A town council has come to a final decision on the future of its town's street lights.

After several months of discussion and deliberation Diss Town Council has chosen to take on the ownership and responsibility of the town's street lights which are currently owned and maintained by South Norfolk Council.

The decision follows the district authority's announcement in January that it would be handing over the responsibility of the street lights in nine parishes within South Norfolk.

In Diss, SNC currently provides and is responsible for 221 street lights, not including streetlights along the town's highways such as Victoria Road, which are provided by Norfolk County Council.

Following a county-wide review on the management and future of these lights SNC suggested decommissioning 63pc of the region's street lights to help save on costs.

Many of the lights are also coming to the end of their operational life.

In Diss, the review would mean a reduction of 37pc, leaving the area with 141 lights which the district council deemed to be 'needed', for crime prevention and risk, road safety and vulnerability following consultations with police.

In March the town council agreed to, in principle, take on the responsibilty of all 221 street lights in the town, including those deemed not necessary.

Following this decision, members of the council met with representatives of the district authority to request a reevaluation of the lights deemed to be 'needed', with members of Diss Town Council putting forward a further 27 lights which they believed should be added to the 'needed' category.

At a full town council meeting on Wednesday, April 18, Diss Town Council voted to take on the responsibility of all the street lights in Diss, subject to a final confirmation from SNC on which lights are deemed to fall within the 'needed' category.

Ahead of the final decision councillor Eric Taylor said taking on the lights 'made sense': 'We are in a position to take a reasonable offer from SNC.'

'It's something we have got to do for the benefit of the people of Diss.

'It makes sense, if we say to SNC we will look after them.'