A SLEEPY Fenland village received a Christmas makeover after it was voted the one place in the country that deserved festive cheer more than any other.

Carol singers and a large outdoor Christmas tree delivered warm smiles to Benwick residents following a nationwide campaign by Fox’s Biscuits.

A campaign to find villages desperately short of Christmas spirit was launched after research revealed that four in 10 towns and villages in the UK would be without Christmas decorations this year, leaving a quarter of Brits feeling less festive than ever before.

It was a heartfelt plea from villager Emily Shepperson - who last year won a �30,000 dream lunch for her village - which proved most popular on the social networking site Facebook.

In her entry Emily said that, despite the community spirit, funding issues meant there was never a Christmas tree or lights in Benwick. As a result, the village is left in darkness.

Emily said: “It was amazing to win something for the village and it was fantastic to see some people out on such a cold afternoon.

“It would be lovely to be able to have a tree and decorations in the village each year as we seem to be the only village around here that doesn’t seem to have any lights at the moment.”

She added: “I like the train of thought that you have to be ‘in it to win it’ so why couldn’t such a small Fenland village win something else?”

Emily came across the competition on Facebook - she was already a fan of Vinnie, Fox’s Panda. A judging panel chose her entry from more than 450 others for a shortlist of five, with a public vote deciding the winner.

She said: “It really was a spur of the moment thing and I thought that if Benwick did get through that someone else would have written something much better than myself.”

Residents young and old also received individually wrapped Fox’s Biscuits tins.