Father Christmas came to GGR recently to lend a helping hand, loading our van with toys and gifts ready to send to Wood Street Mission.

Wood Street Mission has been running a Christmas appeal since it opened its doors in 1869. Every year they help people living in poverty by providing toys for children and food packages for families in Manchester and Salford.

Two GGR employees became Christmas elves for the day as they shopped till they dropped buying toys and some sweet treats to donate to this worthy cause. They picked up gifts for children up to 13 years old including skateboards, scooters, books, craft kits, dolls, Lego and sports equipment. GGR staff also generously brought in toys and food to add to the charity donation. Over 150 gifts were loaded into GGR’s van and delivered to Wood Street Mission in Manchester city centre.

Thank you to Smyth’s toy shop at Elk Mill Centre Retail Park in Oldham and Sports Direct at Woodfield Retail Park in Bury for helping us out with a discount so we could buy even more toys and gifts for the charity.

Once the presents had been organised, Father Christmas had a sneaky go on one of the UNIC mini cranes in our yard. Our compact crane was an alternative to his traditional sleigh but he thought it would come in very useful for lifting large bags of presents!

For more information about Wood Street Mission and their work, visit their website or follow them on Twitter and Facebook.