As part of their Christmas card competition, a group of six children from Ruislip Gardens Primary school, Northolt were invited to visit BFPO in order to highlight that it was the last week to get Christmas post to our armed forces on operations.

The children saw first hand how Christmas parcels, cards and gifts are sent to our soldiers, sailors and airmen, including their own cards which they have designed and sent to members of 7th Battalion The Rifles (TA), currently serving in Afghanistan.

BFPO recently moved to a new site at Northolt where they are using state of the art technology to help them deal with the vast quantities of mail they receive. Over the past few weeks, in the run up to Christmas, around 100,000 parcels a week have been sent free to around 14,000 front line personnel, providing them with gifts, non-perishable food items and home comforts. This increase has largely been due to the free post service which has proved extremely popular with families of those serving overseas since its launch in September.

Major Graham Pennie, responsible for the output of BFPO London, escorted the children during their visit:

"On average we send almost 40,000 letters, and 13,000 packets a day to all our Armed Forces overseas," Maj Pennie explained. "Getting a letter from loved ones at any time of year is a huge boost to your morale and I have been in that position myself. However at Christmas it is vitally important that when troops are on operations they receive messages from their families and friends at home."

One of the children who visted Northolt, ten-year-old Ali Abou El-Hassan, when asked what he had learned, said:

"It is really clever how you send parcels and letters around the world so quickly. I think it is really important to make the soldiers happy as they are always working hard in different countries and don't get what we get at Christmas."

Fellow pupil Charlotte Steward, also ten, added:

"Remember to do your parcels and cards quickly, the last day is 7th December."

The free post service managed by BFPO was due to expire in December. However, under a new deal agreed between the Ministry of Defence and Royal Mail, BFPO will continue to play a key role in making it as easy as possible for families and friends to send gifts and home comforts to their loved ones on the front line. The messages received from men and women at the front tell us how much they value parcels from home like letters from loved ones, children's drawings and photographs.

Other suitable items that can be mailed are boiled or packet sweets, favourite blend tea bags and a fun game or pocket gadget. The free post service is available to families and friends of Service personnel. It only applies to parcels bearing the name of the individual being sent to authorised areas of operation.

See Related Links >>> to see full details of the free postal scheme

Due to the pressure placed on the service in the run-up to Christmas, members of the public who wish to show their support are encouraged to donate to the charity uk4u-Thanks!, who supply Christmas parcels to all those overseas at Christmas without using the postal system, ensuring priority is given to personal mail.

Parcels for overseas must not contain prohibited or dangerous items. These include alcohol, aerosols, pressurised containers and flammable materials. Please do not send unsuitable items such as chocolate to hot climates as this can melt and contaminate the parcel; or noodle ready meals or fizzy drinks that can explode in air transit.

The soldiers the children have sent Christmas messages to are from 7th Battalion The Rifles (TA), who are based in Helmand province in Afghanistan until April 2008. They are as follows:

WO2 Kirk O'Loughlin (from Ruislip)
Rifleman Rob Flanagan (from Northolt)
Corporal Neil Kelly (from Reading)
Colour Sergeant Steve Sawyer (from Reading)
Colour Sergeant Edward Chessum (from Milton Keynes)
Rifleman Jet Ryan (from High Wycombe)