IT was a proud but nervous moment for sisters Teuta and Aphra as they welcomed Princess Anne to Dorothy House earlier today.

The Princess Royal flew in to Winsley to officially open the hospice's £2.4m refurbishment and spent about two hours speaking to patients, volunteers trustees and staff.

The two little girls, whose mother was treated at the hospice, insisted on having a last minute rehearsal with a stand-in princess to make sure everything went without a hitch.

With their proud grandmother looking on, nine-year-old Teuta and her seven-year-old sister confidently presented their basket of flowers to the Princess.

Teuta said: "The princess was really nice and smiley and she asked me if I'd been able to take time off school. I said yes and I've even managed to miss a spelling test."

The Princess arrived by helicopter and was escorted to the hospice by the Lord Lieutenant of Wiltshire, John Bush.

Perfectly attired for a bright autumn day, she was wearing a dark green jacket, chocolate brown pleated skirt and knee length boots.

She was then taken on a tour of the new extension, which was only completed last week - in the nick of time for the royal visit.

The extension was funded by a private appeal called Space to Care and the money was raised through trusts and local businesses.

It includes the improved inpatient unit with its refurbished bedrooms and new bathroom with therapeutic spa bath and a refurbished day patient unit, with new orangery and a room for creative therapy.

Two new wings have also been added to the main building; an outpatient wing and an educational wing.

Other guests at today's events were Dorothy House patron, the Duchess of Beaufort, the High Sheriff of Wiltshire Geraldine Wimble, Wiltshire County Council chairman Kevin Wren and West Wiltshire District Council chairman Paul Batchelor.

For more pictures and full story see this Friday's Wiltshire Times and Chippenham News