School pupils cooked up a storm as they helped make Christmas day special for some of Carlisle's homeless people.

Year Seven and Eight students from William Howard School, in Brampton, had already helped out Carlisle's Water Street homeless hostel earlier this term.

The youngsters baked about 100 cupcakes and biscuits for the hostel to sell at its annual Christmas fair, held at the start of December.

All money raised from the fair was donated to the charity Headway, as part of the hostel's efforts to work with the local community.

This week the hostel's services manager Peter Rhodes plus volunteers from the hostel and from Headway returned to the school to say thank you to the students.

The charity also received a cheque for almost £300 - the proceeds of the fair.

And, as an added bonus, year eight pupils also spent time whipping up two separate traditional Christmas cakes to be enjoyed on December 25.

Kelly Gilmour, William Howard's transition teacher, explained: "I was contacted by Peter to see if we could try and raise awareness of homelessness at Christmas.

"We first of all baked for the Christmas fair, and I talked to the children about what homelessness was and how it might come about.

"Peter then asked to come back and bring volunteers to bake Christmas cakes with the year eights, to give residents.

"It was fantastic because the children were having conversations with people they wouldn't normally talk to."

Mr Rhodes added: "We wanted to introduce Headway to the children, and also to give the charity the money we'd raised.

"We then made two Christmas cakes which will be enjoyed by all the residents in the Water Street hostel on Christmas Day.

"It was important not only to raise awareness of homelessness with the pupils, but also of Headway."