TODAY, we pass the first significant milestone in our Guardian Angels appeal.

Press Assistant Editor Francine Clee handed over £35,000 to York Hospital's children's ward.

It is the first of what will be many such presentations over the next few months as the money raised by you, our readers, continues to flow in - and it means the dream of improving conditions for sick children at the hospital is now starting to become a reality.

"It is making it real all of a sudden," said Jill Crampton, matron of children's services at the hospital. "It has been wonderful over the past few months to see the interest and money that has been raised."

We launched our appeal to raise £300,000 to fund a high dependency unit on the hospital's children's ward in October. Since then, you have responded by raising a fantastic £77,000 in less than a year.

It is money that will make a real difference to the lives of desperately sick children.

A high dependency unit in York will mean that some sick youngsters who would otherwise have had to be sent to Leeds or even Manchester for treatment will be able to be looked after here, in York - where they belong.

The response of our readers to this appeal has been outstanding, as always. But there is still a long way to go to reach our £300,000 target. So we need you to keep on coming up with those fantastic fundraising ideas.

Whether it is a sponsored walk, a charity head-shave, a bungee jump from the Humber Bridge or simply a Saturday cake stall doesn't matter.

Each and every one of you who joins in is helping to make the lives of sick children better.