A special needs pre-school in Trowbridge is celebrating after being awarded £1,400 from the Wiltshire Times’ parent company.

Staff at Stepping Stones were delighted when they found their grant application to the Gannett Foundation had been successful.

The pre-school in Polebarn Road, which caters for children with special needs including Down’s Syndrome and cerebral palsy, will spend the money on new sensory equipment.

Manager Debbie Wickham said: “We are so grateful to the Gannett Trust for giving us this grant because we are constantly fundraising to pay for the equipment we need.

“We need £40,000 to keep the place open each year and then we have to cover the bills and staff costs before we can think about equipment. We are only partly funded by Wiltshire Council.”

The money will pay for a fibre optic mat, a tactile wall panel and tubes for children to put coloured balls down.

The equipment will be used in both the pre-school’s play rooms and a sensory room to help children as young as 10 weeks old develop everyday skills such as sitting upright and holding things.

Sensory specialist and play leader Gill Williams said: “This equipment means so much to us and the children because it help stimulate their development and unfortunately most of it is very expensive so we need donations to be able to provide the children with up-to-date equipment.

“All of the children here use the sensory room and equipment but I devise a separate learning plan for each one as they are all very different in their needs.”

The pre-school not only helps about 70 children aged between 10 weeks and five years old who attend the centre but also gives support to their families, who can often feel isolated and need advice.

l IN another boost, staff at GEMS Survey Ltd, a marine survey company based in Devizes, raised £210 in a charity raffle and decided in a company ballot to donate the money to Stepping Stones.