It may be the most wonderful time of the year but for Royal Mail workers it is also the busiest.

The Medway Mail Centre in Knight Road, Strood, will handle around three million letters and parcels every day in the run-up to Christmas.

Usually, the centre handles around 1.8 million items a night.

Workers sort post that will be delivered to homes across the county and Medway.

Plant manager Neil Molloy said: “This factory services all of the collection and delivery for Kent.

“At this time of year it’s around three million a day going through here, so it’s almost 20 million in a working week.

“In order to do that and get all the parcels and letters connected to our customers, we’ve got 640 workers here at Medway and 500 temporary workers simply for the Christmas rush.”

VIDEO: Workers at Medway Mail Centre pull out all the stops for the Christmas rush

Mr Molloy said the hard work did not dampen anyone’s festive spirit.

“We have tremendous Christmas spirit here,” he said.

“We actively encourage people to put on a Santa’s hat – we believe in the ethic of having fun but also doing a hard job at work.

“But I can’t say that we won’t be pleased to see Christmas Eve when it’s done and we can put our feet up like everyone else.”

Bob French has worked for Royal Mail for 36 years sorting parcels.

He said: “We’re busy most of the time but even more so at Christmas. My favourite part of the job is satisfaction from the customer.”

Mr French added that the team would also be busy in January during the sales.

He said: “We’re all on the internet now buying things and it could take a long time for them to process it, but on this side we see the heavy amounts of work coming in from them.”

Dave Gardener has worked for Royal Mail for 28 years and said staff at the centre were always busy but there was a definite Christmas rush.

“Christmas goes mental,” he said. “It’s amazing how much people send out through the post.

“My favourite thing about my job is the people and the work. If you’re with a good crowd the time goes quick and you enjoy what you’re doing.

“We’ve had Cyber Monday and Black Friday to contend with so it does get pretty mental.”

Mr Gardener added: “My tip is try and post early, then it’s guaranteed that your parcels will arrive at their destination before Christmas.”

Natalie Wearon, from Rainham, is one of the centre’s seasonal workers. She said: “I’m on dispatch taking the trolleys out, loading on the parcels out on to the lorries. I enjoy it very much. There’s a nice group of people and a happy atmosphere.

“I’d love to come back again. It keeps you busy. Everyone works together as a team trying to get all the parcels out.”