POORLY youngsters on a children’s ward will never be short of a good book to read – thanks to the generosity of pupils from a WGC school.

More than 200 new books, from teen horror fiction to colourful picture books, were donated by years eight and nine at Monk’s Walk School.

And seven pupils dropped in on the Bluebell ward at the Lister Hospital, Stevenage, to hand the books over.

School librarian Adam Lancaster said: “We think it’s really important to help make sure our local hospitals have lots of good resources for the children who use them and this was a nice thing for the pupils to get involved with.

“They all know friends who have had to go into hospital, so it’s nice to be able to give something back.”

Mr Lancaster said the pupils had organised cake stalls and other events at school to raise the money to buy the books.

They had also received generous contributions from a handful of publishers, he added.

Jo Sinnott, one of the East and North Herts NHS Trust’s dedicated play specialists, said: “We’re really grateful to Monk’s Walk for all these fantastic books and I’m sure the kids will love them.

“It’s never nice for them being stuck in hospital so a good book can be a perfect way to help them forget where they are for a while.”