A hospice garden was transformed into a fantasy land at the weekend as young and old ventured out in the darkness to raise funds for a good cause.

The annual three-mile Twilight Walk in aid of East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices (EACH) was declared a major success by organisers, as more than 1,000 people took part in the challenge.

This year’s event had a Wizard of Oz theme with parts of the garden being turned into different scenes from the popular novel and musical.

Many children who took part in the walk on Saturday night also donned the costumes of their favourite characters as they helped to net an estimated £25,000 for EACH.

Hannah Bloom, partnerships manager at the charity, said: “It went really well and we were really lucky with the weather. We are so pleased.

“Given the current climate, we are really lucky that we are so well supported.

“I think that because we are local and people can see the Treehouse, we tend to get more support.

“We are just delighted with how well it went.”

This year’s walk started and finished at Copleston High School, in Copleston Road, and went through the Treehouse Garden along the journey.

Characters from the Wizard of Oz were also on hand during the event to make the evening unforgettable for the youngsters taking part.

This year’s walk is expected to surpass last year in terms of the numbers that took part and the funds raised.

But officials say they are determined to continue improving the event each year.

Mrs Bloom added: “We will go to families and ask for their feedback and then we will start to think about what we will do next year.

“I think the bar is quite high but we want it to be bigger and better each year.”

EACH supports families and cares for children and young people with life-threatening conditions in Suffolk and across East Anglia.