Residents of a village in County Durham are disappointed after being excluded from the route of this year’s annual Go North East Santa Bus tour. 

Veronica Andrews, the Councillor for Burnopfield and Dipton, expressed to Go North East, the operator of the Santa Bus, that residents are concerned that they are being perceived as “the village that Santa Claus and Go North East forgot”.  

Cllr Andrews said “I have heard from residents about how unhappy they are, as once again, Dipton has been missed off the route.

“We are the village that Santa Claus and Go North East forgot.

Cllr Andrews shared that they are not asking for a “regular service detour” but a “one-off special for the children of the village”. 

Residents expressed their disappointment on social media after discovering that the Santa Bus would not be visiting the village this year.

One resident expressed that it was “shameful and disgraceful”.  

Another said “It’s a bit unfair to the kids in Dipton that look forward to it and whose parent/parents don’t drive and so can’t take them to one of the other places to see it.”

A Go North East spokesperson added to residents and Cllr Andrews: “We’re thrilled that our Santa Bus is returning to the North East this year, and for the first time, we will be fundraising for a local charity – Children’s Cancer North.

“This year will be our Santa Bus’ longest tour yet, covering as many communities as possible across the whole region over ten nights.

“Our staff work really hard to make sure that the Santa Bus route varies each year to give different communities a chance to see Santa.

“We take into account feedback from communities when planning the route.

“We encourage people to check our Santa Bus timetables online to find their nearest opportunity to see the bus.”

If you want to catch the bus from the area, the nearest will be through Flint Hill.