A Christmas event to drum up cash to save the last wildlife animal hospital in London raised £625.

Almost 150 people visited The Wildlife Rescue and Ambulance Service in Trent Country Park between 11am and 2pm yesterday to enjoy mulled wine and mince pies in exchange for donations.

Families saw the 200 animals cared for at the centre - including pigs, birds, horses and guinea pigs - and enjoyed a festive display of fairy lights and wooden reindeer and snowmen which had been created especially for the event.

Barry Smitherman, who runs the centre with his wife June, thanked people for supporting the good cause, and said the money raised is enough to run the centre for two weeks.

Since the Enfield Independent launched the campaign on November 13 to gather £5,000 to save the animal centre, £2,300 has been raised.

Injured, trapped or abandoned animals are treated at the on-site hospital before being cared for by volunteers at the centre and, if possible, released into the wild.   

The centre ran into financial difficulty after visitor numbers fell due to a cold spring.

They need £5,000 to keep them running past January before donations are expected to increase during the Easter school holidays.

The couple are in the process of setting up an online donation site, but donations can be sent or dropped in to Wildlife Rescue and Ambulance Service (Enfield), Wildlife Hospital and Animal Centre, Trent Park, Cockfosters Road, EN4 0PS.

Please write Save Trent Park Wildlife Hospital on the envelope and we will add it to our fundraising total.