The lights were fantastic for the Myton Hospices

A £3,500 donation will be made to the charity thanks to the Rotary Club of Royal Leamington Spa’s annual Trees of Light campaign.

The Christmas trees, which continue to shine outside Leamington town hall and St Margaret’s church in Whitnash, represented more than 350 people whose names were displayed on lists nearby, remembered by their friends and families.

Myton’s community fundraising manager Michelle Kerrigan is delighted with the results: “We would like to say a huge thank you to everyone at the Royal Leamington Spa Rotary Club for choosing to support us this year and we are thrilled that the Trees of Light have been such a great success. “We would also like to thank everyone who has made a donation in memory of a loved one.

“The money raised will make a real difference to the patients and families we look after”.

Both tree switch-on ceremonies were festive events.

At Leamington Town Hall the Royal Spa Brass band treated the waiting crowd to an uplifting concert of Christmas music and accompanied the carol singing by the Baptist Church Music Group and spectators as the tree was blessed by the Rev Paul Manuel of St Mark’s church and the lights switched on by the chairman of Warwick District Council, Cllr Richard Davis. I

In Whitnash it was the Mayor, Cllr Parminder Singh Birdi who switched on the lights, with the Rev Richard Suffern blessing the tree and leading the carols sung by the gathered crowd outside the church.

Rotary club members are proud of their Christmas community projects, having also just played host to Santa in the Royal Priors - generating another £300 for more charities.