Kimberley schoolgirl has been on a mission to help the homeless this Christmas

Lilly-Ann has collected dozens of donations.

A selfless Kimberley schoolgirl has been on a mission to collect food donations for the homeless in time for Christmas.

Nine-year-old Lilly-May Hopcroft-Beecham has now handed over the donations to Emmanuel House, which supports people who are homeless or in crisis in Nottingham.

Tammy, Lilly-May’s mum, said: “Lilly-May dropped the donations off last week to Emmanuel House and they were extremely grateful for all of the items that was donated.

“Lilly-May had the following donated – toiletries, dry goods, tinned food, gloves, hats, Christmas chocolates and sleeping bags.

“We could not have made a difference without the support of our local community, Kimberley Primary School, Shianne Amber's Dance School, family and friends.”

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It is not the first Christmas charity challenge Lilly-May has embarked upon.

Last year, she set herself the target of donating at least 10 gifts to boys and girls in need within the local area – and ended up with more than 80 presents.

This year, she was determined to find another way to help those less fortunate than herself.

And following a trip into Nottingham city centre, where Lilly-May noticed rough sleepers, she decided she wanted to focus on helping the homeless and set about collecting donations for Emmanuel House.

The Kimberley Primary School pupil wrote about her charity mission in a letter, which she sent to friends, family and her school, seeking donations.

She wrote: “Emmanuel House is an independent charity that supports people who are homeless, rough sleepers, in crisis or at risk of homelessness in Nottingham.

“My reason for choosing this is I was truly surprised by the number of people I personally saw one evening making their beds in doorways, on steps and at the side of buildings.

“I understand many families are having to make cutbacks this year due to the UK’s financial difficulties. However, even the smallest of donations can help make a big difference to our community.”

The response has been immense so far, with the youngster accumulating tons of items to present to the charity at the start of December.

Tammy said: “People have been extremely generous – even more than we expected with everything that’s going on this year.

“Everyone is feeling the pinch, but at least we do have roofs over our heads, even if we are struggling.

“I can’t really put into words how proud I am of Lilly-May. It’s so nice to see her thinking about other people.”