CHILDREN and staff at a Fenland village school received an early Christmas present when Santa visited with a cheque to replace footballs stolen earlier this year.

Youngsters at Coates Primary School had used Tesco vouchers to buy some new footballs, but shortly after they were delivered they were stolen from the school.

Whittlesey Lions Club heard of the school’s plight and offered to buy some replacement balls.

Lindsey Boucher, the school’s deputy head, met Santa as the Lions visited Coates for their annual Christmas fundraising tour. Santa visited the school last night to present the cheque for �156.

She said: “We were so excited when the Lions offered to replace the footballs. This very kind gesture shows that the Christmas spirit is alive and well in Coates this year.”

Stuart Anderson, of Whittlesey Lions Club, said: “We were saddened to hear that the footballs had been stolen and wanted to help.

“We heard that the children were really upset by the incident and that the school only had a handful of footballs left meaning that lessons were disrupted.

“The new footballs will allow the budding Beckhams to get back on the pitch; once the snow thaws of course!”