YOUNGSTERS enjoyed a taste of the Winter Olympics at a fundraising event in Basingstoke.
The Rooksdown Youth Project held a Winter Olympics-themed event to raise money to take children on a weekend trip to Weymouth.
The event, held at Rooksdown Community Centre, in Park Prewett Road, Rooksdown, included activities such as indoor curling and a snowboarding video game. There was also a raffle and candy floss.
Richard Lee, youth leader, said money raised from the event would be used to take 14 young people aged 11 to 18 on a weekend trip in October.
He said: “Going away will be a new experience for some of them, and it will be good for team-building. They’ll get to learn new skills and have some fun.”
The group needs to raise £3,000 in total, and as well as fundraising, it is applying for grants.
Among the guests at the party was Basingstoke MP and Culture Secretary Maria Miller, who tried her hand at indoor curling.
She said: “What the Rooksdown youth club has shown is that by having a strong and well-structured youth programme, you can work with the 65 members who come here on a regular basis.”
Also attending was Councillor Stephen Reid, conservative member at Hampshire County Council for Basingstoke North West.
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