ESTATE youngsters who acted as guardian angels while a £120,000 playground was being built were given a pat on the back by contractors yesterday.

Families with young children in Woodhouse Close, Bishop Auckland, helped to design the play area, which will open in two weeks.

Part of the funding came from the multi-million pound Government initiative, Sure Start, which aims to give children in deprived areas a better start in life.

Contractor Batson Landscape Services hopes to finish the work this weekend thanks, in part, to the cooperation of youngsters in the area.

Boss Terry Batson said: "They deserve huge praise. I want to thank them for their support.

"They have looked after the site all the way through and I want to give them a boost because it doesn't happen everywhere. They are good kids."

The three-year Sure Start programme encourages families to work alongside professionals to develop services and facilities for their children.

In Wear Valley, it offers free activities such as swimming sessions for under-fours, aqua- natal exercise classes, Top Tots, drop-in sessions, and a weekly opportunity to see a doctor.

Programme manager Carol Newsom said: "We have an excellent working relationship with the community and it seems that parents have passed a sense of ownership of the playground on to their children.

"They know it is special, and we hope they will look after it.

"Although it is mainly for young children, we have included the older ones by asking them to help to design the fence.

"Some parents were worried the older children would pull it to pieces but this has not happened."

Community worker Jane Armstrong will open the playground, which is being named after her, on July 27.

Sure Start is based at St Helen Auckland Community School, and covers Henknowle, South Church, Woodhouse Close, St Helen Auckland and part of West Auckland.