A PLAYGROUP raised more than £700 for Havens Hospices by holding a charity treasure hunt.

Children and parents from St Gabriel’s Church Playgroup, in Pitsea, took part in a special treasure hunt to raise money for Little Havens Hospice.

The group, which has been supporting Little Havens since 2005, raised £775 when 37 children used torches to find jungle animals, looked for shapes in a dark room, found insects in soil and searched for money in the sand tray. In total, the group has raised over £8,000 for the hospice through fundraising events.

Playgroup manager, Emily Evans, said: “All the children, staff and parents at St Gabriel’s Playgroup love to support Little Havens as they do such great work looking after local families.

“Everyone had lots of fun on the day fundraising with our treasure hunt.

“We will continue to support this worthy charity.”

Peter Hall, community fundraiser at Little Havens, said: “It sounds like all the children at St Gabriel’s had a brilliant time on their very special treasure hunt while raising money for Little Havens.

“It is brilliant for children at such a young age to be able to support other young people who are being cared for by their local hospice.

“At Little Havens, we help children and their families by controlling pain and medication, offering respite and caring for children at the end of their lives.

“We simply couldn’t do that without the support of the local community who take host and take part in events like this one to help us to raise over £46,000, which we need every week to be there for everybody who needs our care.

“So, I would like to thank everybody at St Gabriel’s for their continuing support over many years.”