GORING Primary School has been rewarded for helping the village’s Lions Club with its Christmas collections.

The school’s Parent Teacher Association has been given a cheque for £513, half of the money they helped collect.

The other half will be kept by the Lions’ Goring, Woodcote and District branch, which gives money to good causes in the area.

Every Christmas for the past 31 years, the charity has held a series of Santa’s sleigh processions around Goring and surrounding villages.

Participants sing carols and collect donations from the public along the way.

This year, it was considering cancelling the Goring parades because only 10 of its 18 members, many of whom are elderly, were fit to take part.

But 12 members of the PTA, including chairwoman Kate Doornik, saved the day by offering help.

Dressed as Santa’s elves, they picked up buckets and followed the parade around the village for three nights.

Their half of the proceeds will go towards the refurbishment of the school’s swimming pool.

Lions President Chris Stevens, who handed the cheque over last Friday, said: “Without the PTA’s most welcome and enthusiastic help, Santa would not have been able to complete his tour of Goring on three very cold nights.”

Head teacher Angela Wheatcroft said: “It’s so wonderful that they’ve given us this money - it will be enormously helpful and we appreciate it very much.”

This Christmas, the Lions also carried out collections in Sonning Common, where they were helped by Shirehall Rugby Club, and Woodcote, where Beaver, Cub and Scout leaders joined them.

Both of these groups also got half of their proceeds, which totalled £1,026.30 and £1,009.12 respectively.

The Lions also collected £1,330.30 in and around Whitchurch, bringing their total to a record £4,391.18.

This is more than £1,000 above last year’s amount.

Anyone interested in joining the club can find out more at www.lions-gwd.org.uk.

Published 08/02/13