ROTARIANS have organised a sell-out fund-raising dinner to provide a play area for one of the most deprived areas in the borough.

Leigh branch members are aiming to raise £18,000 towards the £23,000 needed for their Centenary of Rotary Project -- a Higher Folds play garden.

Many businesses and Leigh MP Andy Burnham have backed the event later this month, and the MP has offered a prize raffle which will see him take the winners on a personal conducted tour of the Houses of Parliament.

The scheme involves providing a modern play area for under fives at the estate's community centre.

Designed by the Wigan Leisure and Sports Trust it will provide a soft play area, raised beds for planting, a covered sandpit, pergola and walkway through a wild area, with a growing willow sculpture, for the children to explore.

A Rotary Club spokesman said: "Higher Folds is recognised as a bleak place where poverty is exacerbated by its isolation from shops and other amenities.

"Think how hard it must be for the most caring parent to provide stimulating play in this environment. Fears of traffic, predatory adults, drug and youth crime affect every parent and how much more so in Higher Folds.

"It is here that AGAPE, a voluntary Christian group run a family support group working with parents and toddlers. These dedicated and skilled women do a wonderful job helping parents and children, but their outdoor play facilities leave much to be desired.

"Children must play in an area of rough grass, hard tarmac and overgrown bushes. It is impossible to maintain with the limited resources they have available. It is muddy in winter and dangerous without shade in summer.

"Exciting play is essential for sound development and pre-school children deprived of good play opportunities are often aggressive and unhappy.

"We hope to give the estate what it needs and are grateful for the encouragement and financial support from Wigan Sure Start, the Douglas Valley Community Chest and Rotary Foundation."