Plans for Sunderland illuminations detailed as Festival of Light application is approved - giant glitter ball, fairy glade and selfie lane among highlights

Sunderland City Council’s Planning and Highways Committee, at a meeting this week, approved plans for the council event which attracts thousands of visitors from across the city and beyond.

A design, access and planning statement from the council noted the 2024 festival would “include a number of lighting features”, along with “children’s rides, food and drink and music performers”.

Proposed attractions included a ‘selfie lane’ with large light installations, the return of a light tunnel, lights in the previous fairy glade area and a projection onto the Winter Gardens, as well as a ‘giant glitter ball’ at the park’s bandstand, UV art work, interactive light installations, a silent disco, carnival rides and more.

The annual event, which was traditionally staged in Roker Park, recently moved to the Grade II-listed Mowbray Park in Sunderland city centre.

City leaders previously held the event in Mowbray Park in 2019, transforming the space into a winter wonderland featuring lights, music and special characters.

The 2023 Festival of Light saw thousands visit the park and its dazzling displays during the dark nights, including the ‘fairy glade’ which saw part of the park transformed with thousands of colour-changing optic lights.

Sunderland City Council submitted an application to its own planning department earlier this year seeking permission for a temporary change of use of Mowbray Park to hold the festival there again.

The council confirmed that Festival of Light 2024 would begin on October 25 and run through until November 24 and that dates would include half-term (October 28 to November 2) but would not include Remembrance Sunday.

This year’s tickets are £5, with under 2s continuing to go free and Sunderland City Council said the Festival of Light remains the cheapest, best-value light show in the North East.

The planning application was submitted to allow the council’s planning department and other consultees to consider heritage impacts on the listed park.

At a meeting on September 30, 2024, at City Hall, the council’s Planning and Highways Committee voted unanimously to approve the Festival of Light application, with several councillors praising the event.

Councillor Iain Scott said he was “delighted” to see the “well-loved and longstanding event” return for another year.

Councillor Martyn Herron said he was “surprised” that the event didn’t run until Christmas but was still “delighted to see it back”.

“It’s a very popular event and it’s great to bring people into the city centre for reasons other than shopping and drinking and for families to come in and see the park,” he said.

Councillor Dianne Snowdon added: “I really welcome the application and welcome that it’s being brought back into the city centre.

“For my residents from Washington, it’s far easier to get into Sunderland than to try and get out into the Roker Park area”.

Councillor Andrew Wood said the event had been “fantastic in previous years” and that he looked forward to attending again.

However, the councillor raised concerns about the ticket price and asked whether the event could be sponsored in future to “make it as accessible to the whole city as it can be”.

Cllr Wood was told issues around costings were not a planning matter and would have to be pursued elsewhere within the council.

Councillor Michael Dixon, who represents the St Michael’s ward, added: “The ward I represent is just over the road and lots and lots of people can get there on foot from Hendon, Millfield and St Michael’s especially, loads of people live in those wards.

“So I would like to join colleagues by commending it and I hope it’s a great success and I’m sure it will be”.

Online tickets for the event, which begins on Friday, October 25 and runs through until Sunday, November 24, went on sale last month and further details can be found at www.mysunderland.co.uk/fol.

The festival will be open from 4.30pm to 10pm every day during half-term (Friday, October 25, to Sunday, November 3) and then 4.40pm to 10pm every Thursday to Sunday until Sunday, November 24, with the exception of Remembrance Sunday on November 10.

In addition to providing an economic boost for the city centre, the city council states holding the Festival of Light in Mowbray Park, instead of at the seafront at Roker Park, means more money can be invested in lighting features rather than traffic management and road closures.

Planning documents state “maximum attendance will be 8,000 visitors per evening, and attendance will be ticketed, with three to four time slots per hour to limit the numbers of people in the park at any one time”.

When the event is in operation, the park will be closed to the general public who have not purchased a ticket.

The Sunderland Illuminations are also going ahead as usual, lighting up the night sky along the Roker and Seaburn seafront and will be switched on from Friday, October 25.

To buy tickets for this year’s Festival of Light, find out more and see council FAQs on the event, visit www.mysunderland.co.uk/fol

Details of a ‘quiet hour’ on selected dates for visitors looking for a quieter or calmer experience can also be found on the website.