A SUPPORT group to help children with Down's syndrome learn and have fun is to expand after securing a £7,000 grant.

The Darlington Down's syndrome Education Trust has announced plans to launch a Saturday Club in addition to its usual Friday sessions.

The group, which helps pre-school age children with their literacy and numeracy, already has 17 sets of parents and children attending from across the region, and meets every Friday morning in Darlington's Beaumont Hill School.

With the grant from County Durham Foundation's Darlington Champions fund, the group will be able to accommodate school-age children on Saturday mornings. The money will also help pay for new equipment and staff.

The Education Trust, set up in Darlington by Maggie Hart to cater for the needs of children like her son, Alexander - a Down's syndrome sufferer - said she was delighted the group was thriving.

Mrs Hart, from Darlington, said: "The plan has just snowballed really. I visited a specialist centre down in Portsmouth and developed its model on a smaller scale.

"The group is proving really popular and when we start to meet at our new venue we can use some of the extra funding from Darlington Champions to expand the service we offer. As well as Darlington, we have parents coming from across County Durham and Teesside."

Darlington Champions was launched last year to attract new business donors from the town wanting to help local charities and organisations. New businesses are being sought to sign up.

For information on Darlington Champions, call Mel Caldwell or Gillian Stacey on 0191-3830055, or online at www.darlingtonchampions. org.uk

For more information about the support group contact Mrs Hart on (01325) 369895.