This is a story that demonstrates that Dark Sky compliance can sometimes come in small steps. While its good to hear of major lighting renovations meeting Dark Skies criteria, its also vital to hear of small-scale projects where the ambition towards reducing light pollution and improving our connection with the stars is being realised.
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Working together with local residents, Westmorland and Furness Council’s Lighting Team and Friends of the Lake District’s Dark Skies Cumbria Project, four new dark skies compliant heritage street lights have been installed on Thorny Hills in Kendal.
Thorny Hills is a street of Georgian terraced Listed Buildings in the Kendal Conservation Area, which celebrated its bi-centenary in 2024. The lane in front of the terrace is used by residents for parking, and is an important pedestrian route for many different users throughout the day and evening.
After seeing the successful Cliff Terrace dark skies friendly lighting scheme, Thorny Hills residents Malcom Whiteside and Peter Kuit, approached Friends of the Lake District to see if the lane’s current lights could be enhanced to celebrate the bi-centenary.
Two of the existing lights were modern galvanised standard columns, one with vehicle damage, and the other two heritage lanterns weren’t dark sky compliant, and cast light into the windows the homes behind and up into the mature beech trees opposite.
The new replacement lights comprise restored cast iron, traditional heritage columns, originally manufactured in the Whitehaven Foundry, were refurbished and repainted at Gilmour Engineering & Industrial Services at Barrow-In-Furness, for Westmorland and Furness Council.
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On top of attractive black columns, the new lanterns are modern heritage style with a light beam focused downward onto the road surface (preventing light pollution up into the night sky). The colour temperature of the lights is 2,700 Kelvin, with an amber coloration, a warm white which is more comfortable on people’s eyes.
The new lights also dim by 50% from 9pm until 6am, cutting electricity consumption, reducing carbon emissions and reducing their impact on night time wildlife, such as bats and insects.
Feedback on the new lights extremely positive, highlighting the fact that the style of the new lights is beautifully in keeping with the road. Local architect and resident, Roger Haigh, said: “The renovated lampposts on Thorny Hills reinstate the character and detail of the Georgian era, giving elegance to the street and houses. Well done to all concerned for making it happen.”
Residents Anna and Gavin Haworth, said: “Numerous passersby have commented positively on them. We love the fact that they are energy-efficient and dark sky friendly, whilst still casting sufficient light onto the street for pedestrian and road users. Even though we have a lamppost positioned right outside the house, the design does not cast any significant light into our property (unlike previous modern lampposts).”
Kendal is one of the Dark Skies Cumbria Project Towns, where several good lighting projects have now been installed by the council’s lighting team. All new lighting is able to meet the needs of residents, protect the night sky and minimise its environmental footprint in terms of energy use, impact on wildlife and safeguarding green space habitats.
Ensuring each new light installed considers the wider environmental factors, alongside functional lighting needs, will help reduce light pollution across Cumbria’s urban and rural communities.
Councillor Peter Thornton, Westmorland and Furness Council’s Cabinet member for Highways and ICT, said: “Westmorland and Furness Council’s new street lighting policy, adopted earlier this year, focuses on low energy lighting which is carefully targeted to avoid light pollution. We are committed to reducing energy consumption, carbon emissions and light pollution and are delighted we have been able to work with partners on this scheme.”
This Lighting Good Guidance, coordinated by Friends of the Lake District’s Dark Skies Cumbria project, has been adopted by councils and other organisations across Cumbria to help people choose the right types of lighting: Light Policy and Guidance | Friends of the Lake District.
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