Children at Dryburn Hospital's children's ward, Durham, received an extra gift this week, thanks to the efforts of refuse collectors.

Staff from Cleanaway Ltd, the waste management company at Bishop Middleham, near Ferryhill, organised a pre-Christmas raffle to raise funds for local charities.

They succeeded in raising £425, which was doubled by the company. A total of £850 was shared between three local charities and one winner, Eddy Luke, a driver at Cleanaway, nominated the children's unit.

David Fergus, regional manager at Cleanaway, presented a cheque for £285 to Angela Traynor, nursery nurse on Ward 10 at the children's unit.

Mr Fergus said: "I am delighted to present this amount to the ward and I would like to thank all the staff for their hard work in raising the money.