If you stare hard enough you might just see Santa's sleigh parked on the roof of the Whitgift Centre when he makes a flying visit to Croydon on Christmas Eve.

As thousands of children across the borough count down the final days to Christmas, Santa will be preparing for his busiest day of the year.

He says: "There's a lot of time I have to spend planning, seeing what toys are popular.

"The elves make a lot of the presents but we do source them from a lot of shops as well so the children can go round and see what they want."

Then all that remains is the mammoth task of delivering all the presents on time.

Travelling across continents and time zones, he delivers presents to children across the world but says sometimes he does get mistaken for a burglar.

"Convincing the police I have a legitimate reason for being in the house is sometimes tricky," he says. "But usually they smile and let me get on with my business."

Santa can't say how he manages to visit so many children in one night for security reasons, but says he gets two days to do it because of the date line.

Starting in the continent where it turns midnight first he works his way around the world waiting until each household's lights go out.

He says the children who are going to be happy with whatever they get are the nicest and they are the ones who always have a fantastic Christmas.

Santa says his magic, reindeer-powered sleigh has to be kept secret because it's "faster than any plane or space ship that anyone has ever built".

And the reindeer are such good drivers he doesn't need insurance because they never crash.

"They're very well-behaved but sometimes a little jealous if Rudolf gets the most attention."

For some the excitement has already been too much.

Santa was asked by one confused dad on a visit to his grotto in the Whitgift Centre if he would still be there on Boxing Day!

And one young boy asked for a bedroom of his own because he had to share with his sister.

Santa apologised to the boy, saying: "I can't really fit a bedroom on my sleigh."

Once down the chimney all kinds of treats await him but he stays the same weight always, no matter how many mince pies he eats.

He says: "I do go on a diet in mid-January and tend to sleep a lot because delivering all those presents in one night is quite exhausting."

He says one of the hardest things is delivering the presents without waking everyone up with his enormous size 10 boots.

"I'm just very clever about the time I choose, when children are in their deepest sleep.

"My favourite thing is making people happy and my pet hate is people who don't believe in me."

And if you don't have a chimney, don't worry. Santa says he always has a way of getting in.

"I don't obey the usual rules that other people do and I can fit into much smaller places than other people."

If you do have a chimney, he says, just remember to put the fire out before you go to bed.

You can visit Santa in the Whitgift Centre grotto on Christmas Eve between 11-5pm.