THOUSANDS of schoolchildren will be given books this Christmas in a drive to encourage them to read.

Youngsters attending the special school performances of Clacton’s festive pantomime Aladdin will each be given a second-hand book.

It is part of a council bid to boost reading standards.

Tendring Council has already handed out 600 books to children who visited the storytelling tent at Clacton’s first Sea and Beach Festival in the summer.

Now it is in the process of collecting 4,000 second-hand books for the Christmas panto scheme.

Cabinet spokesman Lynda McWilliams said: “As a community leader we want to work with our partners to raise aspirations along with educational attainment.

“Improving opportunities for children to reach their true potential is pivotal to tackling some of the wider issues facing our community and we recognise that and want to do something about it.

“Giving a child a book is a tangible way in which we as a council can help promote reading.

It’s not just about reading the book but enjoying the experience.

“We got this idea off the ground at the Sea and beach Festival and we are now expanding our sights to 4,000 children attending the school performances of the panto in December.”

She appealed for people across the disctrict with unwanted children’s books to donate them to the cause by dropping them at Clacton town hall or any of the council’s sports centres.