Every small step...

Youngsters at Uplands Pre-School in Carlton Colville near Lowestoft put their best foot forward to raise hundreds of pounds for charity.

At least 70 children completed two laps around their playing field during a sponsored toddle in aid of Barnardos.

They raised £600, which will be used by the charity to fund its work helping vulnerable children, young people and their families across the UK.

The young pupils were joined by staff and the pre-school's new mascot Pandora the panda.

Samantha Howlett, manager of the pre-school which is based at the Uplands Community Centre in Ashburnham Way, said: 'We had a good response from parents and raised a fantastic amount of money. So many got involved and some of them took the sponsor forms in to work.

'We decided to do twice around the school field for the sponsored toddle, which was enough for them in the heat.'

Mrs Howlett said a competition had been held to name the new mascot, which was won by four-year-old Eleanor Bullard.

She said Pandora the panda would be featured on the pre-school's stationery and would attend future events.

Mrs Howlett added: 'The children love it. We were surprised at how well they reacted to it really. Some of them are normally frightened of things like that.'

Following the sponsored toddle, staff and children enjoyed a party to say goodbye to everyone who is moving on to primary schools in September.

Mrs Howlett said: 'We have got 50 children leaving to go to big school so we gave them a little send off. We had a magician and party food. I spent most of the morning crying because I have got so attached to them all.'

Proceeds from the Barnardo's Big Toddle will go to the charity's vital under-fives projects to help to transform the lives of disadvantaged young children. These include children suffering from disabilities, living in poverty or overcoming a traumatic experience like domestic violence or losing a parent.

More than 7,000 childcare providers and parents across the UK organise their own Big Toddle every year with more than 300,000 children taking part in events.