THE annual Heighington carnival kicks off on Thursday and this year organisers are raising money for a village recreation area.

Paul Evans, owner of Carnival Funfairs, will be bringing an Alice in Wonderland ride, hoop-the-duck, a fun house, a shooting gallery, a coconut shy and more.

There will also be stalls and refreshments and, on Saturday, between 1pm and 4pm, there will be face painting and hair braiding.

Mr Evans will be donating some money to the parish council towards the fundraising.

He said: "This will be my ninth year in the village and it is a lovely pretty village.

"This year, we thought it would be a good idea to try and raise some money to try and get some more community spirit, like it was in the past.

"We are just hoping the sun shines. And we would like to invite people to bring their picnic along."

Clare Adamson, a member of the fundraising committee, said the village hoped to create a multi-age recreation area on a field off Hall Lane, where there are currently football pitches.

She said the committee, which was formed at the beginning of the year, was hoping to apply for grants towards the cost of the play area.

The village wants to provide something for younger children first, and eventually wants to provide exercise equipment for adults as well.

The fair is from 6pm until 9pm on Thursday, from 6pm to 9pm on Friday and from noon until 6pm on Saturday.