Youngsters are VIPs

Two youngsters found themselves at the centre of attention when they were invited to become VIPs for a day and officially open the County Air Ambulance open day at Strensham in Worcestershire.

John Reynolds, the three-times Superbike champion, was due to be guest of honour and open the annual event on Saturday.

But John was unable to attend and event organisers were left trying to find someone to officially open the gates for hundreds of visitors. Annie Newell, Air Ambulance fundraising co-ordinator said: "We were a bit stuck until I spotted Jemma and Luke waiting in the queue to visit the attractions.

"I asked them if they would do the honours and open the gates, which they did with style".

More than £10,000 was raised at the event, which included displays by a variety of visiting organisations, including Gloucestershire Police, Hereford & Worcester Fire Service and, of course, the stars of the show, the County Air Ambulance and flight crew. Annie said: "The Open Day attracted a very large number of visitors to the base.

"It was pleasing to see so many visitors of all ages turn up and we are indebted to all those people who contributed to a record breaking sum of money collected on the day."