A SPECIAL NEEDS school has raised thousands to help its major expansion plans thanks to charity golf and cricket day.

About £4,300 was raised for Joseph Clarke School in Vincent Road, Highams Park, on Thursday (July 13) at the West Essex Golf Club in Chingford.

In addition to that, a charity cricket match held at Buckhurst Hill Cricket Club last month, raised a further £2,200.

This means a grand total of £6,500 was raised for the school.

The school specialises in teaching the visually impaired and pupils with complex needs and is part of the Whitefield Academy Trust.

Following its major expansion works, the school will be able to enrol 140 pupils.

To help the influx of schoolchildren the money, raised by businesses in the area and Friends of The Trust, is going towards buying a braille computer.

The Braille Notetaker has a full-size braille keyboard allowing pupils to type emails and documents in braille and print them off.

John McIntyre, owner of Carole Langley Florists in Chingford, won the individual competition and The Texas Scramble was won by a group entered by Andrew Wales.

The longest drive winner was Daniel Bees, while the nearest to the pin prize was taken home by Aadil Baig.

If anyone wishes to play in next year’s golf day visit the Whitefield Academy Trust website.