Sevenoaks Town Council will turn one child's drawing into a working Christmas light outside the House in the Basement youth cafe. Entries close on 17 September and it is open to under-12s.

One child’s drawing will be built into a working Christmas light in Sevenoaks town centre this year. Sevenoaks Town Council has reopened its Design a Christmas Light competition for a fifth year, and entries close on Thursday 17 September (Sevenoaks Town Council, Design a Christmas Light Competition).

The competition is open to children aged up to 11. The council says the winning design “will be transformed into a REAL Christmas light and displayed outside the entrance to the House in the Basement Youth Café”.

Timeline showing the competition opening on 14 August 2026, entries closing on 17 September 2026, and the winning design becoming a real light at Christmas
Graphic by Sevenoaks Online

How to enter

The council’s instructions are short. Children draw their design on the competition form, then return it before the deadline.

  • Who can enter: children aged up to 11
  • Deadline: 17 September 2026
  • The form: download and print it from the council’s competition page, or collect a paper copy from the town council office
  • Where to send it: Sevenoaks Town Council Offices, Bradbourne Vale Road, Sevenoaks, TN13 3QG, by post or dropped in
  • Queries: the council gives an email address on the competition page

There is no brief beyond the season. The council says a design “could be colourful, Christmassy, funny, magical or completely original”. It offers snowmen, reindeer, presents and Christmas trees as starting points, or “an idea nobody has ever thought of before”.

What it means for residents

The timing is worth noting if your child is at a Sevenoaks primary school. The deadline falls in the second full week back after the summer holidays. A design drawn now is easier than one remembered in September.

Entries go to the town council, not the district council. The two are separate authorities with separate offices.

The House in the Basement is the town council’s youth cafe. The winning light goes up outside its entrance, not on the High Street displays. To check the rules or see the form before printing, use the council’s own competition page rather than a shared social media post.

For what else is on locally, see our guide to things to do in Sevenoaks. The pages people use most are bin collection days and parking in Sevenoaks.

Sources

Image: High Street, Sevenoaks by Chris Whippet, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Geograph, file page. Graphic by Sevenoaks Online.