FESTIVE spirit took over Renfrewshire Council’s offices in 2008 as the local authority prepared to dish out a small fortune to light up local communities.

Finance chiefs were poised to give away hundreds of thousands of pounds for Christmas decorations across the area.

These were to include trees and decorative street lighting to get locals in the holiday spirit during the run-up to Christmas.

However, Bridge of Weir and Howwood were on the naughty list 10 years ago and were not being given trees due to vandalism in previous years.

But all communities within Renfrewshire were invited to enjoy activities and decorations within the three main towns of Paisley, Renfrew and Johnstone.

In total, £279,600 was to be spent in 2008 on Christmas decorations in public places throughout the authority area.