A HUGE crane which dominates the skyline of Devizes fascinated five-year-old Amelia Boyd so much she wrote to the company using it – and saw it up close.

The crane is being used to build 37 retirement apartments by McCarthy & Stone at The Wharf.

Amelia, of Nursteed Road, Devizes, had asked her mother, Alice, about the crane most days as they walked along the towpath to St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School.

Mrs Boyd suggested she write a letter with her questions. She did so and handed it in to the site office. She was delighted to receive a reply the next day.

Mrs Boyd said: “Amelia was thrilled to receive a letter addressed specifically to her and promptly sat down to write a thank you letter to the ‘crane man,’ which was longer than the original letter.”

Amelia’s original letter asked questions such as ‘why is the crane so big’ and ‘why does it need to be so big’.

The reply Amelia received from Steve Reed, the senior site manager, included diagrams of the crane. The detailed response explained the type of crane they are using and explained it was used to build up the three floors and put the roof on.

But more was to come when Amelia was invited to visit the site and see how the crane works for herself.

Mr Reed told the Gazette: “I was delighted to receive Amelia’s letter. I thought it was lovely that she had taken an interest in the crane and what was being built on site.

“I included some vouchers for the local toy shop as I wanted to send her a little treat and I received a nice thank you letter in return.

“It’s encouraging to know that the local community, including the younger generation, are taking an interest in our development.”