Rye Christmas Festival cancelled

Organisers announced the decision this week.

A statement from the organisers said: “At this time of year we would normally be getting ready to release artwork and information on the schedule for the day.

“It will probably come as little surprise to you all that this year it has been decided that the Rye Christmas Festival cannot go ahead. This is wholly due to the many issues relating to Covid-19.

“As a committee we have thought long and hard about whether a smaller, more limited event with features allowing social distancing would be possible. We would love nothing more than to bring some joy to the town during what has been a hard year for so many of us.

“However, we have been so successful with our footfall in previous years that it would just not be possible for us to ensure that we would not attract the same thousands of people to the town and this brings with it large risks and liabilities.

“Many of the events: procession, concert etc, involve huge crowds of people gathering in close proximity. Others are in very close settings, such as our key feature, the grotto.

“We feel that despite this being another sad blow to what has been a tough year, what would be worse would be for us to take irresponsible and unmanageable risks.

“We are discussing some of the things that, as a committee, we might still be able to do to bring a little bit of magic to the town, albeit not a single event or on a set day. We have lots of lovely ideas including our determination to honour our installation of the Christmas lights if we can recruit the required volunteers.

“Anything we do as a little nod to our wonderful event and a thanks to you all will most likely be on a small scale for local residents and business owners. We will share more information on this with you when we can and please be sure you follow us on Facebook @ryechristmasfestival and Instagram @christmas_in_rye for updates.

“We are hoping that Father Christmas will still be making a visit to Rye this year, he may just have to pass through on his way elsewhere.”

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