How to send a Christmas card for 35p

Volunteers involved in the scheme come from across the county, including young children

Volunteers are once again popping the spirit of Christmas through letterboxes at a "cheap as chips" cost for their customers.

Suffolk Scouts is running its Big Christmas Post service this year, which gives residents the chance to send festive cards for just 35p.

Special collection boxes are placed in shops throughout Ipswich, Kesgrave, Felixstowe and surrounding villages.

The festive boxes remain open until 10 December, before the mail is arranged at a local sorting centre and then delivered by Santa’s little helpers up until to Christmas Eve.

The scheme sees special collection boxes placed in shops throughout Ipswich, Kesgrave, Felixstowe and the surrounding villages

Adele Chaplin runs the sorting centre at Foxhall Road Scout Hall.

She said the service was as "cheap as chips" compared with the £1.65 cost of sending first class via Royal Mail.

"It's been running for ages and it has got bigger and bigger every year," she added.

"We love it, it is great and it gets you all Christmassy and everyone uses it - we have little old ladies, businesses and people who have one or two cards to send locally.

"It is fantastic, the number of people that support us every year."

Adele Chaplin (centre), who runs the sorting centre at Foxhall Road Scout Hall, said the Scouts' Christmas post scheme was as "cheap as chips"

Once the post has been sifted through at one of 12 sorting centres in the area, the cards are then sent to Ipswich Scout’s main Hogarth Road hub.

They are then distributed to a variety of volunteer-run groups who take to the streets to ensure the festive cards are delivered in time for Christmas Day.

Those sending cards as part of the initiative should write the full address with postcode on the envelope, before posting them along with the 35p in the boxes.

"The team will be in here pretty much every night sorting cards and getting them all ready to post," added Adele.

Charlotte Hart, one of the volunteers, said one post box had 1,300 cards in it last year.

"There's nothing like [opening a Christmas card] and it's really lovely to see addresses getting a lot of cards and I think it will be great fun for them.