Did you spot Santa's elves?

It may only be October, but the festive helpers have already been out at one business near Carlisle.

Mapa Trees, at Wetheral, gives away 10 Christmas trees each year to help spread the word about its real Christmas trees.

Customers are asked to ‘like and share’ social media posts which update them on how their elf inspections are going, to be in with the chance of winning a Christmas tree for their family. The monthly competition runs until December.

However, to ensure the trees are in tip top condition - and live up to Santa's high expectations - elves have been out and about inspecting them for categories such as "needle spikiness".

Ali Goldie, of Wetheral, began posting about the elf inspections - carried out by Tinsel and Jingle - when her neighbour and the business’ owner Ivor Roberts asked her for help.

“It’s a nice thing for people to see,” she said. “People are getting quite excited about Christmas already; I think it’ll be a good year. Everyone will be at home this year."

Ali added: “We get really good feedback. The trees you buy in the shops have been cut down for weeks so their needles start to drop quicker.”

A spokesman for Mapa Trees Carlisle said: “With all this Covid-19 madness going on we wanted to continue to spread the joy with our competitions.

"From the classic Norway spruce to the contemporary Lodgepole pine, our dedicated growers produce only the finest homegrown trees using largely traditional farming methods.”