Fundraiders his the street for annual charity extravagana

That’s the message to Romsey from fundraisers collecting cash for today's annual BBC Children in Need Appeal.

People will be out and about across the town and nearby communities with their buckets hoping the public dig deep into their pockets for the charity fundraiser.

Among them will be Amanda Beauchamp and Sue Hannigan who will be out on the town’s streets early in a bid to collect as much cash as they can.

You won’t miss them, because mother of three Amanda will be kitted out in a Supergirl outfit, and Sue who has five children, as Pudsey – the Children in Need mascot.

“I have been doing Children in Need for a few years now. We are both full-time mums and I am a full time carer for my husband Andy, usually we are in our onesies or tutu’s but this year I have a Supergirl outfit, and Sue has got a Pudsey outfit. We have raised a lot of money over the years in between the range of £100 to up to £400. Every year we always say we wont beat the previous year’s and we always seem to get slight more, so we have surprised ourselves every year.

"We do this to help those less fortunate then ourselves and if we can make just one child smile or make their lives a little better then its all worthwhile,” said Amanda.

And this week Pudsey bear dropped in on a Romsey charity ahead of the BBC Children in Need Appeal to deliver some very good news. Pudsey handed bosses at Romsey Opportunity Group – a special needs centre for pre-school age children – a £10,000 cheque.

The cash came from the BBC Children in Need charity and will go towards paying for staff at Romsey Opportunity Group which is funded solely by grants, donations and fundraising activities.

Romsey Opportunity Group trustee Sue Fisher and the organisation’s family co-ordinator Lyn Bird received the cheque from Pudsey as the children who benefit from activities provided at the centre off Princes Road looked on.

Children with a wide-range of special needs including physical, emotional and sensory disabilities benefit from attending sessions at Romsey Opportunity Group where they learn to socialise with others through play. Specialist speech therapists and physiotherapists are involved with the group.

Children who qualify to attend sessions usually gain a place at the group through GPs and health visitors or parents.

“We put a bid together and applied for a grant and they gave us £10,000. We rely largely on donations and grants to help with running cost,” said Sue.

And Lyn said it cost in the region of £15,000 a year to run the group. "We provide for children with additional needs under school age and their families.

"We provide one to one support and we are entering our 45th year of operating.

"We are very fortunate that we have businesses in Romsey supporting us. The money that we have received from BBC Children in Need will cover the core running costs and is definitely a welcome cash boost." Any other money that we now raise can be spent on toys and equipment for the children or may be even a special outing for them.