MORE than a year of fundraising, raffles and pub quizzes has been rewarded with completely refurbished indoor and outdoor areas at Longhope Playgroup.

Playleader, Vanessa Meek, says: "We've been pushing really hard at this for more than a year now and we've managed to raise a fantastic £8,000 or £9,000 for the playgroup.

"It has been a tremendous effort from the whole playgroup, staff, committee and parents."

Money to pay for a complete makeover of the inside of the Latchen Room and a levelling of what was a steeply sloping outside play area came in the form of grants from Grass Roots, the Langstone Trust and the Co-op along with fundraising efforts by parents and staff.

The work done so far will be followed by new kitchens this Christmas.