The people keeping services running over Christmas

Keeping a county running at any given point in the year is no easy task - and Christmas Day is no different.

As thousands of people in Suffolk open presents, eat plenty of food and enjoy the company of friends and family, others will be working as usual.

From call handlers to pub staff to funeral directors, many are going about their normal day to ensure the county keeps going.

We spoke to some of these people to find out what the festive day had in store for them in their professions.

Christopher Rees, 37, from Kesgrave, works as a deputy operations manager at Sizewell B nuclear power station in the county.

Not only does the station keep Suffolk powered, it keeps the country running too.

"We recognise that we're doing something really important for the UK and even if you're working on Christmas Day, you know you're keeping the power working, the lights on, keeping the ovens going for when you get home and have your turkey," Mr Rees explained.

"You've still got your routine work to do, but there's definitely a nice atmosphere.

"The job is just to keep producing electricity to make sure that your families at home and everybody else around Suffolk can have their Christmas dinner and keep their Christmas tree lights on and all that good stuff."

Melissa Abbott, 45, works as a growing officer at the Food Museum in Stowmarket, and will be making sure all the animals are fed on Christmas Day.

Ms Abbott will start her day at 05:30 GMT to walk her own dogs before looking after the animals across an 84 acre site, and then do it all again in the afternoon.

"A lot of the time you always eat too much on Christmas Day, you sit around too much in a hot house because you've got lots of people over, so I don't mind too much coming to do this as it gets me out in the fresh air," she said.

"The animals are at the museum to help tell the story of food, past, present and future and help connect people with where their food comes from, whether it's horses that were used to plough the fields where food is grown or lambs bred for the table."

Rhys Askham, 27, who is from Suffolk and now lives in Diss, Norfolk, works as a funeral director at Rosedale Funeral Home across the two counties.

He explained it was a 24/7 industry that did not stop for Christmas and staff would be working.

While Mr Askham felt the industry was often forgotten about at this time of year, he said his team were always ready to help and the office telephones would be diverted to the staff's mobile phones to ensure they were available.

"Sometimes there is pressure on funeral directors with their own families and many a Christmas Day I've had to miss Christmas dinner because the phone has gone.

"The last thing we want to have, especially on Christmas Day, is someone on hold or listening to theme music.

"We want to be able to answer straight away and for them to know that they are dealing with someone local, someone who is going to be looking after them and making the arrangements."

UK Power Networks' contact centre in Ipswich will have people on the phones on Christmas Day responding to any issues.

Alex Williams, the head of the centre, told BBC Radio Suffolk while it was "business as usual" over the Christmas period there was "more of a festive cheer".

"We get the mince pies in, you might be able to hear some festive music playing very softly in the background if you call in, it's decorated as you'd expect," he explained.

"Our teams do like to get Christmas dinner in but they tend to do that before or after a shift start time and there will be a buffet of sorts available to the guys that are in the building working on the day."

Jo Reeder, 54, is the chief executive officer of Communities Together East Anglia, based in Stowmarket, which works to reduce loneliness and isolation.

Its Community Connect telephone service will run as usual on Christmas Day between 10:00 to 14:00 for anyone who needs help.

"We know very much, particularly over the Christmas period, while the focus tends to be on people getting together with their family and friends, for some people that's not a reality and it can be a very lonely and isolating time," Miss Reeder said.

The service was set up four years ago and opens every day as "people aren't just lonely Monday to Friday, nine to five", Miss Reeder explained.

It is run by three women who work part time and determine how best to support callers and integrate them into the local community.

"It can be a difficult job as well, but when you're able to encourage that person to access support ideally as locally as possible to where they live then that's a really good thing," Miss Reader added.

Staff at the Blue Cross animal rehoming centre in Wherstead, just outside of Ipswich, will work as usual Christmas Day to ensure all the animals are looked after.

Charles White, the centre's manager, told BBC Radio Suffolk that thanks to a generous number of donations this year, the animals will also receive a present.

"We try and keep everything exactly the same in regards to our routine, hence why there are at least between eight and 12 people here on Christmas Day to make sure all of the animals keep their routine, they are all fed, walked, cleaned and looked after properly," he said.

"We're very, very lucky that we've got a great team here and the animals come first and foremost above everything else."

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