内容摘要：As Tom uses a mallet to hammer in the homemade signs, passing motorists sound their horns.

As Tom uses a mallet to hammer in the homemade signs, passing motorists sound their horns.

"My little boy absolutely loves it. Whenever we go out, he asks if we're going to the 'Christmas lights street'," she says."Even the first time he went, when he was six months old, it was such a sensory experience.

"The people who live there go to a lot of effort, and I love being able to donate to the local charities they collect for."Debbie Saunders, 58, lives in Braintree and has been visiting the lights for about six years.This time she has brought her teenage granddaughter, who is a big fan of the giant Grinch down the road.

"The lights are just amazing - we love coming down. They go to so much effort. You feel you should come and have a look," she says.Back in Sam Aylward's front room, twinkling lights out the front window illuminate a couple of the moving boxes he is yet to unpack.

"I wouldn't say it's competitive with the lights, but everyone's quite encouraging for people to join in," he says.

"I remember one of the guys up the road said, 'We can't have a dark house in between all of our lights,' and I was like 'Oh, OK, well I'm joining in then!'Two of Gemma Nelson's daughters have attended Little Stars and another daughter, Nancy, was due to start in September.

"As we stand she has potentially no place and nowhere to go," Ms Nelson said."This is going to have a massive impact on her."

Ms Nelson is from Killyleagh and said pre-school was "massively important" to the town."Normally they have a waiting list to get into Little Stars, its reputation is so high," she said.