EVENTS will be held in Tavistock, Okehampton and Hatherleigh to celebrate Sure Start Children's Centre Week from September 12 to 18.

Staff will be laying on open afternoons for all families with children under five. There will be cream teas and activities for parents and children to do together as well as staff and other professionals on hand for advice and information.

Parents will also be able to chat to centre staff and learn about all the facilities on offer at Sure Start Children's Centres.

The open afternoons are from 1pm to 4pm and will be held at Tavistock on September 14, Okehampton on September 15 and Hatherleigh on September 17.

There are now more than 3,000 children's centres in England providing access to services for almost 2.4 million children under five and their families.

Three hundred more are planned to be built by March next year and then there will be one for every community in the country.

Children's centres provide play and early learning, expert advice on healthcare and parenting, links to training and job opportunities and family fun and meeting friends.

Many also have additional services such as healthy eating classes, exercise sessions and dads' groups.

Local services co-ordinator at the Tavistock Area Children Centre said: 'We are delighted to be one of the hosts of these special events so that parents who already make use of the services can celebrate the growth of the Sure Start Children's Centre network with us, and parents who are yet to discover what a difference our centres can make to their lives can come in and have a chat about what's on offer.'