A staggering 37 million cards and letters are predicted to be delivered in the district in the four weeks to Christmas.

To help deliver this massive Christmas mailbag to almost 420,000 homes and businesses in BD, HD and HX areas, Royal Mail will be employing an extra 267 staff to supplement its army of more than 2,200 regular employees in the area.

Around 55 extra vehicles will also be used in the areas on top of the normal 326 lorries and vans. Last year Royal Mail handled nearly 2.1 billion cards and letters in the four weeks to Christmas across the UK, and is expecting to handle around the same amount this year.

On the busiest days in the run-up to Christmas, Royal Mail's postbag virtually doubles in size from its normal 82 million items of mail a day.

On the peak day this year -- Monday, December 16 -- Royal Mail expects to handle nearly 123 million items. During the rest of the week before Christmas posting are likely to be around 110 million each day.

Royal Mail area manager Simon Webb said: "We strive for excellence all year round and we know that our customers do not stop writing their normal mail just because it is Christmas.

"We would ask all our customers to help us to help them by using the postcode so we can deliver their mail as quickly and efficiently as possible.

"A postcode is crucially important and it has never been easier to find the correct one.

"A postcode for any address in the country can be obtained by ringing our special helpline on 08457 111 222 or by logging on to our web site at www.royalmail.com."

The last delivery before Christmas will be on Christmas Eve, with a final collection on the same day at noon. Normal deliveries and collections will recommence on Friday, December 27.

The recommended last posting dates for Christmas this year are Wednesday, December 18, for second class mail, and Saturday, December 21, for first class.

Recommended last posting dates for overseas Christmas airmail this year are Friday, December 6, for airmail letters to Australia, South/Central America, the Caribbean, Africa and the Middle East; Tuesday, December 10, for airmail letters to the USA, Canada and Eastern Europe; Saturday, December 14, for airmail letters to Western Europe.