free, regardless of means.

The main aim of the set-up is to reduce food waste.

The larder will be open on a Wednesday afternoon but organisers say more volunteers are needed to offer their time before it can open.

After an appeal on the Stray Ferret last October, Boroughbridge Methodist Church offered one of its church rooms for use. The room will have shelving for vegetables and dried goods, a fridge and two freezers.

Lions member Sue Johnson said:

“People can drop off any surplus food they have as long as it is within the best before and use by dates. For example, allotment owners might have a glut of courgettes in the summer, likewise people who have fruit trees might have lots left over which we would be more than happy to accept.

“The whole idea behind it is to stop and reduce food wastage because sending food to landfill creates methane which is bad for the climate.”

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Any food that isn’t taken on a Wednesday afternoon will either be frozen, given to farmers for animal feed or, once organised, given to schools for breakfast clubs.

The community larder project is being run in partnership with Hubbub which runs 200 similar schemes across the UK. It has also received £1,000 from North Yorkshire County Council.

Ms Johnson added most of the food will be coming from Morrisons at first but she hopes local coffee shops and bakers in Boroughbridge get involved.

Ms Johnson has asked anyone who can help to email bbrlions@hotmail.com.

Boroughbridge Lions are on the hunt for a space in the centre of the town to open a community fridge, which would provide food to anyone in the local area.

The community group will work alongside Boroughbridge Community Care, a charity that offers help to those in need, to set up the space which would allow everyone to share surplus food, including donations from local food businesses, producers, households and gardens.

The organisations will be working with Hubbub which already helps to run 200 community fridges across the UK.

Food, such as dairy products, bread, tinned food and dry food destined for landfill would be donated by local shops or businesses and given to anyone in the community.

Lions member Sue Johnson said the space didn’t need to be huge, just big enough for a fridge and some shelving and somewhere central for people to access.

Ms Johnson said:

“We are still waiting for someone to come forward and offer us a space.

“Boroughbridge Community Care already hand out food parcels to six families locally. But we thought for people that aren’t aware of Boroughbridge Community Care, or who are struggling one week, then we would be there.”

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The plan is to start by opening the fridge one day a week and then, depending on how much food is donated and how large the demand is, open more days.

The space would be run by Lions and Boroughbridge Community Care staff.

Ms Johnson has asked anyone who may be able to offer a space or get involved in the project to email bbrlions@hotmail.com.

A Boroughbridge pub has joined forces with the Boroughbridge Lions to set up a Santa’s grotto to bring some festive cheer to the town next month.

The Grantham Arms is hoping to set up an outdoor winter wonderland for local children on December, 20. The Boroughbridge Lions will be bringing along Santa and his sleigh to add to the Christmas spirit.

This year, The Grantham Arms and Boroughbridge Lions have missed out on income due to the pandemic.

The Lions are hoping the donations they earn from this this will give them a chance to earn vital funds to donate back to other local community efforts.

Simon Wade, owner of The Grantham Arms, is hopeful he will be able to reopen his doors next month to allow the event to go ahead. He has said all the necessary measures will be made to ensure the event is safe.

“There’s so many kid’s events being cancelled and we wanted to offer something for them. I got the Lions involved because it gives them a chance to earn some extra money and they do great things within the local area.

“I’m still hopeful we can open the first week of December but I don’t think it’ll be for long. It’s frustrating because how can we plan for anything? It is really challenging this time.”

The Grantham Arms has been decorated for Christmas.

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As well as this event, The Boroughbridge Lions are still planning to take Santa and his sleigh round the town and the local villages at the beginning of December.

This year will be different, the volunteers won’t be knocking on doors or carrying buckets as they need to limit contact.

Paul Bullivant, president of Boroughbridge Lions, said:

“We will miss out on a significant amount of money from this year’s sleigh so any money raised from the event at The Grantham will be grateful received. Providing it’s safe and within guidelines we will do whatever it takes to bring a little joy.”