WE may be in the depths of bitter winter weather and serious economic difficulties – but that has not stopped Press readers responding magnificently to our annual Toys & Tins Appeal.

Kind-hearted folk braved icy roads and pavements to deliver hundreds of toys, jigsaws, board games, teddies, books and perfumes, along with tins, boxes and bags of food, to our Walmgate headquarters.

The response to the appeal is one of the best ever, and it will now bring a little festive cheer into the Christmases of some of the York area’s most vulnerable people. Staff from the York Women’s Aid refuge, which will be packed with children and mothers affected by domestic abuse over the festive period, picked up almost a vanful of toys and other gifts.

These will be wrapped over coming days to ensure children and mothers both get presents on Christmas Day.

The Salvation Army collected the food, which will be used to help create almost 90 Christmas hampers for poverty-stricken people of all ages across the area.

Both organisations were delighted and overwhelmed by the amount of items donated during the week-long appeal.

“It’s fantastic,” said Corrina Dobson, a children’s worker at the refuge.

“These gifts will make a real difference to people staying there over Christmas. I would like to say a big thank you to readers of The Press.”

Beryl Holliday, of the Salvation Army, said the food was particularly important this year as the organisation had been asked to create more parcels than normal, and it had received less food from York’s Harvest Festivals in the autumn.

“It really does help us,” she said. “I really would like to thank everyone who has contributed items. They are absolutely brilliant.”