A 10-YEAR-old girl from Hereford raised more than £2,000 for a charity changing the lives of families in Africa.

When Ellie Lea approached the children's worker at Hereford Baptist Church to see if she would be able to sell some cushions she had been making to raise money, church leaders decided they could help Ellie even more by letting her lead a service.

She worked hard to produce leaflets and invitations to get as many people to attend as possible, and then, alongside the church's children's work deacon, led an All Age service at the church.

It included interviewing one of the church members about agricultural work he had done in Uganda – giving facts about good and bad harvests across the world – and running a 'tippy tap making competition'.

Her efforts at the service and selling her cushions raised a total of £2,600 which will go to the Send a Cow charity and fund four dairy cows.

The charity helps to lift people out of poverty by providing tools, training, seeds and livestock to enable smallholder families to grow their own food.