Comfort and joy came to two of Royston’s care homes last week, thanks to Rotarians who visited to put up and decorate their Christmas trees.

In what's become an annual tradition, Royston Rotary Club members were made welcome at St George's Nursing Home and Richard Cox House with mince pies and mulled wine - and they promised to return on Twelfth Night to pack the tinsel and baubles away again.

"We always invite residents to provide a bit of creative input. After all, it's their homes we are decorating, so we want to reflect their tastes, and we always get some useful advice," said Bryony Plock, the Rotarian in charge of the exercise.

"I think that for lots of residents, our visit is the signal that Christmas has come." Bryony added that a peahen living near Richard Cox House had come to watch through a window as their tree was being decorated.

"We wondered if she'd mistaken it for a possible husband!" she said.