MORE than 80 shoeboxes have been filled with Christmas presents for disadvantaged children by pupils at Dunster First School.

Members of the Monstas After School Club have spent the past month packing the boxes with gifts from parents, carers and staff.

Toys, games, toiletries, stationery, letters and cards filled 83 boxes for Operation Christmas Child appeal, which aims to bring joy to children living in difficult circumstances.

Monstas After School Club Leader Esther Rushforth said: “Children and adults have loved the opportunity of sharing with other children all over the world the excitement of opening a Christmas present.”

Residents from Riverside Gardens in Dunster also helped fill ten boxes and raise money to pay for their postage.

For 20 years, Operation Christmas Child has sent gifts to children in UK and as far afield as Africa and Asia.

Last year nearly 1.2 million boxes were sent from the UK.