Christmas light switch-on series / Hucknall, Sutton-in-Ashfield and Kirkby-in-Ashfield, Nottinghamshire
Ashfield Christmas Light Switch-On Stages 2024-2025
Ashfield District Council's three Christmas light switch-ons needed a stage that could move efficiently between busy town-centre locations. HeathTech used the compact 8m x 4m format with pre-rigged fairy lights and starcloth, helping each stage move from midday delivery to show-ready in under an hour.
Project overview
A stage plan built around the event and its site.
The annual programme covered separate events in Sutton-in-Ashfield, Kirkby-in-Ashfield and Hucknall, held one week apart. Each town needed a covered platform for choirs, seasonal music and live performers without a full festival-sized footprint taking over the square.
The 8m x 4m stage was a practical match for the smaller performance groups and constrained town-centre sites. A rear starcloth, fairy lights and front lighting created a finished Christmas look, while sound was supplied separately by JnS Sound and Lighting.
- Event
- Christmas light switch-on series
- Location
- Hucknall, Sutton-in-Ashfield and Kirkby-in-Ashfield, Nottinghamshire
- Client
- Ashfield District Council
- Project date
- Christmas 2024 and 2025
- Audience
- Approximately 500 at each event
- Hire period
- Three separate one-evening hires
- Stage configuration
- 8m x 4m compact trailer stage with pre-rigged fairy lights, front lighting and rear starcloth
Site and access
Working with the conditions on the ground.
Each square was approached through a live town centre with kerbs, narrow access points and timed road closures. The delivery route had to remain usable long enough for the stage to enter before fairground rides, stalls and other event infrastructure blocked the final approach. Rain and wind also had to be allowed for in the one-evening winter schedule.
Delivery and setup
A practical route from arrival to show-ready.
The delivery sequence was agreed around the road closure and the wider fair setup, with the trailer moved into each square around midday. Fairy lights and the starcloth remained pre-rigged between events, reducing repetitive work on site. Together with front lighting fitted while the roof was lowered, that preparation allowed the stage to be show-ready in under an hour.
The public programmes ran through the late afternoon and early evening, with takedown and collection following at around 8pm. The same method was repeated across the three towns, giving the council a consistent stage layout at each event.
