CHRISTMAS came early for pupils at one primary school when their forthcoming annual festive stage production was given a financial boost.

Wheatley Hill Community Primary School pupils were delighted when a representative of Wilcomm Homes, which is building homes in the village, arrived with a cheque.

The money will be used to buy costumes and set pieces for the school's Christmas play.

Teacher Lisa Fowler, who is organising the production, said: "The Christmas play is the highlight of the term for many of our pupils, but it can be quite costly to purchase a script or music score along with costumes and sets, so the money will go a long way to helping us with that."

Pupils have already started rehearsing for this year's production, which will tell the story of a little star in Bethlehem called Sparkle.

Wilcomm Homes sales manager Joan Bell said: "As a company, we like to support the local communities in which our developments are located."