PREPARATIONS for this year's Saltaire Living Advent Calendar are now complete as it celebrates a decade of brightening up the nights before Christmas

Residents of the World Heritage Site will illuminate a series of windows throughout the village with some venues revealing their windows to coincide with the lighting of the village Christmas tree on Sunday, November 29.

Then from December 1 until Christmas Eve, one additional window in someone's home or business will be opened each evening.

"Every year we aim to delight and illuminate the village with what is a unique and genuinely heartwarming event," said Kate Thompson, who co-ordinates the Calendar for Saltaire Inspired.

"The people who are producing art to go in windows can be artists or simply families joining in something that is open to all," she said.

A feature of the Calendar is that each window remains a strict secret until the day it is revealed.

However, the variety of themes is likely to range from traditionally religious to topical concerns, wintry scenes and tongue in cheek humour.

Although the village has a large artistic community, the emphasis of the event is to let everyone take part.

The event attracts hundreds of visitors to the village to view the windows which are simultaneously 'opened' on Twitter and Facebook, for those who can't get there in person.

At the last count the Facebook followers alone totalled 1,500 people from 35 countries around the world.

A leaflet with a map showing the locations of the windows will be available from the Saltaire Tourist Office and other outlets, or can be down loaded from the Saltaire Inspired Website http://www.saltaireinspired.org.uk/living-advent-calendar/.

This allows visitors to follow the trail in their own time and at their own pace.

And if the weeks before Christmas are too hectic, then there is a chance to view the windows later as the displays are open until early January.

A new initiative for 2015 is the production of Christmas cards featuring previous year's designs, these are available in packs of 12 cards from local outlets including Saltaire Visitor Information Centre, Saltaire Bookshop and Salts Pots.

The Saltaire Living Advent Calendar is organised under the umbrella of Saltaire Inspired, an arts charity, which aims to create quality contemporary arts events in unique settings.

The Living Advent Calendar is one of a number of events talking place in this UNESCO World Heritage site in the run up to Christmas.

The Village Society organises a Christmas Tree Lights Grand Switch-On from 4pm on Sunday, November 29 with carols, a band and mulled wine and community stalls illustrating t activities throughout the year.

On Christmas Eve, there will be lantern-lit carol singing around the trail of the Calendar's stunning windows.