Freedom House Santa Claus Parade and Brantford’s Parade After Party set to begin festivities earlier

BRANTFORD, ON – Celebrate the holiday season at the 49^th annual Freedom House Santa Claus Parade, presented by GrandBridge, followed by the City of Brantford’s Parade After Party in Harmony Square (89 Dalhousie Street) on Saturday, November 29, 2025. This year’s parade will begin at 2 p.m., instead of an evening start time, to reduce traffic congestion and improve safety and accessibility, due to planned road construction.

Freedom House Santa Claus Parade

For nearly five decades, the Brantford Santa Claus Parade has entertained residents with festive floats, community groups and local businesses parading through the downtown. Now entering its 49^th year, the tradition continues, hosted by Freedom House and presented by Grandbridge Energy. To ensure a safe and enjoyable experience for participants and spectators, this year’s parade will begin at 2 p.m. on Saturday, November 29, 2025, instead of an evening start time. The earlier start will help reduce traffic congestion and improve safety and accessibility.

As previously announced, upcoming road construction will reduce Brant Avenue (Dalhousie St. to Colborne St.) to a single southbound lane, and Icomm Dr. (Colborne St. to Market St.) to a single eastbound lane. Icomm Dr. (Market St. to Clarence St. S) will be reduced to a single lane in each direction. These closures are required as part of essential work related to the downtown revitalization project and will already place significant strain on traffic flow in and around the downtown. Construction details can be found at www.Brantford.ca/DowntownDetours. On the same day, the Brantford Bulldogs will host a home game at the Brantford and District Civic Centre, bringing hundreds of additional vehicles and pedestrians into the area during the evening hours. By moving the parade to an earlier afternoon start, overlap between construction-related traffic and the heavy flow of game-day visitors can be minimized.

As in previous years, the parade will require the closure of Clarence St. This closure is expected to cause less disruption during the day than it would in the evening, when construction traffic and hockey game crowds will be at their peak.

The Santa Claus Parade theme this year is “Sunshine”. The cost to enter a for-profit business float or walking group is $175, with additional floats or walking groups, for an extra $150. The cost for a non-profit organization looking to be involved by entering a float or walking group is $100, with additional floats or walking groups, costing an additional $75. Apply online to get involved online by November 19, 2025. Sponsorship opportunities are also available. Find detailed information including rates, terms and conditions and sponsorship at www.FreedomHouse.ca/SantaClausParade.

City of Brantford’s Parade After Party

Following the parade, the annual Parade After Party will take place beginning at 3:00p.m. in Harmony Square in downtown Brantford.

For all the Parade After Party details, please visit www.Brantford.ca/ParadeAfterParty or call 519-759-4150. Follow Harmony Square’s Facebook page for ongoing updates and join the conversation by using the hashtag #ParadeAfterParty.

Road closures

The following roads will be closed for the parade and parade staging. Sidewalks will remain open for pedestrians:

Dalhousie St. will be closed from Stanley St. to Brant Ave. for the parade
Colborne St. will be closed from Brant Ave. to Clarence St. for the parade
Dalhousie St. to Colborne St., including the following cross streets: Icomm Drive, King Street, Queen St., Market St., George St., Charlotte St., Clarence St., Alfred St., Park St., Peel St., Murray St., Brock St.t, Drummond St., Rawdon St., Wellington St., and Stanley St.
Stanley St. from Grey St. to Colborne Str.
Marlborough St. from Stanley St. to Park Rd. N.
Sheridan St. from Stanley St. to Park Rd. N.
Chatham St. from Stanley St. to Park Rd. N.
Nelson St. from Stanley St. to Park Rd. N.
Wellington St. from Stanley St. to Park Rd. N.
Darling St. from Stanley St. to Pouleston St.

Road construction will reduce vehicle traffic along Icomm Dr. and Brant Ave. (from West St. to Colborne St.) to a single lane in the southbound direction. Construction details can be found at www.Brantford.ca/DowntownDetours.

Transportation

Free parking is available in the Market Centre Parkade located at 59 Icomm Dr.

Brantford Transit is available to attendees looking for transportation to the Santa Claus Parade and Harmony Square, with the main terminal conveniently located only one block away from Harmony Square. Schedules, routes and rates are available online at Brantford.ca/Transit. Brantford Lift is also available for anyone requiring accessible transportation and must be pre-booked by Friday, November 28, 2025 at 9:30 p.m. by calling 519-752-4444 or emailing brantfordlift@brantford.ca.

Quotes

“The Freedom House Santa Claus Parade and Brantford’s Parade After Party is a cherished tradition that brings joy to families and showcases the warmth and holiday spirit of our community. The City is grateful to all those who help make these events possible and whose hard work brings our community together to celebrate the season.’ – Brantford Mayor Kevin Davis

“Freedom House is looking forward to seeing the community come together and enjoy the magic of the season at the annual Santa Claus Parade in Brantford. This year’s theme, Sunshine, hopes to capture the new day time festivities to see what a Christmas in the sun might look like. We are grateful for the support of our presenting sponsor, GrandBridge, for helping light up the holidays once again.” – Dave Carrol, Freedom House Pastor

“GrandBridge Energy is honoured to continue our tradition as the main sponsor of the Freedom House Brantford Santa Claus Parade. As the company that powers our community with safe, reliable electricity, we’re proud to help light up the holidays for local families,” - Sarah Hughes, President and CEO of GrandBridge Energy.

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Media Contact:

Sharon Sayles | Communications Advisor, Communications and Community Engagement
City of Brantford | 519-759-4150 ext.5218 | ssayles@brantford.ca