For some November might still be too early to start talking about Christmas, whereas others will have been planning their festive décor at the beginning of September.

Lee Trotman is in the latter camp, but his lights will be going up for a good cause.

“As a child my sister Rachel and I loved going for drives with our parents to look at Christmas lights. I always used to say, ‘when I get old I’m going decorate my house’,” he explained.

“In 2016 I decided to decorate my house and raise money for the British Heart Foundation. We raised around £400.”

Following the success of the fundraising, Lee decided to make the event an annual occurrence, each year raising money for a new cause.

“In 2017 my mum found out she had leukaemia so we raised money for Linc – a charity for people with leukaemia,” said Lee, a Cirencester local his whole life.

“That year I asked the neighbours if they would like their homes decorated and they were all happy to get involved too, so up went lights on number 58, 60, 61, 62, 63 and 64 Fosse Close.”

Last year the street decorated in aid of the Wiltshire and Great Western Air Ambulances, and stalls were set up to give visitors the chance to buy Christmas gifts.

But 2019 is set to be the biggest yet, with a whole host of events going on alongside the traditional Christmas lights.

Lee continued: “This year the same number of houses will be decorated however I intend on decorating my back garden and opening it up for people to come and see.

“We’ve invited a wrestling company, AWA, to put on a show along with Cirencester Wrestling Federation, who hold an annual show raising money for Meningitis Now. CWF and AWA are known for their family friendly all action wrestling.”

The wrestling won’t be the only entertainment on offer though, with plenty of stalls and live music also set to feature.

This year’s charity will be local group the Big Yellow Bus Project.

“Gerry Watkins has transformed a bus in Cirencester into a warm, safe, cosy place for the homeless to sleep,” added Lee.

“This has become very popular around the town and further afield, many people have got involved helping with the running of the bus.”

The Christmas Lights Switch On event will take place at Fosse Close in Cirencester on Saturday 1st December, and the lights will be on every evening from 5pm until 11pm and all day Christmas Day.

For more information contact Lee at leetrotty@gmail.com