CHRISTMAS carols were kicked out of festive celebrations, disappointing a school choir who had been rehearsing for weeks.

The 60 pupils from Arthur Bugler Junior School in Stanford-le-Hope had finished their rehearsals for the Corringham Winter Festival when organisers informed the head teacher that the carols they had chosen did not “dovetail” with the festival’s theme.

There was no time for the pupils to rehearse new songs so the school was forced to pull out.

Head teacher, Mrs Sue Morris, said: "It would appear there was a communications mix-up between the school and the organisers of the event.

"Initially the school was invited to attend and sing, but after a great deal of rehearsal with the school’s 60-strong choir, we were informed the songs we were rehearsing would not have dovetailed into the event’s theme.

"There was no time to reorganise the choir’s planned programme and we thought it best that we did not take part. The organisers of the event were informed of this.”

A parent of one of the children in choir, who asked not to be named, said: “The school was advised by the organisers that the carols they had chosen were not suitable as they were deemed to have a religious theme.

“The kids were really disappointed.

“Whatever the Christmas Carols were that they were going to sing- I can’t see how they would be offensive to anyone.”

Organisers of the Corringham Winter Festival have put the incident down to a communication problem.

Mr Tony Benson said: “It was a simple communications error, it did not come to my attention until it was too late they even appeared on the program and street notice.

“It was a smashing evening and their presence would have gilded the lilly.

“I have promised the head mistress that we will give them a lot more notice in the future, I can assure you their parents disappointment was matched by mine.”

When the Gazette asked Mr Benson if the school was told their Christmas carols were unsuitable for the event he added: “It is a fact of life that a lot of people have forgotten the meaning of Christmas.

"We the committee try to put something back into the community with The Winter Festival and The Tree of Lights which we arrange and put on for St Lukes.”

Meanwhile, the Chairman of the Prayer Book Society, Prudence Dailey, has hit out at the organisers of “winter festivals” up and down the country, saying their political correctness threatens Christmas.

She said: "These 'politically correct Winter festivals' seek to make Christmas part of a 'multi-faith' mix and hark back to pagan winter solstice observance.

“'Winter festivals' see Christmas as merely a local seasonal event and miss its central religious significance at the heart of national identity.

“Perhaps organisers would benefit from reading the Book of Common Prayer and discovering what winter festivities are in fact about.”