ALMOST a year's worth of planning has gone into an event to kickstart the Christmas season in Northwich.

Following the success of last year's event, the town will hold its second annual Christmas Extravaganza on Saturday, November 21.

Jane Hough, Northwich Business Improvement District (BID) manager, said: "The 2014 Christmas Extravaganza was fantastic but we’re aiming to make it even better this year, with a greater list of performers and attractions that will cement Northwich’s place as the number one winter wonderland.

“The BID team along with the Northwich Town Council team started planning for this way back in January, so rest assured, it’s going to be great."

The event is funded by Northwich BID and Northwich Town Council and supported by Northwich Independent Retailers Association (NIRA).

It will feature Peter Pan panto characters, princesses, superheroes, rodeo reindeer, fairground rides, donkey rides, live music and arts and crafts.

The event will also see the return of the lantern parade from Waitrose, in London Road, along High Street and Witton Street to Northwich Library, where the town's Christmas lights will be switched on.

Father Christmas will be coming to town on November 21 and will be in his town centre grotto every Saturday until December 25.

The Rotary Club of Northwich Vale Royal will be helping Father Christmas and raising money for the area's children's charities.

He will also be touring residential areas of Northwich with the Rotary Club on weekday evenings starting on December 1 until December 23.

For more information about Santa's tour with the Rotary Club visit rotary-ribi.org/clubs/homepage.php?ClubID=1707 or search for 'Santa in Northwich' on Facebook.

The 2014 Christmas Extravaganza attracted thousands of visitors to Northwich and one town centre cafe reported the best sales figures they had experienced in four years of business.

To coincide with the extravaganza, the BID team are also looking for children aged between four and11 to help them design a new mascot for Northwich.

For more information about the competition visit visitnorthwich.co.uk/competitions/