LITTLE did Emily Davis know when she went to Oxford’s John Radcliffe Hospital yesterday that she would meet Santa Claus himself.

The 11-year-old from Witney suffers from Williams syndrome, a rare neurodevelopmental disorder, and was at Oxford Children’s Hospital for a follow-up appointment when she was given a present via a very special delivery.

Two sacks of presents were taken to the Headington hospital by air ambulance to help cheer up some of its youngest patients.

The reindeers were given the day off as Santa made a dramatic entrance in the brightly-coloured helicopter of Thames Valley and Chiltern Air Ambulance.

Emily, who came away with a Dora the Explorer book, said: “I’m really pleased. I can’t believe I just got a present from Santa.”

Her father Nick said: “She has been coming here since she was born.

“It’s great that they organise these things. She nearly fell down the stairs when she saw Santa arriving.”

Another youngster, Charlie Collard, four, from Thame, had come to the hospital to have his tonsils taken out.

He said: “I was really pleased to see him and he gave me a toy train.”

For some of the families staying at the hospital, Christmas can suddenly become a very worrying time.

Iwona Paloska, from Milton Keynes, brought her 13-month-old daughter Gemma to Oxford because of a suspected brain tumour.

She said: “When she saw Santa arriving she was really happy. It is really nice and I didn’t expect anything like this. It is not an easy time of year to be in hospital but it is really nice that they do this for the children.”

The toys which Santa delivered yesterday were donated by supporters of the air ambulance charity, a Sainsbury’s store in High Wycombe and toy company Mattel.

Lisa Brown, a paramedic with Thames Valley and Chiltern Air Ambulance, accompanied Santa, who was played by Colin Lee, the president of the charity.

She said: “It is part of the job where you can have some fun as well, and you can’t beat the feeling of bringing a smile to a child’s face.

“It is the nicest part of our job because you feel you are giving something back.”

The air ambulance service, which relies on donations and costs around £2million a year to run, covers Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Berkshire and is based at RAF Benson near Wallingford.

Erica Watson, a play specialist at the children’s hospital, said: “It is always important that people recognise that some children will be stuck in hospital over Christmas and may not have the same things they have at home.

“These things take some organising and today they were delayed because they had to go to an emergency but it’s so nice when charities such as the air ambulance think of us.”

On Tuesday five personnel from 230 Squadron, based at RAF Benson also visited the hospital with Santa.