A nursery marked the opening of its garden play area with a teddy bears' picnic for children.
The Kiddies Corner Nursery, in Darlington, opened in February last year, but its children have been unable to use the garden until now.
Its owners had to ensure that the garden area was safe and secure, before it could be approved by the Office for Standards in Education.
Darlington Borough Councillor Dorothy Long, who has two grandchildren at the nursery, opened the garden yesterday.
Owner Marian Dullroy said: "We just opened the garden for children to use and this was a celebration.
"It's somewhere for the children to play, whereas before we could only use the inside of the building or take them out to parks."
Coun Long also presented a cheque for £142 from the nursery to the Butterwick Children's Hospice.
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