ROGATE Christmas market raised a record £4,209 this year in just three hours for charities in the village and abroad.

Rogate School Carol Singers got it off to a festive start with a delightful selection of favourites, entertaining the queue waiting for the fair in the village hall to open.

Inside, the smell of mince pies and mulled wine filled the air, glorious Christmas bunting was strewn from the ceiling and the hall was filled to the rafters with a gorgeous variety of wares from gifts and crafts to Advent calendars, bric-a-brac and novel stocking fillers for teens. The ever popular home-made produce stall did a roaring trade with their delicious jams and chutneys and irresistible biscuits and bakes.

Throughout the fair, the hall was bustling with visitors having fun as they tried their luck at the Bottle Tombola and the Grand Raffle, which had some spectacular prizes, including £100 cash, a luxury food hamper, beauty treatments and vouchers for meals out at local pubs.

And the Children’s Activity Corner was very popular, with its lucky dip and traditional games along with its colouring competition which generated some superb artwork.

The Toy stall had an entire room to itself, where children picked up armfuls of second-hand goodies at bargain prices.

The highlight, for younger ones, was the arrival of Father Christmas with his Elf and sack of gifts for all his visitors. This year, he delighted them in a ‘snow-laden’ Winter Wonderland grotto.

The vicar of Rogate, the Reverend Edward Doyle, was on the organising committee for the fair on November 26.

He said: “As always, I am overwhelmed by the generosity and kindness of all those involved in this wonderful event.

“The local businesses who help to cover the costs, local people, who give up their time and talent and donate gifts and produce for sale, all the raffle prize donors and of course everyone who comes along on the day and happily supports these great causes, knowing that the monies raised will go towards helping others in need.”

The charities that will benefit from the funds raised are all ‘crisis’ relief ones, the Rural Refugee Network – a local initiative in Petersfield that helps refugees coming to Hampshire, Children’s Relief Bethlehem and the Parish Church Emergency Fund for those in need.