IT RAISED a whopping £32.6million – and generous fundraisers in the borough certainly did their bit to contribute to the record-breaking total made during this year’s BBC Children in Need appeal.

Businesses, schools and individuals came up with creative ways to generate funds last Friday, joining in with the fun and helping to benefit disadvantaged young people in the UK.

At The Clere School, in Burghclere, each tutor group planned their own unique fundraising ideas including blindfolded cake tasting, a biscuit decorating competition, a treasure hunt, a penalty shootout, and an egg and spoon race.

Children from Kiddi Caru day nursery, in Beggarwood, Basingstoke, took part in a tiring 11-hour treadmill relay.

Starting at 7.30am, staff, parents and children helped keep the treadmill going right through until 6.30pm, with the help of the nursery’s mascot Roo.

Pupils also enjoyed a fancy dress competition, donning the outfit of their hero for the day, to raise extra funds for the cause.

At The Hampshire Court Hotel, in Chineham, staff organised a week of fundraising activities, including a car wash, personal training day and swimathon.

The events culminated on Friday when staff endured sitting in a bath of beans.

They took it in turns to ensure the bean pool, donated by Water Babies, was occupied for the entire day.

Staff could also pay £1 throughout the week to vote for one of four men to have their legs waxed on the Friday – and the unlucky winner of the ballot was tennis coach Shyam Vithlani.

Naomi Francis, assistant leisure and spa manager, said: “We raised £1,062, our target was £1,000. We also had a cake sale, with cakes donated by Bramley Bakery.”

NatWest Bank, in The Top of The Town, Basingstoke, also chose to raise funds through a cake sale, offering the tasty treats to customers, and at Beechdown Health Club, staff took part in a spinathon from 8am to 8pm to raise funds.

A team of police officers from Basingstoke embarked on a cross-Channel challenge for Children in Need.

The six officers and support staff set off on November 13 from Alencon police station in France – the town which is twinned with Basingstoke – to make a journey all the way to Basingstoke police station, which they arrived at last Friday.

Basingstoke Gazette:

Detective Constable Andy Panter said: “It was an amazing event to be part of. It was a tough challenge but the support of the team and from the general public on social media really helped to get us through those dark moments.

“We were made to feel extremely welcome by the police in Alencon, and got the opportunity to cycle through some beautiful countryside – and up some tough hills!

“We’d like to thank Brittany Ferries, Alencon police and our colleagues across Hampshire for their support over the two-day challenge.

“Their generosity has been overwhelming and we couldn’t have done it without them. We’d also like to thank each and every person who has donated, it’s really appreciated.”

The team cycled 120km to Caen, before boarding a ferry to Portsmouth where they ran the rest of the journey in relay.

Money is still being counted, but the total had reached over £3,000 by the time The Gazette went to press on Wednesday.