A fundraiser's dream is set to become a reality with the opening next month of a nursery for children with special needs.

The Colchester Children's Day Care Centre has been a dream of Colchester grandmother and the charity's founder, Ellen Daniels, for nearly 20 years.

With the help of supporters, she has raised hundreds of thousands of pounds through donations and charity shops in Mersea Road and Old Heath Road, Colchester.

Although a bungalow was bought in 2003, with plans to open the following March, the organisation was beset by planning difficulties.

The nod they had waited so long for finally came in May 2005. Now it is all systems go, as staff prepare Daniels House in Straight Road for its first intake next month.

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