COUNCIL chiefs and Darlington’s MP have hailed the Festival of Thrift for boosting business in the borough.

The festival, at Lingfield Point, attracted thousands of visitors and Darlington Council’s chief executive Ada Burns described it as a good advert for the town.

She said: “It is about getting our message out and drawing people in because although it isn’t in the town centre, we know that people at the local hotels have sold a lot of rooms and I think a lot of people, myself included, will head to the town centre for a meal before they go home.

“People have come here from all over the region and they are seeing that Darlington is a fun and positive place to be; that is a big thing we have to achieve and I think it is sometimes really hard for people to see that.”

Council leader Bill Dixon joked that his job brought many more bad days than good days, but he described the day that he met with festival organisers to discuss bringing the event to Darlington as one of his best in recent years.

He added: “There are very few places that could hold an event like this - Darlington is very lucky to have Marchday and Lingfield Point and lucky to have the festival.”

Darlington MP Jenny Chapman said: “I think the concept is a superb one and it is impressive to see the town rally round the festival, both to put on the workshops and hold stalls, but also to attend in such great numbers.”

Organisers hope to continue the festival in Darlington over the coming years, but Jane Tarr of Arts Council England said that although the organisation was delighted to support it, there could be no certainty about its future funding.