STAFF at Bere Alston Surgery surprised Dr Ted Leverton (right) with a small celebration for his 25th anniversary at the practice.

The actual anniversary of Dr Leverton joining the practice, which covers the Bere peninsula, was on Tuesday, April 1, but as he was not in on that day they decided to do something special on the Thursday.

He was presented with a small gift, a bottle of champagne and a special cake during coffee break, and the coffee room and door of his room were decorated.

?Because the actual day was Tuesday I think he thought we had forgotten, so he was very surprised and pleased,? said practice secretary Cathy Fortune.