EXTRA special gifts were handed out to young people who spent Christmas in Oxford Children’s Hospital this year.

More than 100 handmade Christmas stockings from all over the world were delivered to the wards.

What started as a hobby knitting pillowcases for the patients by volunteers Dr Sylvia Rueda and Val Mitchell has grown into an international annual event.

Dr Rueda’s involvement with the children’s hospital in Headington began three years ago when she founded the Oxford branch of a volunteer group called ConKerr Cancer.

She said: “The support and donations of stockings from all over the world has been fantastic.”