Santa Claus has promised children in all parts of Aycliffe that he will definitely visit the town this Christmas. He has assured local Rotary Club members that he will pay a quick visit on several evenings before Christmas Eve when he will return with his sack full of toys for wellbehaved youngsters. Arrangements have already been made for Santa to fly in on his sleigh and visit Heighington on Monday, December 5, Woodham on Tuesday (Dec 6), Cobblers Hall on Wednesday (Dec 7) and Neville Parade on Thursday (Dec 8). The following week, he will call at Simpasture on Monday (Dec 12), School Aycliffe on Tuesday (Dec 13), Blue Bell Way on Wednesday (Dec 14) and the Stead Close area on Thursday (Dec 15) All the visits will be made between 5.30pm and 7.30pm when Santa will be joined by his friends at Newton Aycliffe Rotary Club who, as in previous years, will be collecting to buy Christmas hampers for local needy families and other Rotary charities. Thanks to the generosity of the Tesco Store management team, the Rotarians will be in the Tesco supermarket with their collecting buckets between Monday, December 12, and Sunday, December 18 (inclusive). Rotary’s annual, ever-popular, free Carol concert featuring local schoolchilden will be staged in the Leisure Centre Main Hall on Tuesday, 13th December, from 1pm to 2.30pm, using special sound equipment provided by John Melvin and with keyboard accompaniment by George Dixon. Rotarians are asking those attending to bring an elderly neighbour to enjoy what is now a firm favourite in the town’s pre-Christmas events calendar.