HILTON Dawson MP will be putting his literary skills to the test when he reveals memories of his first day at school to children at the Christchurch Playgroup, on May 8.

The visit will see Hilton Dawson MP read a story about his first day at school that he has written especially for the children at Christchurch Playgroup as part of From Rhyme to Reason: Pre-schools Count - a nation-wide writing competition for MPs launched by the Pre-school Learning Alliance.

Hilton Dawson is hoping to head-off competition from other MPs and make the shortlist this spring where his story will be judged by a panel of celebrity experts who will decide which MPs will go forward to the final of the competition in May. Margaret Lochrie, chief executive of the pre-school learning alliance, said: "Hundreds of thousands of children and their parents benefit every day from having a local pre-school nearby.

"But pre-schools are continuing to close and we hope the Pre-schools Count campaign will encourage the Government to implement the recommendations of a recent independent review of pre-schools and playgroups which will help bring such closures to an end."

Pre-school Supervisor, Mrs Lorraine Bowman said: "We are delighted to have Hilton Dawson visit us as part of the Pre-schools Count campaign.

"The children have been looking forward to hearing his story all week.

"This is a vital campaign which should help to give pre-schools like ours a secure future."