A MAJOR refurbishment of Exbourne Pre School was completed recently with the help of parent power.

The village?s old Methodist Church Hall received a complete interior transformation this summer thanks to a grant from Hatherleigh-based support initiative Sure Start.

During the summer holiday parents gave up their time to create a brighter look for the hall with modern equipment and new kitchen facilities. They were aided by the generosity of local suppliers.

The pre-school will be holding an open day on Wednesday, December 3, to celebrate the fantastic new look at the Methodist Church Hall. There will be a Christmas activity table for the children, as well as refreshments and mince pies.

The pre school was also able to purchase new toys and equipment replacing some items which were nearly 20 years old.

Secretary Gail Butler said the parents were all really happy with the new look. ?We are really pleased. We couldn?t get over how much brighter the hall looked.? She said the children were excited too, particularly when it came to pulling out the new toys and playing with them!

Exbourne Pre-School was founded in 1986, and since then has grown from strength to strength.

The small pre school caters for around 10 pupils, and the committee are holding the open day because they are keen to raise its profile and attract more children to secure the future of the school. The one advantage of such small numbers is the high teacher to child ratio. The pre-school has three fully-qualified members of staff, and three qualified pre-school helpers.

Mrs Butler said: ?We offer a wide range of activities to cater for all children?s needs, being a small group we pride ourselves on the individual level of care we offer the children.?

She said the committee holds a number of fund-raising events during the year, including a series of ?Mid-week Cafes? in the village hall, offering a lunch for villages, which are always well supported.

Mrs Butler said the indoor refurbishment would not have been possible without the help and assistance of the suppliers who came to the group?s aid and she thanked everyone who was involved.