Blackpool Council pledges to replace bare Christmas tree in Oxford Square adorned with festive lights

"I couldn’t believe it,” said Stephen Medforth, who lives close by and drives past the tree to work every day.

"The tree was planted in the Square for last Christmas and I reckon died months ago. There’ no green left on it and when I saw a council worker there the other day, I thought they had finally come to remove it, but next I looked, there were lights on it. Surely it can’t being used again this Christmas.”

But Blackpool Council has issued an assurance that the tree will be replaced.

John Blackledge, the council’s Director for Community and Environmental Services, said: “A new tree is coming to the site in time for Christmas. The current tree has been inspected and is alive but will be moved and replanted to give it a chance to recover.

“Unfortunately, Christmas trees which were planted last year suffered through a difficult winter and are being transplanted to a new location in a sheltered environment.

"A new set of trees across the town are being prepared ready for Christmas.”

The trees planted last year at sites across the borough instead of plastic trees as part of council aims to be more environmentally friendly came up for discussion at a recent meeting of the council’s Scutiny Leadership Board.

While some have thrived, others have struggled to survive in Blackpool’s exposed climate.

Coun Michele Scott told the meeting that while one of the trees in her Warbreck ward was healthy, the other one “is a stick”.

Coun Gerard Walsh said lessons had to be learned for future years because if trees did not survive, the cost of replacing them would add up.

Lisa Arnold, head of wellbeing and community services at the council, said some Christmas trees had suffered due to being planted in more exposed locations.

But where this had happened, the trees would be replaced and the old trees replanted somewhere where they would grow better.

She said: “Some locations work, and others don’t. We wanted a sustainable approach rather than using plastic trees as I think everyone would like us to use real trees where we can.”