TSUNAMI-HIT children in Sri Lanka now have somewhere to play - thanks to a Selby company.

When ITV brought back the Challenge Anneka programme, presented by Anneka Rice, after a 12-year break, they looked no further than Selby for assistance in helping a community devastated by the disaster.

The 2004 Boxing Day tsunami killed more than 200,000 people, and left more than one million without homes and basic facilities.

Now the children of Payagala, a village in the Kalutara district of Sri Lanka, have a playground fully equipped with a seesaw, swings and a roundabout - all courtesy of Record RSS, based at the Waterfront Complex, in Selby.

Chris Lodge, managing director of the playground equipment firm, said: "We're proud to have contributed to such an important and emotional project.

"The village children really love it."

The first series of Challenge Anneka was screened in 1989, with charitable causes benefiting from companies donating their products, services and time. This challenge saw Anneka and her team renovate a children's play centre, a maternity clinic and the community cricket pavilion.

The village amenities were severely damaged in the 2004 tsunami, and had not been used since. In five days, the team transformed the area.

As well as providing a fully-equipped playground, garden, and cricket and sports area, the team built a new permanent play centre, decorated and equipped with educational aids, furniture, books and toys.

Jayne Thomas, Record RSS' marketing co-ordinator, said: "The programme-makers approached us, and we said we would provide all the equipment and plan a design for the playground.

"We mainly supply to councils, so this was a bit different.

"I don't think we've done anything like this before, but we thought it was such a worthwhile cause.

"It was really nice seeing the kids use the equipment. I don't think they'd seen a playground before and they were really pleased with it."

Amina Cheal, assistant producer at the television company, said: "The final day went so well, and the reaction on the children's faces when they saw their new playground was incredible.

"We've all been on a complete emotional high since returning from Sri Lanka."