Santa Claus is coming to town!

Of course it will be the real man in red who scuttles down our chimneys and delivers his sleighful of presents as children are dreaming on Christmas Eve.

But in the run up to the 25th Father Christmas has far too many engagements to get to by himself. After all, Dasher, Rudolf and the gang can only travel at the speed of light one night in the year. Otherwise they would be exhausted.

One of Santa’s faithful stand-ins is Stotfold grandfather, Bob Werrett. And although he has not been delivering gifts to well behaved children for as long as the real Father Christmas, his 25 plus years of experience do stand him in good stead.

In fact, Bob enjoys his role so much that his whole family now take part. His late wife Carol painted the scenery and now his daughter Julie Speltinckx makes an excellent elf and her husband Carl and his brother Ian are the reindeer. New to the festive clan this year is Julie and Carl’s eight-year-old daughter, Abi, who makes a superb young reindeer.

Julie said: “It’s a family affair. Normally we do our own grotto and when it’s dark with twinkling lights it’s magical. The reindeer were added in the last few years.

“Visiting Father Christmas is the beginning of Christmas.”

Explaining how he got started, Bob said: “It has escalated over the last 25 or more years. I first started when I was asked at St Mary’s Church in Stotfold. The curate came up to me and said: ‘Would you like to be Father Christmas? All the kids know the other people who have done it before.’

“It was very low key. Then I got asked the next year and I thought the decorations needed to be improved a bit so I got some cardboard and my wife painted some scenery on it.

“Over the years I kept being asked and eventually I built a grotto of separate panels which make a cabin. When we got the reindeers the kids were more interested in them than in Father Christmas!

“Later the two guys said ‘what we need is a sledge’ and they built one in my garden. The reindeers pull me out and I give away sweets.”

Although Bob is a more local Father Christmas he is just a generous as the original in Lapland.

He and his family buy all the sweets and presents that they give out. They have improved the gifts, often books, over the years by buying in bulk, which costs less than buying each present individually.

He does not ask for payment but if people offer to donate money he asks for it to go to Evelina Children’s Hospital in London, where Abi was once taken when she fell ill.

Bob, or Santa Claus as perhaps we should call him, has been in high demand this year. He still plays the part at the church but his rounds now include Roecroft Lower School in Stotfold and schools in Royston, Stevenage and Letchworth.

He also puts on his very effective costume for the lights switch on in his own road, Silverbirch Avenue. Neighbours agree to switch on their lights at the same time and there are celebrations including music from Stotfold Salvation Army.

As the family know a lot of the local children Father Christmas can sometimes appear to be surprisingly knowledgeable. One child was convinced that Father Christmas had seen him play football!

Visits to Santa’s grotto have not been affected by tightening child protection regulations because the parents always come in with their children anyway.

But children’s wishlists certainly have altered. In earlier years they asked for such toys as Lego and dolls. Now they are more likely to ask for mobile phones and iPads.

Bob said: “I have to be careful with promising presents, particularly with some of the expensive toys. I say: ‘Well I will really have to think about that. They are in great demand at the moment.’

“I had one little girl saying she just wanted surprises!

“It’s fun and it’s for the kids to enjoy themselves. I love seeing their faces.”

He added: “I think the older ones are at the stage where they know it’s not the real Father Christmas but they can’t turn round and say ‘you aren’t the real Father Christmas’ because they are always wondering if that means that they won’t get any presents.”

Young Abi has been sworn to secrecy about her grandfather – but the family have still kept the magic alive for her. After all, she knows that she has seen the real Father Christmas in Enfield!