A Carshalton shopkeeper has praised a pair of young siblings who wrote a heartwarming letter to him after a Christmas tree was stolen from outside his store.

Farook Riyardeen‎ has been running E Thomson's Pick N Pay in Middleton about a year now and said it is a wonderful community.

That's why he was so upset when earlier this month someone stole one of the Christmas trees he was selling.

"It was really sad for me," he told the Sutton Guardian.

"I shared it in a couple groups on Facebook and the next day there was an envelope at our store."

Your Local Guardian:

Inside that envelope was a letter from 11-year-old Isabella Lorusso and her six-year-old brother Alessandro.

The letter read: "Dear shop owner, sorry to hear that the Christmas tree you were selling was stolen.

"We are sharing our pocket money with you to cheer you up.

"We hope that you will find your Christmas tree. Merry Christmas."

Your Local Guardian:

Siblings Isabella and Alessandro

And along with the letter was a £10 note.

Mr Ryardeen was blown away by the generosity.

"They are very little kids and it was very emotional," he said.

"I've never even met the kids. This is really why I love this community.

"I just want to say a big thanks to them."

Your Local Guardian:

The letter was shared on social media and seen by hundreds of people with the children being praised for their selflessness and generosity, including by their mum Edi.

“Alessandro came home from school saying that people had been thanking him for his letter," she said.

"It wasn’t until later on when we saw social media that we realised it was the letter that he and Isabella had written to the store with their pocket money to cheer them up.”

“They are both very thoughtful and always wanting to help other people by making them happy – they’re often doing things like this."