It is a simple act of generosity that speaks volumes about how much a Great Yarmouth junior school cares about its pupils.

For each child at St Nicholas Priory Junior School finished for the festive break with a gift-wrapped story book to help them to stay connected with the written word over the Christmas break.

Chair of governors James Wright said staff had wrapped around 380 books, all carefully selected to match children's abilities and chime with their interests.

'The rationale is that we have been doing a lot as a school in terms of reading and getting the children interested in reading,' he said.

'The governors thought it would be really nice to give each child in the school a book for Christmas that is appropriate to their age and their reading level. We want them to enjoy reading in the home. It fits in with a general literary push to improve standards across the board.'

Other initiatives have included encouraging boys to read on 'boy friendly' tablets which can hold more appeal than a traditional book to a generation bought up on screens and devices.