TOP Dorset fundraisers Carla Oliveira and Matt Lloyd  won a place at this year’s spectacular Lord Mayor’s Show in recognition of their efforts.

Carla from Poole and Matt from Upwey in Weymouth – Dorset Premier Inn team members – were chosen to represent the hotel chain on their float in support of Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity.

Carla has helped organise a range of fundraising activities at Poole North Premier Inn, including cake and book sales and a Halloween fancy dress day.

Musical Matt teaches guitar once a week to raise funds for the charity and has taken part in a sponsored cycle race from Weymouth to Poole. The colourful float was designed to highlight the partnership between the hotel chain and the charity and featured artwork of the theme of dreams made by some of the hospital’s patients. They were cheered on by a crowd of around half-a-million people as the procession moved through the streets of the capital.

“It was a real honour to be selected to be a part of the Premier Inn and Great Ormond Street Hosp-ital Chil-dren’s Char-ity float,” said Carla.

Matt said: “The day was really fun and everyone was in great spirits knowing that we were helping to raise awareness of such an amazing charity,” said Matt.

Whitbread Hotels & Restaurants, which runs Premier Inn, has pledged to raise £7.5million towards the Premier Inn Clinical Building, a state-of-the-art centre due to open in 2017, replacing outdated wards in some of the hospital’s oldest buildings.

Gwen Grant from the charity said: “The money raised by Premier Inn fundraisers like Carla and Matt will help us make a real difference to patients and their families, and we were thrilled to see them recognised with a place in the Lord Mayor’s Show.”

The parade featured more than 7,000 participants including 180 horses, 140 vehicles, a Viking ship, Masai dancers and a tank.