A YOUNG schoolgirl brought festive cheer to homeless people and those less fortunate by raising hundreds of pounds for charity.

Six-year-old Sofia Hill, a primary three pupil at Windygoul Primary School, lives in the Windygoul area of Tranent with mum Lynsey, dad Craig, sisters Rebecca and Lara, and brother Cody.

Lynsey has been following Steps to Hope on Facebook for quite some time, watching its videos, seeing how much it helps people and the work it does.

Steps to Hope is a non-profit charity based in Edinburgh dedicated to caring for the homeless and those suffering with addiction; among its services, it provides meals and rehabilitation.

Watching these videos made Lynsey feel emotional; Sofia saw how upset her mum was and asked her about it. Lynsey then explained the work of the charity to Sofia and that some people did not have as many things as they did.

Two days later, when on her way to a dance class at LCDC Fitness & Dance in Musselburgh, where Sofia attends regularly, Steps to Hope came up in conversation once again.

Lynsey said: “She then just said: ‘Can I do something to raise money for [the charity]?’

“She said she wanted to do something to help them.

“So we then decided to make and sell reindeer food.

“I was so surprised when she started talking about it on her way to dancing, two days after we’d initially brought it up.

“I got in touch with Steps to Hope to let them know we were planning on doing this.”

The pair then gathered all of the items they needed and began making the bags, which consisted of porridge oats and edible, animal safe glitter. The bags were sold for £1 each.

The word was spread on social media and at Sofia’s dance school, and the pair were overwhelmed at the response they received.

In two and a half weeks, £450 was raised, but not everyone bought some reindeer food – many simply wanted to donate money.

Lynsey said: “Sofia made all of the bags herself and sold about 146, the rest of the money was purely people wanting to donate.

“The response she got from everyone was amazing. And we raised a lot of money very quickly as well, one day I dropped her off at her dancing at 2pm and by 4.30pm we had raised more than £100.

“Sofia has always been a really caring person and loves helping people.”

When it came to handing the money over, Sofia and Lynsey visited St Cuthbert’s Church in Edinburgh, where the Steps to Hope catering van was operating at the time, providing food to those who are homeless.

The reaction the pair received when handing their cheque over to the charity shocked them, making Lynsey very emotional and giving her a “lump in my throat”.

Richard Roncero, founder and operations manager at Steps to Hope, said: “We are blown away.

“For a wee girl that age to go out collecting for a homeless charity, it’s just mind-blowing and we’re so grateful.

“I think its very important that parents instil these things in them from a young age.

“Sofia worked really hard and raised a lot of money for us, it will go towards things like housing and getting people rehabilitated.

“They came to the food truck and people were queueing up for something to eat.

“The funds she raised will go towards helping feed all those people; some people that come to the truck say they have not eaten for three days.

“It was really kind of her to help us keep going.

“She’s a wee diamond and a future Steps to Hope volunteer in the making!”