A family have found the perfect way to avoid the present-buying rush this Christmas- they have agreed not to buy any.

Instead, Mavourneen Moore, 60, of Clare Road in Braintree made a pact with her sister to donate what they would have spent to Braintree Mencap.

Mrs Moore, whose 23-year-old son Cameron is autistic, said she made the decision with her sister Vanessa Hickson two years ago.

She said: “I was talking to my sister and we were deciding what to do about presents.

“Then we both said ‘this is really silly, we don’t need anything’. We agreed we would rather give our money to Braintree Mencap’."