Christmas tree festival returns to Shrewsbury church for tenth year

The tenth incarnation of the festival will be lighting up the Georgian church in Shrewsbury for the next two weeks.

The trees are sponsored by local businesses, charities and community organisations and will be available to view, for free, from Wednesday, December 15 to January 2.

Organisers and contributor gathered at the church on Wednesday to start decorating the trees, which were helped put in place by the Royal Air Force.

Joanna Hepper from St. Chad’s said the festival promises to be a "lovely experience in the tranquil atmosphere of our beautiful Georgian church".

She added: "We have 40 six-foot trees around the church that are all sponsored by businesses and charities throughout Shrewsbury.

"They've done a really great job. The wine shop GlouGlou have decorated theirs with corks, while Paw by Paw have a big dog.

"It's like a big tradition now, we get a lot of people coming into see it every year. It's really quite a pretty sight, especially if you come along at dusk and see it all lit up."

As well as filling the building with twinkling lights throughout December, the festival will bring a programme of Christmas music, song and dance.

The festive programme includes and voice and piano recital with Holly Teague on Saturday 23, followed by two Christmas movie-inspired performances by Matt Glossop and The Bloomsbury Soloists.

While it's free to enter to experience the festival, the church encourages people to make donations for the upkeep of St Chad's and their community initiatives.

More information about the festive programme is available at stchadschurchshrewsbury.com/whats-on