Students hold gift collection for Samaritans Purse

SIXTH form students turned Santa’s helpers when they loaded up a van full of Christmas shoeboxes for needy children.

Students at The King’s Academy, in Coulby Newham, have held their annual gift collection for Samaritan’s Purse Operation Christmas Child, this year donating 268 boxes of toys, hats and gloves, toiletries, pens and pencils and a host of other goodies.

Academy tutor groups held an informal competition to see which could collect the most boxes with the honour going to Caroline Weir’s Year 7 tutor group, who collected 33.

Assistant vice principal Carey Brownless said: “The sixth form and our reception team have worked hard to check every box and to make sure each one is crammed to the top with gifts.

“We always aim to ensure the contents of each box are of really good quality so the children receiving them have a really special Christmas.”

This year’s King’s Academy donations will be heading to children in Serbia.