Cromer's new approach to the annual Christmas lights-up festivities was 'fantastic' - but improvements need to be made next year, according to one of the organisers.

Tony Nash told fellow Cromer town councillors last Monday: 'I think everyone who participated in the working group felt the results were fantastic.

'But we can improve next year. There were major problems as far as the stallholders were concerned.'

For the first time, the lights-up weekend was extended to include a Christmas market on High Street on December 2 and 3, with charity stalls inside Cromer Church.

But there were problems with space on High Street, which made it difficult for customers to get around, while the weather - particularly on the bitterly cold Saturday - put many people off.

Mr Nash said there might be a need to 'find another location or find an alternative'.

He added that he was 'disappointed' that 'quite a few' town shops didn't stay open into the evening of the lights-up on December 2.

Fellow councillor Tim Bartlett said it was 'important to quantify' how well the event had worked.

He said: 'I would like to ask for money to be included in the next budget to conduct meaningful research into the benefits produced by this and other initiatives.'

Town mayor Greg Hayman said: 'We need some hard figures to show the return on our investment, to be sure that we are putting funds where they make the most impact.'