The fun of Christmas can be forgotten among all the shopping and cooking. Luckily, as KERRY ANN EUSTICE found there is one man keeping the magic alive

Qualifications:

There are no specific qualifications you need to be Santa, but I have done some theatre work. I think it is important you have an understanding of the feeling and magic of Christmas. You also have to have police authorisation if you are working with children.

Place of work:

The Glades shopping centre, Bromley.

Earning potential:

It depends on the venue. Most Santa's earn £7 to £8 an hour. But if you were working somewhere such as Harrods for example, I imagine it would be a bit more.

What hours do you work?

I work quite a lot of hours, seven to eight hours a day for six days a week. Some days it could even be 10 hours. It corresponds with the opening hours of the venue I am working at. Sometimes there are two Santas working in shifts, so one can mind the grotto while the other goes to feed the reindeers!

What is your typical day like?

My main duties are meeting the children and talking to them, giving them their presents and asking what they would like for Christmas. I also have photos taken with the children. My job is to make the whole experience as pleasurable as possible and capture a bit of Christmas magic. Some children get really into it and tell me they will be leaving me mince pies on Christmas Eve. If the children are not convinced I'm the real Santa I tell them if they don't believe it's hard to receive.

For the rest of the year I'm an auditer.

Why did you decide to become a santa?

I used to work in IT for Barclay's Bank and one year it had a huge Christmas party for 300 children. I was nominated to be Santa and I really enjoyed it.

I carried on visiting schools, hospitals and charity events and started to become quite well known as Santa. At this time my daughter encouraged me to go full-time at Christmas. The agency I work for Dreamtime provides my suit and finds the Glades its elves. Many Santa's use an agency to find work.

Where do you want to go from here?

I have done a lot of hospital work, meeting the children and taking them presents. It is really nice as I feel like I'm bringing them some happy moments. I would like to do more work like that.