Christmas has officially arrived in Braintree with the switching on of the town’s lights.

Shoppers lined the streets on Saturday to enjoy the first of Braintree Council’s Christmas market events.

A spokesman for Braintree Council said: “Our Christmas launch brought hundreds more shoppers to the town and 16 more businesses were trading as part of the enhanced Christmas market.

“We have had some fantastic feedback from residents, traders and businesses who enjoyed the market stalls, the games, seeing Father Christmas and the atmosphere.”

The switching on of the high street and Rayne Road lights has had to be delayed due to an issue with the supplier.