Work on the St Ives festoon lights is complete thanks to a joint initiative between the St Ives Business Improvement District (BID), St Ives Town Council and the St Ives Decorative Lights Association (DLA).

The lights are now up in nine streets in St Ives, including St Andrew’s Street, Tregenna Hill and Gabriel Street, and have been welcomed by local businesses who have been concerned about the lack of street lighting in the town.

James Watson, owner of the Hidden Kitchen restaurant on St Andrew’s Street is delighted with the new lighting and believes it will really benefit his business. “Before the lights were installed the street was very dark and I was really feeling the effect of not having them,” he said.

“This is an old part of St Ives, so I hope this will encourage more footfall and business for the restaurant and other shops.

“I’m really happy that the Town Council, BID and DLA came together for the benefit of small independent local businesses in St Ives.”

The St Ives BID contributed nearly £15k towards the installation to ensure they were replaced before the Easter holidays, making it the longest set of festoon lights in Europe.

BID manager, Carl Lamb, said: “We really felt like we had to take action with the festoon lights, as they benefit the town and local businesses so much. We are delighted that they are back for holiday season, and we can’t wait for holiday makers who stay in town after the sun’s gone down to see it in a new light.”