Countdown to Hellesdon Light the Night

Final preparations are being made for this year’s Hellesdon Light the Night Lantern Trail.

The event will take place on Friday, January 31 and Saturday, February 1 and organisers are hoping to make it the most sparkling event yet.

People are encouraged to design and make their own lantern to display in windows, doorways or gardens for others to see from 5pm to 9pm on both nights.

A trail map will be produced and the deadline to register your lantern was January 28.

Kat Downes, one of the event’s organisers, said: “We hope that 2025 will be the best Light the Night yet and make it even bigger in 2026. The dream is to have Hellesdon’s very own lantern parade for the community.

The maps will be available, for a suggested donation of £1, from 74 Bush Road or the 18^th Norwich (1^st Hellesdon) Scout group in Middleton’s Lane. The scouts will be serving up hot chocolate to trail visitors in their lantern lit lane adjacent to Kinsale Junior School.

Proceeds from the event will go to the scouts to help fund their participation in the 2025 Norfolk Jamboree.

People taking part in the trail are being encouraged to use a range of methods to make their own lanterns, including jazzing up jam jars, recycling rubbish and giving long-lost lanterns a new lease of life.

Participants are asked to reuse and recycle lanterns and materials and make sure they are safe for humans and wildlife.

Workshops giving people ideas how to decorate their lanterns were organised by fellow organiser Emma Stimpson at Hellesdon Library earlier this month.

For more information and to list your lantern on the map, see Hellesdon Light the Night on Facebook or email hellesdonlightthenight@gmail.com

LIGHTING THE NIGHT: Some displays from a previous Light the Night event.