AN earlier-than-usual Mother s Day gave a secondary school less time to organise its annual Spring Fair. But the event at Townsend School in High Oaks, St Albans, on Saturday still proved to be a big success with more than 1,000 visitors. The spring fair

AN earlier-than-usual Mother's Day gave a secondary school less time to organise its annual Spring Fair.

But the event at Townsend School in High Oaks, St Albans, on Saturday still proved to be a big success with more than 1,000 visitors.

The spring fair has been a fixture on the school's calendar for more than 30 years and is always organised with Mother's Day in mind.

This year the celebration of motherhood was earlier than usual and the slightly chillier weather which greeted fairgoers meant that while most stalls and sideshows were held as normal, the stocks were cancelled. But others proved as popular as ever, notably car washing and smashing crockery.

The fair raised £3,500 for school projects.