Earlier in the week we used local channels to ask for concerns about the market. The reason we did this is to see if we had missed anything - to ensure residents concerns aligned with our own. We stated that there would be changes to the format... we have not made these public as we had to be sure of their viability first (they involved making the market smaller and cordoning an area so the event would be tickets only - though still free - to control numbers)... however some of the comments received have been rude and hurtful. Maybe if we had made public our plans people would have been a little more understanding - but as I have said, we asked for concerns, not opinions on how irresponsible we are, how selfish and stupid we are. We are human beings - VOLUNTEERS - and this is not acceptable.

The reason that we pressed ahead with this in the first place is so that something positive would happen in amongst all the recent negativity. Local craftspeople and charities have had limited income over the last year and we wanted to support them; plus while physical health is paramount, mental health is hugely important, and with Christmas all but cancelled wanted to do something to embrace the Christmas spirit we will miss out on. We have been working tirelessly, often to the expense of our families, to make sure this will work. Quite frankly, NKDC have been fantastic and would never let us run if they thought we weren't being sensible or were putting people in needless danger. As of this point I would like to thank those who have done as we asked, and been in touch with their concerns - we still have some of our own and following the latest information from NKDC will be having a meeting tomorrow night to discuss how we go forward.

Thank you for reading this. To those who were rude, please be kind. You may not agree with what we are trying to achieve, but your opinion can be voiced in a far less hurtful way than you have done.