SANTA and his elves are arriving at Crowngate shopping centre on Sunday (November 25) to declare the start of the festive season.

Crowds of shoppers are expected to line the High Street to see the big man with the beard land in Worcester, having flown in from the North Pole.

Father Christmas and his helpers will be making their grand appearance on a ricksaw from 11.30am at the Guildhall before slowly heading to the shopping centre on Friary Walk for 12.30pm.

Along the way, they will be meeting and greeting members of the public, handing out candy canes and posing for pictures, all to the sound of a marching band.

Santa’s base station at Friary Square also opens on Sunday and is free to attend.

Children and adults can enter the station through a top-secret entrance using ‘naughty or nice’ finger-scanning technology.

There will be a host of free, festive fun including face painting, crafts and a reindeer-feeding games zone, with opportunities to play musical bumps, pass the parcel and the limbo but with a seasonal twist.

Activities will continue on Fridays and Sundays between 11am and 4pm until December 23.

Every Saturday, from 11am to 4pm, families can join the team of characterful elves for arctic-themed activities including a silent disco, penguin bauble painting, North Pole mask making and a polar bear puppet theatre.

Mike Lloyd, centre manager at Crowngate, said the arrival of Santa Claus in the city is always a highlight in its events calendar.

“Every year, families turn up in their droves to see Santa and the elves and get swept up in the magic and wonder of Christmas,” he said.

“It’s absolutely fantastic to see the whole community coming together to revel in the celebrations, with the grown-ups at times being more excited than the little ones.”

“We are also very much looking forward to our visitors having great fun at Santa’s Base Station, with many activities to take part in and make lovely, family memories.

“Christmas is definitely one of our favourite times of year and we are counting down the days.

“We hope Worcester has a brilliant time with us and our very special guests,” added Mike.

Visit crowngate-worcester.co.uk for more information.