Santa on the Quay axed this year over Lymington Rotary membership struggles as Lymington Town Sailing Club looks to step in

A much-loved Lymington Christmas tradition has been axed this year, over organisers’ struggles with membership numbers.

The annual Santa on the Quay sees Father Christmas arrive via RNLI lifeboat, usually accompanied by a small flotilla, after which he hands out sweets to attending children.

It’s usually organised by Lymington Rotary but due to a lack of members the club has been forced to pull out of the popular tradition.

Spokesperson for the club, Peter Edwards, said Lymington Rotary now no longer had the capacity to organise Santa on the Quay.

“The number of members declined sharply at the end of last year; there are now 11 of us. Also, the average age of our Rotarians is high, so this has meant we haven’t got the wherewithal to organise it.”

Peter said it was a sign of the times: “It’s a great shame, and it’s the trouble with a lot of organisations these days, to be able to manage such things. However we continue to raise money for the Santa Fund, with collections at the lights switch-on and Waitrose.”

He added: “It is so hard to get younger retired members because everyone’s got more than enough things to do with family, more social matters, it’s hard to get a commitment.”

Peter said the club would keep ticking over but was “not sure how long it’ll last”.

But Santa on the Quay may return next year, with Lymington Town Sailing Club vice-commodore Heather Chipperfield telling the A&T it would look to get involved.

“It’s a really lovely thing, and we work really closely with the RNLI, so yes we would love to bring it back next year.”

For more information on joining Lymington Rotary, ring Peter on 01590 673322.