Bollards owned by Alton Town Council will be painted as part of next year’s Alton Arts Festival, which will take place from July 3 to 12.

The council will also support the festival’s Alton Street Bollards Proposal where it seeks permission to paint bollards it does not own.

But designs on town council bollards will be purely decorative, councillors decided on September 3.

Cllr Matthew Kellermann proposed an amendment asking for town council bollard designs to be decorative and not contain “political, religious or social messaging”.

This was defeated, but an amendment proposed by Cllr Graham Hill - that designs should be decorative only and councillors should have prior approval of them, giving their consent or rejection by email to town clerk Tom Horwood - was agreed. Cllr Kellermann voted against.