The outdoor area at Bath Place Pre-school Nursery in Leamington Spa, Warwickshire, desperately needed renovation, but there was no money for the work.
Nursery staff wanted to remove an old mural from the wall and build a sensory garden that would stimulate children's imagination and creativity.
The nursery, which provides 13 low-cost childcare places, is part of Bath Place Community Venture, a voluntary organisation set up 30 years ago to help vulnerable members of the local community. It runs a creche, a toddler group, a community cafe and an arts workshop.
Staff and children managed to raise 350 with raffles and a sponsored bounce, but needed more for materials and labour.
Jo Sadler, childcare development manager at Bath Place, said, 'We applied to Raleigh International and were fortunate enough to be chosen for a team-building project that they were organising with an international computing company called Capgemini.
'Capgemini donated materials and sent along 24 graduates to help us transform the garden in just two days. We also contacted local businesses, who supplied sandblasting equipment to remove the mural and gave us discounts on railway sleepers, guttering and woodchips to create the sensory area.'
The outdoor area now has space for vegetables and flowers, while the wall has been cleaned and is ready for an art project involving the children.
Ms Sadler said, 'There must be so many organisations across the country that face the same funding difficulties as we have. We have had to become increasingly creative in thinking about how we can improve our service and achieve our goals. The fact that organisations are looking towards team-building events that benefit their local communities is going to help everyone.'
