Children across Wiltshire are in for a scraptastic festive treat as Father Christmas prepares to visit the region’s schools in his newly renovated scrapmobile grotto.

Santa will be on the road right up until Christmas seeing children and delivering craft gift boxes from the Wiltshire Scrapstore, in Bowden Hill, Lacock.

This is thanks to £8,000 in funding that the charity resource centre has received from the National Lottery’s Awards For All scheme.
The funds have been used to convert the centre’s scrapmobile into a log cabin grotto, using materials from the centre.

Glynis Cosgrave, assistant director at the Wiltshire Scrapstore, said: “We are delighted to be able to get out in the community over Christmas and we are extremely fortunate that one of our volunteers, Alice Barden, has previously worked as a set designer for the National Opera and the BBC as she helped us convert the scrapmobile into a grotto.”

Jane Wheeler, director at the centre, thanked the National Lottery scheme for the funds and said she thought the grotto would help children engage and get creative.

She said: “This is so exciting for us and an ideal opportunity for our charity to work with Father Christmas to bring a unique, fun way for the children of Wiltshire to give their Christmas wishes to Father Christmas.”

The charity, established in 1999, supports learning in the community by providing low cost materials to children.

Items they provide include bubble wrap, card, fabrics, foam, ribbon and wallpaper, with children regularly visiting the centre for workshops.

One of the Scrapstore’s patrons, author Neil Griffiths, will be giving a reading of his new book, The Best Present Ever, at the centre, followed by a Christmas craft activity workshop and visit to Santa in his Scrapmobile grotto on Saturday, December 22.

The sessions will run between 10.30am and noon with another taking place between 1pm and 2.30pm.

For more information about the charity, call (01249) 730011 or click here