A fundraiser in Hethersett for the £1m Norfolk Bone and Joint Appeal had the perfect start when £500 was donated by the Hethersett and District Lions Club.

The event at Hethersett Village Hall on Saturday was opened by Helen McDermott, and organised by the Rheumatoid in Norfolk Group (RiNG), which is fundraising to help build a world class centre at the Norwich Research Park to find new treatments for chronic bone diseases.

Jane Scarfe, the group's chairman, said: 'We must have had a couple of hundred people in, and there were about a dozen stalls. We raised £1,000 altogether.

'We are fundraising for this new centre which will carry out research into diseases affecting the bone.

'As a group we feel it's really important to do our bit for the community, and to bring high-level jobs to Norfolk.'

The event also featured story-time with Karyn Roe, from Wymondham, who tells stories to children at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital.

The storyteller and puppet therapist said: 'Four years ago I did some voluntary work at a primary school in Wymondham. I found it was a real joy working with children, and they get a tremendous amount from it.

'I started with just one puppet but now I've got about 30. It helps me feel better, and I cannot do anything else now; it's my job. It has a therapeutic effect on me and the children.'

RiNG holds monthly meetings with guest speakers at Hethersett Village Hall and arranges social events.

Last month 80 bridge players from across Norfolk huddled around tables at the Costessey Centre and raised almost £800 for the appeal.