TODDLERS in Ferryhill and Chilton have scooped a £2.5m grant to give them a head start before they begin school.

The Government grant will cover the first three years of the first Sure Start programme in County Durham. That is good news for about 750 youngsters, all aged under four, living in the two villages.

The money will be spent on establishing three Sure Start centres, including a purpose-built centre at Dean Bank, Ferryhill.

The other two will be set up at Chilton Community College and Ferryhill Station School.

There will be eleven staff employed at the centres to provide support for the children and their parents. Each centre will provide a homely environment where children can play while their parents relax and discuss any problems they may be having with parenting.

Resident health, care and education experts will be on hand to give advice.

Lynne Henderson, chairman of the Sure Start Ferryhill and Chilton Partnership, said: "This is tremendous news for these youngsters and their parents who have supported the application for the Sure Start grant all the way. They will now receive the services they deserve in giving their children the best possible start."

She said: "It is all about offering support to families, when and where they need it, and helping these youngsters to get off to a good start in life in terms of their health and education. We are all just so pleased that we will be one of the first areas to benefit from Sure Start."

The Ferryhill and Chilton Partnership includes Sedgefield Borough Council, Durham County Council, County Durham health Authority, Sedgefield Primary Care Group and South Durham Health Care NHS Trust.

Local parents have also had a major input, and 11 of them will sit on the management committee.